On October 31, 1517, an obscure Augustinian monk and theology professor posted a notice on the door of the church in Wittenberg, Germany, calling for a formal, public debate on a minor point of church doctrine and practice: whether it was proper for the church to give papal indulgences promising release from purgatory in return…

September has always been a time of anticipation and excite- ment for me. I grew up loving school, and September meant that school was about to start again. New teachers, new classes, new pencils, new schedules–it was all thrilling, even when it was also unnerving or even a bit scary. The start of the school…