Responsio ad Lutherum

Responsio ad Lutherum is a work by Thomas More, written in response to Martin Luther's challenge to the authority of the Pope and the Catholic Church. More, a devout Catholic, defended the papacy and the established doctrines of the church against Luther's reformist ideas.12

Martin Luther, a German theologian, initiated the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century by questioning practices such as the sale of indulgences. His Ninety-five Theses, posted in 1517, challenged doctrinal abuses and asserted that Scripture alone was the basis of authority. This movement led to a division in Western Christendom, creating Protestant traditions like Lutheranism and Calvinism alongside Roman Catholicism. More's work, Responsio ad Lutherum, was part of the broader Catholic Counter-Reformation effort to address and refute the challenges posed by reformers.312