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Excommunication of Luther

When
1520
Where
Unknown
Episodes
1

Pope Leo X formally excommunicated Martin Luther on 3 January 1521 via the papal bull Decet Romanum Pontificem. This action followed Luther's refusal to recant forty-one propositions condemned in the earlier bull Exsurge Domine, marking a definitive break in their theological dispute.

Episodes

  1. 15 June 1520 · UnknownRefusal to Recant

    Luther refused to recant forty-one propositions from his writings after the warning in Exsurge Domine.

Background and detail

Background. The conflict escalated after Pope Leo X issued the bull Exsurge Domine on 15 June 1520, condemning forty-one propositions from Luther's writings. Luther was given sixty days to recant but refused, leading to the formal severance of ties with the Catholic Church hierarchy.

People involved

  • Pope Leo X · Head of the Catholic Church who issued the excommunication bull
  • Martin Luther · Theologian excommunicated for refusing to recant his teachings

Sources

  1. Pope Leo X Wikipedia, revision of 2026-08-08
  2. Martin Luther Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-17

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.