The full social and political implications of Luther's message unfolded only gradually in the years after 1517. The violent upheavals of the years 1520–25 suggested to many–Catholic and Protestant alike–that the Luther problem could not be remedied simply through minor compromises on matters of ecclesiastical practice and administration. For Catholic rulers as well as for more traditional-minded and conciliatory Lutherans, the new faith posed a distinct threat to the social order. From both the Lutheran and Catholic perspectives, evangelical religion needed to be cleansed of its potential for social and political disruption, if not eradicated altogether.

For Catholics, the matter seemed fairly straightforward. Johann Albrecht of Brandenburg wrote that order could result only from the restoration of religious unity on the basis of the old faith. The next several decades would nevertheless see considerable debate among Catholics about what reforms were required to ensure the health and welfare of the church. For Lutherans, the issue was somewhat more complicated, and the years immediately following the cessation of the Peasants' War saw a concerted effort to forge an authoritative definition of evangelical faith, an effort that would bear fruit in the Augsburg Confession and the church ordinances of the 1530s.

The establishment of doctrinal norms could not be fully divorced from political considerations. At both the imperial and territorial levels, the religious question was closely tied to the struggle between the prince and the estates.