The Christian Science Monitor

On Reformation's 500th anniversary, a German town buzzes with 'Luther mania'

Tourists gather around the Castle Church doors in Wittenberg, Germany where Martin Luther is said to have bailed his 95 theses 500 years ago. It is only one display of Luther mania sweeping Germany this year.

In this pretty town on the Elbe River, where Martin Luther is said to have nailed his 95 Theses to the Castle Church doors on Oct. 31, 1517, a certain Luther mania has swept through as the world marks the 500th anniversary of the start of the Reformation.

The historic churches and buildings where Luther preached, married, and baptized his own children have been painstakingly renovated. The jubilee year has brimmed with art installations, history exhibits, books, talks, and concerts.

Some of the marketing gimmicks surely would not have pleased

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