Rick Steves Special: Luther And The Reformation

By Jennifer Robinson / Web Producer

Published September 5, 2017 at 12:02 PM PDT

Host Rick Steves with a 400-year-old Luther Bible in Rothenburg, Germany.

Friday, Aug. 18, 2023 at 11 p.m. on KPBS TV / Stream now on YouTube

In 1510, a young monk from Germany named Martin Luther walked 700 miles to Rome on a pilgrimage. He returned home disillusioned, and in 1517, raised 95 difficult theological questions at the university where he taught — and kicked off what became the Protestant Reformation. By questioning corrupt Catholic Church practices, Luther unleashed a torrent of public frustration and undercut the power of the Church.

Host Rick Steves and the bronze Luther statue in Wittenberg Market Square, Wittenberg, Germany.

In "Rick Steves Special: Luther And The Reformation," travel expert Rick Steves sheds light on the 500th anniversary of the Reformation by visiting key sites (including Erfurt, Wittenberg and Rome), and explores the complicated political world of 16th-century Europe, from indulgences to iconoclasts, and from the printing press to the Counter-Reformation. It’s a story of power, rebellion and faith that precipitated change in Europe and Christianity forever, and contributed to the birth of our modern world.

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