This week in Christian history: influential bishop born, Martin Luther protector dies, Arminius

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Sunday, May 03, 2020

Protector of Martin Luther dies – May 5, 1525

Frederick III, also known as Frederick the Wise (1463-1525), an elector of the Holy Roman Empire who protected Martin Luther during the early years of the Reformation. | Public Domain

This week marks the anniversary of when Frederick the Wise, the elector of Saxony who protected Martin Luther early on in the Reformation, died.

An elector of the Holy Roman Empire, Frederick had founded the University of Wittenberg in 1502 and appointed Luther and fellow Protestant Reformer Philipp Melanchthon to posts at the school.

When the Roman Catholic Church issued a papal bull against Luther, Frederick refused to enforce it and gave Luther sanctuary as he translated the Bible into German.

"Very little is known of his motives, politically or religiously, for supporting the reform," explained the website Reformation 500.

"Whether out of obligation to a professor at the university he founded, dynastic rivalry, or sincere religious conviction, Frederick allowed the Protestant movement associated with Luther to gain important momentum during its infancy and sought its political legitimation thereafter."