Reformation (Primary Source SAQ)

“I believe that Luther represents a catastrophe in the history of Western civilization. This is not to say that the catastrophe was all his fault. All sides have a share of blame in the boiling hatreds and carnage that consumed Europe for well over a century after Luther died. But in my view, whatever good Luther did is not matched by the calamities that came because of him. . . . We know now that things can go terribly and catastrophically wrong and that all the good that comes from great events does not necessarily or even usually overbalance the evil. Some good came from the Reformation as Luther shaped it, but I remain convinced that our world would have been far better off had events taken a different course.” --Richard Marius, Martin Luther: The Christian Between God and Death, 1999

Explain one piece of evidence from 1517-1648 that would support the argument above.

Explain another piece of evidence from 1517-1648 that would support the argument above.

Explain one piece of evidence from 1517-1648 that would refute (contradict) the argument above.