It spread quickly and within months was all throughout Europe. Albrecht of Mainz did not respond to the thesis. Pope Leo X had the theologian Sylvester Mazzolini draft a heresy against Luther, and summoned Luther to Rome. Luther was examined at Augsburg where the Imperial diet was held. The theologian Johann Maier had a goal to expose Luther and invited him to speak at a disputation: a public debate concerning the doctrines of free will and grace.
It involved an entire reconstruction of the Church and of the social order. It meant revolution.”[3] The Reformers desired to reform the existing church, the “Radicals” desired to create a new church based on their theological convictions. [4] Some contend (incorrectly in this writer’s opinion) that the Anabaptists began with Thomas Müntzer (1490-1525). Müntzer was the spiritual revolutionary of the Peasant’s War that occurred in 1525, a leader in the social revolution of his time. He was a student of medieval realism, well studied in church history and the German mystics, and read many Reformation tracts and books.
This continued until Henry VIII, so desperate to produce a male heir, broke Papal control over England and named himself Head of the Church that taught an offshoot of Christianity based on the teachings of Martin Luther, the Protestant Church of England. This change did not make much difference, as the main different was the head of the Church and belief about divorce. Many more changes came after Henry died in 1547 and Edward VI became king. Edward, led by his advisors, moved England completely from Catholicism and to Protestantism. He passed laws such as making churches and bishops more plain, services be said in English and creating the Book of Common Prayer in 1549 and a refined version in 1552.
At the start of Henry VIIIs reign, most of England were Roman Catholic and accepted the Pope as the Head of the Church, but in the 16th century, and so was he until he split off the English Church from the Roman church When the Pope refused to grant Henry VIII a divorce from Catherine of Aragon. He then went on to make himself the spiritual head of the English church rather than the Pope. Henry VIII declared himself supreme head of a new Church of England. (The Act of Supremacy and reformation). The voices of statesmen and of priests extolled his wisdom and power as more than human.
He also made a start on reforming religion; in July 1547 he introduced the Book of Homilies and paraphrases, a religious document that had to be placed in every Church. Then in December 1547 the Act of Six Articles was repealed, this was a document that had re-established Catholic Doctrines. All of these policies were reforming religion and moving towards the Protestant way of running the Church, and Edward hoped that the introduction of Protestant readings, for example Cranmer’s first prayer book in 1548, would lead people to begin to convert to Protestantism. However religious revolution progressed far further under John Dudley the Duke of Northumberland, following Somerset’s fall from power. Despite originally being more conservative himself, and supporting that side of the Privy Council, he understood the need for religious reform under Edward and in 1550 all conservatives and Catholic Bishops, such as Gardiner, were
Reformation DBQ Throughout the history of Europe, people’s lives revolved around the Catholic Church. The Catholic Church taught its beliefs through the clergy and exercised its authority. In 1517, corruption, false teachings, and the challenging of Martin Luther led to a split that created the Protestant Church. During the Reformation, the Protestant belief in “sola scriptura” and “sola fides” was a major source of conflict with the Catholic teachings of a Church authority and salvation through good works. Protestants believed in “sola scriptura”, which is Latin for “scripture alone” and says that the scripture is the only source for knowledge on salvation and holiness.
As Calvinists the Puritans believed in divine sovereignty. They felt that God’s plan was to reform church and society to conform to John Calvin’s theological ideas. In their eyes the English government went directly against the divine plan of purity and social order by allowing and participating in such things as drunkenness, gambling, public swearing and Sabbath breaking. The Government also allowed celebrations based on pagan customs such as maypole dancing and celebrating Christmas and saints’ days. 2 1 Davidson, James West et al, U.S. A Narrative History, Volume One, (New York: McGraw Hill, 2012), p.65.
Martin Luther, the most significant figure in the early development of Protestantism, took hold of the reformation during this period and popularised its beliefs, basing them on his interpretation of the scriptures. Although the responses from the majority of the leaders within the Catholic Church were political attacks aimed at clinging onto power and restricting the reformists’ influence, Luther’s motivation was religious and a product of a devotion to God, after being struck by lightning in 1505. Through this enlightenment, he sought to highlight the widespread abuses imposed by the Catholic Church, which were regularly authorised by the Pope. The resistance to Luther had been rife from the start; however as Luther’s support base grew and his beliefs became a threat to those in power, the counter-attacks increased in significance. Nevertheless, it could be argued that people misjudged Luther’s intentions as he never intended to reshape the power structure of the church just address the abuses.
C. Calvinism (most significant of the new Protestant sects) John Calvin (1509-1564) EXTRA CALVINISMLeader: John CalvinBelief: relied on faith and theBible; believed in predestination,the idea that at the beginning oftime God had decided whowould be saved Significant Events Calvin moved to Geneva, which became a theocracy as a result; Calvinism spread throughout Europe . Frenchman; studied to be a priest and later trained as a lawyer.—humanistic study in France b. Influenced by humanism and weighting of Lutheran, especially Erasmus —-converted and was longer welcome in paris king francis i hated Protestants c. Exiled to Switzerland due to his reform ideas 2. Institutes of the Christian Religion (1536) —- a masterful synthesis
“Men, Women and Schools of thought love have reformed and/or revitalized the Christian Tradition” This statement remarkably reflects on Martin Luther’s impact on Christianity. Martin Luther generated significant effects on Christianity in his life time and in the present through institutional, theological and liturgical impacts. His influences has resulted in immense change in Christian denomination’s reforming and revitalizing their dynamic beliefs towards Christianity. Martin Luther’s disagreement with the Roman Catholic Church’s teaching of Selling Indulgences caused the different changes within Christianity and hugely impacted the foundation of the Protestant Reformation. He objected to the activities of the Church and attacked doctrines of indulgences and penance and published