The attack on the church began in earnest in 1517, when a constipated German monk nailed a list of complaints to the door of the church in Wittenberg. (Luther’s constipation was legendary. Some scholars believe that his great revelation about faith came to him when he was sitting on the privy. “Luther’s release from the constricting bondage of fear corresponded to the release of his bowels,” notes one text, commenting on this theory.)
