ABSTRACT
All the major Protestant reformers detested the late medieval sacrament of penance. They did not simply strive to eliminate abuses, that is, to attain to a purer practice of an extant ideal; rather, they challenged the ideal itself. Reflecting the pervasive concern for salvation via the penitential process shown in the model sermon collections surveyed, Protestants identified the forgiveness of sins as the chief point of disagreement between themselves and the Catholic church. At the end of the Middle Ages, indulgences were theologically controversial and pastorally worrisome. Sermons on indulgences, for instance, that of Caracciolo, indicate that important doctrinal questions, such as the extent of their validity, were being debated. Martin Luther was highly critical of both the theology and the practice of the late medieval penitential system. Several of the preachers acknowledged the fallibility of human priests as judges. In his penitential teaching, Luther retains contrition, confession, satisfaction and absolution, all parts of the late medieval penitential process.
