Luther's nailing of theses 'a legend' say Jesuits

(ANSA) - Rome, October 20 - Martin Luther's iconic act triggering the Reformation, nailing his 95 theses to the door of a church in Wittenberg on October 31, 1517, did not in fact happen, Italian Jesuit newspaper Civiltà Cattolica says in a forthcoming article, excerpts of which have been released.
    The article notes that Luther nowhere in his writings mentions this act and the only alleged witness, Philipp Melanchthon, could not have been an eye-witness to the event since he was only 16 at the time and was not called to Wittenberg University as a professor until 1518.
    Melanchthon "was not in Wittenberg at the time," the article said, calling the supposed historic gesture "a legend".
    Luther, furthermore, did not mean to break with the Catholic Church on that date, the article said, and was only aiming to spark a debate on the scandalous issue of selling indulgences.
    But Civiltà Cattolica said the start of the Reformation should still be dated October 31, 5017, because "on that date Luther wrote to his bishop and to the man in charge of preaching for indulgences, and with a prayer to end the scandal of indulgences, he demanded a reform of the Church".