Philipp Melanchthon was born on this day 512 years ago near Karlsruhe, Germany. At the age of 12 he started studying at the University of Heidelberg in the fields of philosophy, rhetoric and astronomy/astrology. He subsequently moved to the University of Tübingen, where he studied theology and became troubled by the difference he perceived between theology as taught at University and Christianity as described in the New Testament.
Melanchthon was then called to the University of Wittenberg by Martin Luther. He became a leading figure in the Protestant Reformation, although his relationship with Luther was often strained, particularly over disagreements concerning the nature of the Lord’s Supper. Luther believed that the bread and wine remained fully bread and fully wine while also being fully the body and blood of Jesus Christ, whereas other protestants believed the bread and wine were merely symbolic.
After Luther’s death in 1546, Melanchthon became the theological leader of the German Reformation, but the remaining 14 years of his life were plagued by difficulties and controversies, both with Roman Catholics and with other protestants. His main contribution to the reformation was in collecting and systematising the ideas of Luther and others for the purpose of teaching them to a wider audience.