Unit 7 Lesson 7: Reformation

Question 1

By the year 1500, the Roman Catholic Church had long been a powerful institution. In what ways?

Answer 1

Most Europeans practiced the Catholic faith. Kings and queens also belonged to the Roman Catholic Church. They recognized the pope’s religious power as separate from their own political power. Some popes thought they should have more power than secular leaders. This led to conflicts within the Church and with different countries’ rulers. Regardless of these power struggles, Catholicism was the religion of most European people.

Question 2

Pope Boniface VIII

Answer 2

Pope Boniface VIII tried to stop war between France and England. On the other hand, Boniface VIII also fought to stop rulers from taxing Church leaders. He ultimately decreed that the pope had power over all other rulers. This announcement angered the king of France so much that he fought back against the pope.

Question 2

The disagreements over the Roman Catholic Church’s power and leadership coincided with the Renaissance.

Answer 2

People’s lives and ways of thinking were changing across Europe. While the Roman Catholic Church remained powerful, some people began to look at it more closely. Humanists in particular, began to think deeply about the Church’s role and power.

Question 2

John Wycliffe

Answer 2

In England, John Wycliffe was one of the individuals who became outspoken in his criticism of the Roman Catholic Church during the fourteenth century. He translated the Bible into English. English political leaders sought his viewpoints to determine whether or not they could contribute less money to the Roman Catholic Church. Wycliffe began to challenge some of the Church’s core doctrines and became one of the first to call on the Church to reform itself.

Question 2

What was the Western Schism

Answer 2

In the aftermath, the Roman Catholic Church leadership experienced a century of upheaval. For most of the fourteenth century, the pope relocated from Rome to Avignon, France. Then, from 1378 to 1417, after the pope returned to Rome, the Western Schism took place. In this time, there were two (or more) rival popes who each claimed leadership of the Roman Catholic Church. Not only was the Roman Catholic Church leadership in disarray, but this experience led many to question the Church further.

Question 3

Nonetheless, the Roman Catholic Church influenced Europeans’ lives to a large degree.

Answer 3

Faithful Catholics continued to attend Mass and have their children baptized. They celebrated holy days and other feast days to mark the passage of time. They gave a tithe to the church from their income. Most people also expected to participate in sacraments, such as marriage or confession. Many continued to join the Church as clergy, such as priests, monks, or nuns. When they approach the end of their lives, they expected that a priest would provide the last rites, the final sacrament before death.

Question 4

Why did Hus face excommunication and die

Answer 4

Ultimately, Hus faced excommunication from the Church, in part because of the Western Schism. Hus and his followers supported one pope. However, the archbishop of Bohemia and most high-ranking clergy in the country supported the other pope. Hus continued to speak out, especially against the practice of selling indulgences. In 1415, he was deemed a heretic and sentenced to death by burning at the stake.

Question 4

Jan Hus

Answer 4

Jan Hus, who lived during the late fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries, was another Church critic. Born in Bohemia in Eastern Europe, Hus read Wycliffe’s works. He, too, believed that the Church needed to reform itself. In Bohemia, members of the clergy owned much of the land and wealth. As a result, most Bohemians paid large land taxes to the clergy. Hus became a writer and public speaker, sharing his views on the need for Church reform.

Question 5

At the end of the fifteenth century, Erasmus of Rotterdam gained international recognition as a Christian humanist.

Answer 5

One of his main ideas was that it was important to understand the Bible in its original language. Erasmus recommended that people should learn classical languages, including not just Latin but also Greek and Hebrew. He developed new Greek and Latin translations of the New Testament. Erasmus, unlike Wycliffe and Hus, did not focus on issues of doctrine. However, his efforts to return people to the original language of the Bible were highly influential.

Question 6

The Protestant Reformation began in the early sixteenth century. Whoose Martin Luther

Answer 6

Martin Luther, a monk living and teaching in Wittenberg, Germany, made a decisive move that changed Christianity immensely. Like Wycliffe and Hus a century earlier, Luther thought the Church needed to reform. In 1517, Luther began critiquing the practice of selling indulgences. Hus had also protested this practice.

Question 7

In the Catholic faith, most souls go to purgatory after death. Purgatory is a place between death and heaven. In purgatory, souls undergo purification before they can go to heaven. During the medieval and early modern periods, the Catholic Church at times emphasized the idea of purchasing indulgences, which would free souls from purgatory. The Church benefitted financially from the sales of indulgences, which they saw as offerings from the faithful.
How did Hus and Luther feel about this

Answer 7

Like Hus, Martin Luther believed that selling indulgences was a corrupt practice that took advantage of believers.

Question 7

October 31, 1517, usually marks the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. What happened on this day

Answer 7

It has long been believed that on this day, Martin Luther nailed his Ninety-Five Theses to the door of the church in Wittenburg, Germany. This document included his concerns about the sale of indulgences. It also discussed other concerns Luther had about the Roman Catholic Church’s doctrine. He was concerned with corruption, as previous scholars had been. However, Luther had also come to believe that there were problems with the Roman Catholic Church’s foundational beliefs. Luther did not intend to break from the Catholic Church. He wanted to start conversations that might lead to reform.

Question 8

As Luther’s ideas spread, people across Germany began to discuss and debate his writing. In 1519, the scholar Johann Eck invited Luther to debate with him.

Answer 8

Luther still did not intend to leave the Catholic Church. However, Eck accused Luther of being a heretic and compared him to Jan Hus. In the aftermath, Luther began to doubt the authority of the pope.

Question 9

Meanwhile, as Luther’s ideas continued to spread, other people began to agree with him. Lutherans

Answer 9

Meanwhile, as Luther’s ideas continued to spread, other people began to agree with him. People who created new churches based on his ideas became known as Lutherans. A number of cities throughout Germany and Scandinavia adopted Lutheranism during the sixteenth century.

Question 9

Luther punsihements and times he got banned

Answer 9

By 1520, the Catholic Church announced that Luther needed to give up his criticisms of the Church. If he did not, he would be excommunicated. In January 1521, the Catholic Church excommunicated him. In spring 1521, the Diet of Worms, a meeting of the Holy Roman Empire, questioned Luther about his writings. He refused to recant, or take back, his ideas. As a result, the Diet banned Luther’s writings and declared him an outlaw. Both church and state had declared Luther a dangerous individual.

Question 10

1.

Additionally, Luther’s ideas led some people in Germany to rise up for political change. They saw Luther’s reform ideas as beneficial not just for the Church, but for their country’s government. The 1525 Peasants’ Wa

Answer 10

the 1525 Peasants’ War drew on one of Luther’s main ideas that the Bible alone should be the foundation of belief. Luther alternately spoke out in defense of and against the peasants’ efforts.

Question 11

1.

Luther’s initial ideas led to sweeping changes. People across Europe began to question the Catholic Church and seek alternatives. Some followed Luther’s teachings, but other ideas also began to emerge. After 1517, there was no longer one Church—the Roman Catholic Church—in Europe, but a number of churches.

Answer 11

These became known as Protestant churches as early as 1529. Protestant became an umbrella term for any church that developed during the Reformation to become separate from the Catholic Church.

Question 12

Huldrych Zwingli

Answer 12

Huldrych Zwingli from Switzerland was an early reformer who also corresponded with Erasmus and built on Luther’s ideas. Zwingli also disagreed with some of Luther’s beliefs. He specifically brought Protestant reforms to Switzerland before his death in 1531, and his ideas eventually intertwined with Calvin’s to create the Reformed Church.

Question 12

John Calvin

Answer 12

John Calvin, a Frenchman who converted to Protestantism. He agreed with many of Luther’s ideas, but he expanded on them in new ways. Calvin became the forefather of several Protestant churches, including the New England Puritans, Dutch Reformed Church, and the Presbyterian Church.

Question 13

1.

John Knox

Answer 13

John Knox was born in Scotland just a few years before Luther began the Reformation. In his lifetime, he helped shape the Church of England after Henry VIII broke with the Catholic Church. Knox was particularly influenced by Calvin.

Question 14

What was Martin Luther’s goal in circulating his Ninety-Five Theses?

Answer 14

He wanted to draw attention to what he saw as problems with the Catholic Church, in hopes of leading to eventual reform.

Question 14

Most challenges facing the Roman Catholic Church in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries primarily affected Church and political leaders at that time. Given what you have learned, what were some of the long-term impacts Europeans encountered because of these challenges?

Answer 14

Sample answer: The relocation of the pope and the later Western Schism suggested that the pope and the Church were not perfect. One long-term impact of these events was that scholars began to question the Church’s ideas on a deeper level, as well as suggesting areas for potential reform.

Question 15

Did the priinting of book increase literacy

Answer 15

Just because books and printed documents were cheaper and more available did not mean that everyone began to read. Literacy rates did grow, but they were often tied to gender and class status. Men and people with higher incomes were more likely to learn how to read. This would eventually change.

Question 16

importance of the priting of the bible

Answer 16

The ability to print the Bible easily also helped in this religious transformation. Bibles were no longer only objects kept in a monastery or locked away by priests in Catholic churches. Now that Bibles could be printed quickly, they could also be translated more easily. This meant that more and more people could read the Bible for themselves. They did not have to rely on their priest to tell them what was in the Bible and what it meant.

Question 17

As ideas spread, reaction to those ideas also emerged. New questions developed about the need to censor some writings. Roman Catholic Church leaders worried about the new ideas that people were hearing and how people might react to them. As a result, leaders of the Roman Catholic Church began new efforts to censor criticism of the Church as the Reformation expanded.

Answer 17

. They solidified their work by creating their first Index of Forbidden Books in the mid-sixteenth century. They also brought back the Inquisition to punish people who went against the Church’s decisions. For some time then, it could be dangerous to be a book printer in Europe.

Question 18

# 1. Hypothesize why literacy rates did not rise quickly after the movable type printing press was developed.

Answer 18

Although it was easier to access documents in writing, and even though these documents and books were cheaper, this did not mean that people had learned to read. Books still cost money, and people in the lowest classes likely did not have the funds to purchase books, which also might have made it less likely that they would need or want to learn how to read.

Question 19

Another important Protestant reformer was John Calvin.

Answer 19

Calvin was originally from France, but over time, his criticisms of the Catholic Church meant he was forced to leave the country. He eventually settled in Geneva, Switzerland with other Protestant refugees from Catholic France. It was there that Calvinism developed as part of the Protestant Reformation.

Question 19

Witnessing these practices caused some to begin to question the Church. Additionally, the rapid spread of the bubonic plague also caused increased skepticism.

Answer 19

The Church had often taught that disease was spread due to sins. Its inability to cure the bubonic plague as it swept through Europe during the fourteenth century, regardless of the number of indulgences or other atonements performed, also made people begin to question.

Question 19

The Catholic Church did much to provide hope and support for people during this time. However, this rapid expansion of power also created opportunities for corruption and ineffectiveness within the Church. “cardinal-nephews

Answer 19

Church officials started to be appointed not because of their faith but because of the political ties they had, especially in places such as Italy, where Rome is located. These “cardinal-nephews” as they were called, became very common, and their appointment kept Church power in a limited number of hands.

Question 20

This time period also saw a tremendous growth in the wealth of the Church. Traditionally, the Roman Catholic faith requested a tithe from members to help pay priests and fund the building of churches. As the Church grew, these tithes were not enough to maintain the Church’s vast network.

Answer 20

To compensate, the Church developed a number of practices designed to increase funding under the guise of religion. For example, sometimes the Church sold religious services or even appointments to office in a practice called simony. It also sold a document known as an indulgence. In Christianity, it is often believed that asking forgiveness is enough to atone for sins. In Catholic practice of the time, however, some sins required the sinner to spend time in a place between heaven and hell, called purgatory, to atone for sins before continuing on to heaven. The Church sold indulgences as a way to lessen the time spent in purgatory after death. Indulgences could be purchased for yourself or someone else.

Question 21

# 1. Some aspects of Lutheranism and Calvinism were similar, such as their views on Original Sin and the role of God’s divine grace. In other ways, the two were different. One of the most important features of Calvinism is its view of predestination.

Answer 21

While Luther and his followers believed that God was constantly involved in a Christian’s life, trying to shepherd them toward salvation, Calvinists believed that upon being born, one’s destination toward either heaven or hell was already assigned. In their view, the way to determine if someone was predestined for heaven was to look at things such as wealth, success, and health, because if God has chosen you to go to heaven, you would have greater access to those things in this life.

Question 21

Another difference between Calvin and Luther is that Luther believed institutions such as the Catholic Church, and even governments, were flawed. He argued for a “priesthood of believers” in which each person could help determine their fate.

Answer 21

Calvin, on the other hand, believed that Christians should be fighting to establish a Kingdom of God, and they needed to take over governments and religious institutions to do so. Some historians even argue that Calvin created a kind of Christian theocracy in Geneva as people adopted his ideas.

Question 22

The Anglican Church

Answer 22

In England, King Henry VIII declared himself the head of the Church of England after the pope refused to annul his marriage. This new Anglican Church translated the Bible into English to make it more accessible to the people. Early priests were required to be celibate, but later, priests were allowed to marry. This split between the Protestants and Catholics in England affected political and social life in the British Isles all the way through the twentieth century, when Irish Catholics fought with Irish Protestants in English-controlled Northern Ireland.

Question 23

The Anabaptists

Answer 23

Another movement in the Protestant Reformation was called the Anabaptists. They believed that adults must be baptized a second time so they could confess their sins and affirm their faith. This was highly controversial for the time, and the practice was even punishable by death in some countries. Anabaptists also refused to swear oaths or loyalty to anyone other than God, placing them in frequent opposition to governments and fellow citizens. They were constantly persecuted for their radical ideas. Eventually, descendants of the Anabaptists settled in the United States and eventually became modern-day Mennonite communities. Even today, members of these communities refrain from using any non-Biblical technologies, such as electricity and the internet.

Question 24

Later reformers, such as John Calvin and Ulrich Zwingli, supported Luther’s criticisms and made their own challenges to the Catholic Church.

Answer 24

. Zwingli believed that anything not explicitly mentioned in the Bible had to be rejected. This included belief in transubstantiation, the idea that the bread and wine of the Eucharist become the body and blood of Christ in Catholic religious services. Calvin agreed with Luther’s view that salvation was achieved through faith alone, but he emphasized the idea of predestination. He believed that God had already decided which people were destined for heaven and hell, and Calvinists were the ones destined for eternal salvation.

Question 25

The Council of Trent

Answer 25

In 1545, Pope Paul III called the Council of Trent. Ecumenical councils were used by the Catholic Church to call together bishops and other Church authorities to decide issues of doctrine. They had been used in the past to discuss the nature of God, Jesus, and the Holy Trinity, as well as to generally ensure that a consistent message of Christianity was used within the Catholic Church. However, these councils could also be dangerous for the pope’s power within the Catholic Church. Followers of a movement within the church called conciliarism believed that supreme authority within Roman Catholicism belonged with these councils instead of the pope. By calling the Council of Trent, the pope risked not just losing power to Protestants, but also to Catholic opposition groups.

Question 26

The calling of the Council was also resisted by leaders within the Holy Roman Empire.

Answer 26

The Holy Roman Empire was not a truly unified empire with a single, all-powerful leader like the Roman or Byzantine Empires were. Instead, a mixture of powerful local leaders, princes, church officials, and cities unified to elect an emperor. This created a unique political dynamic for the Catholic Church because it not only had to navigate internal politics of the Church, but also political disputes between secular leaders. Some of these secular leaders had allied with Protestant reformers and did not want the council to hurt those alliances.

Question 27

As the Council of Trent proceeded, violence broke out across Northern Europe between Lutherans and Protestants, as well as between the Holy Roman Empire and Fra

Answer 27

It was only after a peace between those two nations, combined with a looming threat of invasion by the Ottoman Empire in the East, that the council was formally called.

Question 28

The council reaffirmed the importance of the Eucharist and the role that it plays in Catholic religious services.

Answer 28

This was important to argue against people such as Zwingli. They also rejected the addition of books into the Bible from outside the accepted canon. These included the early Christian texts known as the Apocrypha that Luther added to his version of the Bible. The council’s focus on faith acted to reaffirm that both the Bible and Catholic religious traditions were important. Protestants had begun to argue that anything not explicitly mentioned in the Bible was improper.

Question 29

The reforms that the Catholic Church adopted also acted to strengthen them against Protestant opposition.

Answer 29

The Church limited the use of indulgences and stopped using them as a money-making instrument. Bishops were required to live within the areas of the Church that they oversaw. This is similar to how senators in the United States must be residents of the state they represent. Previously, bishops could live anywhere, so they would accumulate land and benefits for every title they held. This also connects to the political dynamics of the time. During the Council of Trent, the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V signed the Peace of Augsburg in 1521. This allowed each Germanic prince to choose the Christian faith they would practice. This effectively granted the Lutherans political legitimacy even as the Catholic Church was debating their religious legitimacy.

Question 30

Another important reform was that the Catholic Church set standards for the education and training of priests.

Answer 30

Prior to the Council of Trent, some priests had little to no religious training and received their jobs because of family connections. There are even instances of priests being unable to read. One important religious group that comes out of this reform is the Society of Jesus, or the Jesuits. Founded by Ignatius of Loyola, the Jesuits saw themselves as soldiers of God. They reaffirmed their loyalty to the pope and sought to defend the faith against heresy, such as that of the Protestants. They also sought to expand Catholicism across the world. Jesuit missionaries became central to the spread of Christianity across Latin America during the Spanish conquest, and they even attempted conversion in places such as India and China. Other religious orders such as the Benedictines and Augustinians also emerged around this time. These religious orders also founded schools to further promote religious education. Even into the twenty-first century, these universities remain highly important.