Ethan Stokes

European society changed greatly as a result of the Reformation. Social, political, and economic aspects of society were all impacted in some shape or form as a result of the Reformation. The Church and the clergy lost the incredible amount of authority and power they had over the European people. Prior to the Reformation, Europeans were essentially united as one by the Catholic Church, whatever the Church told them they were to obey. People were not taught nor allowed to interpret the bible for themselves. Following the reformation, individualism and interpreting the bible for one’s self was encouraged. However, the Reformation resulted in years of bloody conflict across the continent of Europe leaving millions dead. Not only was Europe as a whole plagued by conflict, but countries themselves were divided and torn by religion.

Politically, the most obvious effect of the Reformation was the loss of power suffered by the Catholic Church. Further, Church leaders were no longer excluded from the law. The controversial practice of indulgences was banned, as was the buying and selling of church offices. The nepotism previously practiced by the Church also came to a halt. The Reformation also had numerous political opportunities was King, Monarchs, and Princes alike. With the decline in the power of the Church, they now gained absolute control over their domains. Power hungry leaders would jump easily at any opportunity to increase their power and influence. This meant a long period of was and conflict in Europe, in which millions lost their lives. During this time, one’s religion could determine life or death. The effects of the Reformation also played an essential role in the rise of nation states. Previously, people did not really identify themselves as part of a Nation. Their identity was tied to their small village or possibly region. At this time the idea of a nation state was very new. The many religious conflicts during the Renaissance did not spark the creation of nation states, but rather escalated the adoption of this idea. As stated previously, the Catholic Church had provided Europe with a sense of unification, all worshipping under the same religion. The introduction of other religions divided people not only over theology itself, but also other concepts of society such as law and economics. Now that people had genuinely different values and ideals about how society should be, conflict was bound to happen.

Along with the reformation came different ideas of how society should function. One of the biggest impacts from a social standpoint was to the peasantry. The peasants were initially encouraged by Martin Luther’s ideas, however following the revolt of the Peasants in Germany, Luther then condemned their actions stating he wanted to be part of a religious revolution, not a social revolution. Women also became more important than ever before. They were no longer viewed in the Catholic eyes as “Eve” or “Mary” but they were now seen as Mother or Housewife, a more equal role than ever before. This was a monumental change in the way women were viewed in European society.