Across the Fence: Hier stehe ich. Ich kann nicht anders

“Here I stand. I cannot do otherwise. May God help me. Amen.” This is the translation of one of the most famous announcements uttered by no other than German reformer Martin Luther at the Diet of Worms in 1521. Did you know that his original quote (pronounce: here ‘stay-hah ih, ih cun nih-t unders) is a Germanism that made it into the English language? Well, probably not for everybody’s everyday use, for sure. But it’s one that marks a turning point not just in the history of Christian religion in Europe but of European history itself.

What is this all about?

On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther, who had written quite a few books already, nailed his 95 theses at the church door of the dome of Wittenberg, Germany. 95 theses that questioned the authority of the Pope and the Church as to forgiveness for sins as to gaining access to Heaven. They were written in Latin, as they were meant for the church authorities in the first place. Why there? First of all, pretty much everybody went to church on Sundays back in the day. Second, the doors served as bulletin boards for a lot of things, as everybody passed them, going inside and coming outside. If somebody didn’t know how to read (Latin), somebody was surely able to spell it out and translate it to them. The rich and the influential certainly were able to read and understand Latin. So, this was strategically and tactically clever.

Of course, the Catholic Church didn’t like this thorn in their side that managed to sprout so many followers over so short a time. The feud became stronger and stronger, culminating in summoning Luther to the Diet in Worms in 1521, a convention of worldly authorities that were ready to listen to complaints against the Church. It was here that Luther was asked whether he was the author of what they deemed heretic books and whether he was ready to recant. Luther asked for time to ponder his response and was granted a generous 24 hours. Had he seemed meek and almost shy on the first day of confrontation, he returned bold and encouraged the second. He made his points. He asked for proof that that he was wrong, as he would be the one to toss his books into the fire himself. He performed a speech that ended with “Here stehe ich. Ich kann nicht anders. Gott helfe mir. Amen.”

To me it is one of the most openly defiant, conscientious announcements ever. Martin Luther knew that he was in for punishment that would mean he could be killed by anybody if they chose so. An Imperial ban basically meant that he was outlawed. But there were Protestant aristocrats by now who helped him on. Not only did some grant him safe travels through their lands. One of them actually “attacked” his coach and had him kidnapped for his own safety. During his years on the Wartburg, a fortress in Eisenach, Luther would translate the New Testament into German, another act of disobedience against the Catholic Church, as it made the word accessible to anybody.

Whereas the Diet in Worms was the birth hour of Lutheran Protestantism all over Germany, the date of Luther’s first act of protest in 1517 made it into the church calendar. Perhaps because that was the first time that he really put his head out above the crowd.

When I was a child, Reformation Day was a bank holiday. The Protestant church ceded it as well as Buß- und Bettag (Atonement Day) to politics. But in Saxony, from where Luther made such an impact, it has been re-introduced after Communism fell.

“Hier stehe ich. Ich kann nicht anders” – I wish that conscience was acted on more often than opportunity. It would have been so easy for Luther to have given in, and we’d be still in the Middle Ages in Europe. But he stood firm, and his stance helped lead to free thought in religion as well as in all scientific fields we can imagine. It takes courage, sacrifice, and a lot of faith to walk this thorny road. And yet … people like he never walk it all alone. For a lasting impact.