Legend has it that on Oct. 31, 1517, Martin Luther hammered his 95 Theses onto the door of the Castle Church in Wittenburg. His intention was to spark an academic debate, not a violent uprising. He argued that idolatry should be stopped in the heart, not by destroying sacred works of art.
He denounced the iconoclasm that took over the Reformation and did not live to see the tidal wave of violence that swept across Northern Europe, destroying countless masterpieces of Catholic heritage.
