A local government leader wants to collect taxes from your family. After all, collecting taxes is normal.
We need taxes for important things, like building roads, running schools, and keeping fire stations and parks open. But what if the leader says it was okay to do bad things, like lie or break the law, as long as your family pays more taxes? You might not respect this leader very much.
Something like that happened when Pope Leo X headed the Catholic Church. When he was appointed in 1513, he got involved in long wars and big construction projects. These costly efforts led Leo X to sell indulgences to raise money. If you purchased an indulgence, according to the Church, you wouldn’t have to suffer for your sins in the afterlife.
A man named Martin Luther became very frustrated with Pope Leo X’s corruption. Let’s see how the Church’s actions led Martin Luther to start the Reformation.
