Final answer:
Martin Luther's calls for reform via the Ninety-Five Theses led to the Protestant Reformation, challenging the Catholic Church's practices and authority, which deeply divided Europe and sparked religious wars amplified by political interests.
Step-by-step explanation:
The beliefs and calls for reform by Martin Luther ignited conflict across Europe because they challenged the established religious and political order. Luther's proposition of the Ninety-Five Theses in 1517 spurred the Protestant Reformation, disputing key Catholic doctrines and practices such as the authority of the Pope, the selling of indulgences, and advocating for the Bible's translation into vernacular languages. This created deep religious divisions which intertwined with political tensions, leading to widespread religious wars across the continent. The Catholic Church's condemnation of Luther as a heretic and his subsequent excommunication further exacerbated dissent, as what began as a call for reform within the church became a full-fledged religious movement leading to the formation of new Christian denominations like Lutheranism, Calvinism, and Anglicanism.
Fueled by the spread of Luther's ideas through the printing press and an increasing literacy rate, these theological disputes translated into military conflicts, as rulers and nations aligned themselves with either the new Protestant sects or the orthodox Catholic doctrine. These alignments often reflected political motivations as much as they did religious beliefs, ultimately resulting in prolonged and devastating religious wars such as the German Peasants' War, the Eighty Years' War, the French Wars of Religion, and the Thirty Years' War.