The Protestant Reformation

Chris AndersonRandolph-Henry High School

• People began to question and criticize the Church during the Renaissance

• By the 1500s, many in Europe began calling for a reformation in the Church

• In Germany, a new form of Christianity arose--Protestantism

Martin Luther

• Luther is the man who started the Protestant Reformation

• Born—1483 to poor peasants• (Tell Story)• Becomes a monk

Martin Luther

• Creates his Protestant philosophy after reading St. Paul’s Epistle to the Romans• His ideas was called Justification by

Faith–One simply needs to have faith in God, and

they shall go to Heaven

• While Luther was forming his ideas, Pope Leo X was trying to raise $ to build St. Peter’s Basilica–Sold Church offices–Sold Indulgences—paid pardons for sin

(give example)

• Luther hated indulgences• He preached against their sale• October 31, 1517—Luther nailed his 95

Theses to the door of Wittenburg Cathedral–His criticisms of the Catholic Church

(indulgences, corrupt clergy, etc.)

• The printing press allowed copies of Luther’s 95 Theses to be spread across Germany

• The number of indulgences sold actually decreased

• How did the Pope feel about the sale of indulgences decreasing??

• Pope Leo X sent people to Germany to stop Luther

• 1520: Pope Leo X formally condemned Luther

• 1521: Luther was excommunicated• What is excommunication???

• Diet of Worms:• Held in Worms, Germany shortly after

Luther’s excommunication• Members of the diet wanted Luther to

recant his statements about the church and Pope (What is meant to recant?)

• Luther attended the diet, but refused to recant (Tell story)

• Became an outlaw to the Church

Luther at the Diet of Worms

• Luther goes into hiding• Many German Princes help protect

Luther • While in hiding, Luther translates the

New Testament into German• Luther, also, creates the worlds 1st

Protestant Religion--Lutheranism

• Lutheranism:• Not that different from Catholicism• Believed in Justification of faith– you don’t have to do good works

• Religious truth lies solely in the Bible– Who should read the Bible?????

• Church is a community—not a hierarchy like the Catholic Church

• By the late 1500s, Lutheranism was widely accepted in many parts of Germany

• Many north German Principalities made Lutheranism their official religion

• Merchants took Lutheran ideas through the rest of Europe

• North Germany—Protestant (Lutheran)• South Germany--Catholic

Spread of Protestantism

Swiss Reformers• With the rise of Lutheranism, Swiss preachers

and merchants also broke from the Catholic Church

• Swiss preachers and merchants set up churches called Reformed

• Huldreich Zwingli: leader of the Swiss Protestant Movement– He believed in Luther’s “justification by faith”– He criticized the Catholic Church for its vices

• Unlike Luther, Zwingli wanted a COMPLETE break from the Catholic Church

• He also wanted to produce a Church-run state (theocracy) in the city of Zurich

• 1525: Zwingli created his theocracy in Zurich– This theocracy was short lived– -1531: war erupted between Protestants and

Catholics– Zwingli was defeated

Huldreich Zwingli

John Calvin

• Born in France in 1509• Catholic• Educated in theology, law, and humanism• Carefully studied the Bible• His studying of the Bible helped him

developed his Protestant ideas

John Calvin

• 1536: Calvin published his ideas in The Institutes of the Christian Religion

• Calvin’s idea was based on the belief that God was omnipotent—God possessed all power and knowledge

• Calvin believed that all people’s fates were controlled by God—predestination

• Calvin created his own theocracy in Geneva, Switzerland

• Calvin used a Consistory (a group of 12 men) to make sure all people in his theocracy were obeying the laws– People could NOT:

• Fight• Gamble• Curse• Become intoxicated• Dance

• People still caught practicing Catholic belief were executed

• People were required to attend church many times during the week

Radical Reformers--Anabaptists• The Anabaptists began the practice of adult

baptism• Only adults were allowed to be members of the

Anabaptist church– They believed only adults were able to make the

decisions to become Christians, not infants or children

• Many Anabaptist groups did not allow local government to control their lives– They would refuse to hold public office, would not

carry weapons, and would not take oaths

• Most Anabaptists were peaceful people• Some groups, however, were very radical and

violent– 1534: a group of violent Anabaptists took over

the German city of Munster– They burned books and took land– A combination of Lutherans and Catholics drove

the Anabaptists out of Munster– Anabaptist leaders were executed– Many Anabaptists fled to the America’s in the

1600s

England’s Church

• End of the 1500s: the Reformation had reached England

• The king of England—Henry VIII—and the Pope had a serious confrontation

• Henry had no male heir to his throne– His wife—Catherine of Aragon—had given birth to 6

children– Only 1 of the 6 had survived—Mary – Henry needed a male heir to keep other families from

taking the English Throne

Henry VIII

• Henry decided that his wife Catherine could not produce a male child

• Henry wanted to annul (like a divorce) his marriage to Catherine

• The Pope denied Henry’s request• Henry decided to break England away from the

Catholic Church so he could annul his marriage to Catherine

• Henry became the head of this new Church in England

• 1534: Parliament finalized the separation between England and the Catholic Church

Catherine of Aragon

• Henry finally divorced Catherine and married Anne Boleyn– Anne will get pregnant, but she, too, had a girl—

Elizabeth• Henry will eventually have Anne executed and

marry Jane Seymore– Jane will give Henry a male child—Edward– Jane will die soon after giving birth to the child

• Henry will marry 3 more times before he dies in 1547

• Edward will be his only male child

Anne Boleyn Jane SeymoreHenry VIII Video

• 1547: Henry VIII died leaving his throne to the young Edward– Edward was only 9 years old

• Edward was small and sickly• A council was elected to rule in place of

Edward• 1553: Edward died at the age of 16• After Edward’s death, his half sister Mary

became queen of England• Mary wanted to return England to the Catholic

Church

Queen Mary I (“Bloody Mary”)

• Mary burned hundreds of Protestants in order to scare people to become Catholic– She earned the nickname “Bloody Mary”

• Her actions backfired• More people began to convert to the

Protestant Church• 1558: Mary died with no heir to the throne• Mary’s half sister Elizabeth became queen of

England

Queen Elizabeth I

• Elizabeth will combine the Church of England with lots of Catholic aspects into the Anglican Church

• Many in England wanted to get rid of all Catholic ideas in the Church of England—they wanted to “purify” the Church of England– These people were the Puritans

Catholic Reformation

• Some areas of Europe still remained very Catholic– S_______________________– F_______________________– I______________________– P_______________________– H______________________– P______________________– Southern Parts of Germany

• The Catholic Church will decide to reform itself—Catholic (Counter) Reformation

• 1536: Pope Paul III had a study conducted on what reform was needed and who to blame for Church problems

• The study blamed ________________ for all of the Church’s problems

• Also included reforms that could bring Protestants back to the Church

• Unfortunately, the Church failed to act on the reforms

Pope Paul III

• 1540s: Catholic Church decides to act• Introduce a “rebirth of faith” to the

people• 1542: implement the Inquisition

-Church court that went after heretics

• Inquisition had 2 purposes:1.) rid Italy of non-Catholics2.) restore the Pope’s authority over the Church

• Council of Trent (1545-1563):• Called by Pope Paul III• Church tries to solidify its doctrine

1.) Salvation could not be reached by faith alone—you had to do good works2.) Latin Vulgate version of the Bible—only acceptable Bible3.) Stops the sale of indulgences4.) Clergy/Priests—follow strict rules5.) Seminaries created to train priests6.) Mass still to be said in Latin

Council of Trent

• Spread of Catholicism:• Church used monks and nuns to help

spread Catholicism• Who did the monks and nuns try to

convert to Christianity (Catholicism)???

• Ignatius Loyola:• Priest who created the Jesuits (Society of

Jesus)• Absolutely obedient to the Pope• Lived simple lives• Sent around the world to spread Catholic

faith• Created schools to teach religion and

sciences

Ignatius Loyola

• Results of the Catholic Reformation:• Mid-1500s: Catholic Church became

stronger• Was it as strong as it was before the

Protestant Reformation???? • Some Protestants were reclaimed• Much of Europe still remained Protestant• By 1545: Europe was divided–Northern Europe—Protestant– Southern Europe—Catholic

• Eventually, war will break out in Europe between Catholics and Protestants