January 3rd: Martin Luther’s Excommunication and the "Butter Brief"

    During the Middle Ages, Catholic Canon Law strictly prohibited the consumption of meat, as well as dairy products like milk, butter, and cheese, during the season of Lent. While Southern Europe flourished with abundant olive oil, Germany—where olives did not grow—relied heavily on butter as a vital source of fat.

To eat butter during Lent, Germans were forced to purchase a special dispensation from the Papacy in Rome, known as the "Butter Letter" (Butterbrief). Martin Luther, a cleric and professor, fiercely criticized this system.

"Why must we pay Rome for the right to eat the good butter produced from our own land?" he questioned. "Do not turn the freedom given by God into a means of profit." His logic struck a deep chord with the German people, fueling the flames of the Reformation.

    On January 3rd, 1521, Pope Leo X issued the final decree of excommunication against Martin Luther. He was no longer a member of the Church he had sought to reform. However, this was not the end of his defiance. Four years later, in a move that further challenged centuries of tradition, Luther married Katharina von Bora—a former nun whom he had helped escape from a convent.

Portraits of Martin Luther and his wife Katharina von Bora by Lucas Cranach the Elder