Sale of Indulgences

Definition

The sale of indulgences was a practice where the Catholic Church sold pardons for sins. It was widely criticized and led to Martin Luther's Ninety-Five Theses, sparking off Protestant Reformation.

Analogy

Imagine you're playing a board game where you can buy "Get Out Of Jail Free" cards with real money. This is similar to how people could buy indulgences from church officials to reduce their time in purgatory or even absolve them from sins entirely!

Related terms

Martin Luther: A German professor of theology, composer, priest, monk, and seminal figure in Protestant Reformation who strongly disputed the claim that freedom from God's punishment could be purchased with money.

Ninety-Five Theses: A list of propositions for an academic disputation written in 1517 by Martin Luther that criticizes the Church and the Pope, especially the practice of selling indulgences.

Purgatory: In Catholic doctrine, it's a place or state of suffering inhabited by the souls of sinners who are expiating their sins before going to heaven.