Ideas in Society, Essay Example

Throughout history, individuals have both developed and modified ideas that allowed humanity to think of the world in a new way. These individuals have helped contribute to progress around the globe and we continue to rely on their ideas for the basis of our thoughts today. Two significant figures that have been able to contribute to this process are Galileo Galilei and Martin Luther. Both of these thinkers are associated with religion, and both due to their ability to defy conventions of their respective time periods. Galileo Galilei was a pious man who was dedicated to the Roman Catholic Church, when he discovered that contradictory to the church’s teachings, the Earth revolves around the sun, indicating that the sun is not the center of the universe. In addition, Martin Luther is best known for reforming Christian devotion by stating that individuals can achieve salvation without buying indulgences from the Church. Both of these figures demonstrate the great change that a single person could make in addition to how these ideas continue to impact the world today.

Galileo Galilei was an astronomer who lived in Italy during the mid-1500s. He was well-known for being a bright young man and eventually went to school to study the mysteries of the universe. During his time as a scientist, he was able to make modifications to the already existing model of the telescope, which allowed him to view the planets with a greater clarity than ever before. Using his invention, he noted that there was no way that the Earth could be the center of the universe, which led to him reporting his findings. When the Church found out about this, they called him a heretic for contradicting their teachings. Galileo was deeply conflicted by this because even though he believes in the Church, he also was not able to deny what he saw. His persistence contributed greatly to modern society because it allowed individuals to eventually believe what he was saying. As a result, he provided us with one of the greatest understandings of the universe that allowed scientists to explore further and find out more about our solar system and space in general.

On the other hand, Martin Luther lived during a time period in which the Church had nearly complete control over society. He deeply believed that there was a way to simplify religion and that those that were true believers did not have to go through excess efforts to go to heaven. He recorded these ideas in a document known as the Ninety-Five Theses on the door of the Church to let people know his thoughts. As a result of these actions in addition to future protests of the church, Protestantism and Lutheranism developed. Both of these religions share the same values as the Catholic Church but believe that worship and salvation operates differently. This impacts today’s society because a large number of people follow these religions, and this form of worship would not have been possible without Luther’s actions.

In conclusion, people who take great risks are able to share great ideas. Galileo Galilei and Martin Luther sacrificed their standing in society in order to share what they believed to be true. As a result, the modern world has a greater understanding of physics and the Earth’s role in the universe. In addition, Protestantism and Lutheranism are now widely practiced. Overall, this demonstrates that modifying old ideas is an important part of progress and that we must continue to do this in order to achieve even greater things.