Did The Renaissance And The Reformation Restructure An Individual's Relationship With God?

Renaissance DBQ Essay Born out of a very dark time period in history, the Renaissance would lead to revolutionary new ways of thinking for mankind. In the Middle Ages (500 CE - 1350), the Catholic Church dominated Europe. After a long time of the church’s reign, scholars began to develop new ways of thinking that did not involve the church at all, thus, the Renaissance was born. How did this way of thinking change people’s perspectives and their understandings of the world?

The religious values and beliefs of Europe shifted after the reformation because Europe was making new discoveries and new ideas.

Both the reformation and the “Age of Discovery” had large effects on society, culture, and politics throughout the 1500s. The reformation started in the early 1500s as the church was looking for a new identity. This new identity was thought as the people at the time wondering what exactly God wants from us to be able to be saved and go to heaven. There were two main religious ideas born in this time frame. Those were Lutherism and Calvinism.

Contrary to the Middle Ages, when the afterlife and glorifying God was the primary focus, the Renaissance concentrated increasingly on the present day, demonstrating a more secular philosophy. Humanism developed, making human beings, and not God, the center of attention. People not longer considered their lives solely as a preparation for the afterlife, but instead gave them actual value. The church's authority fused with that of the state, resulting in a monopolized power greatly influenced by religion. The rejection of the secular spirit of the Italian Renaissance can be seen in the varying art themes of the Reformation. The Reformation rejected the secular spirit that had developed during the Italian Renaissance and replaced it with a

During the 1500s, the citizens of England were overcome with multiple transitions of religion due to their monarch. The first notable instance of religious alteration was when Henry the VIII took the throne. During his reign, he ruled the Act of Supremacy, which separated England from the Catholic Church, and so Henry VIII established the Church of England, of which he was the leader of. This individual action indirectly prompted many other spiritual changes that would take place in England during the years to come, led by his successors. Even if his ruling may have ultimately been positive, it is utterly clear that at the time, Henry VIII's reformation was motivated purely by his selfish desires for a male heir. This was very dissimilar to Martin Luther's reformation, which was led by Luther's faith and loyalty to god. Though the two men both transformed the perception of religion in Europe drastically, the advancements were made for vastly different reasons. (#8)

Let us now examine the time of the Reformation, beginning proper in 1519 with Luther’s quarrels with the Roman Catholic church and ending in the eighteenth century with Wesleyanism, the reformation of theology that occurred within the Church of England.

Bowles, M. (2011). American history 1865–present: End of isolation. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

The Protestant Reformation caused many changes in the political and social aspects of European life, most notably the changes in marriage, greater rights for women, and the further expansion of education. Marriage used to be solely for political or economic reason, but now it is viewed as having a partner or companion for life. Women, where before had near no rights, now had much more than they had ever been seen before in European culture. Whereas in the Renaissance, although there were expansions in education, it was available to only the elite, it was becoming for open for a common person.. These changes not only reformed that time period but have lasting impacts on life to the date.

12. ’98 Compare and contrast the Lutheran Reformation and the Catholic Reformation of the sixteenth century regarding the reform of both religious doctrines and religious practices.

From reading the stimulus material given I saw a relationship between the disappearance of language and technological advancements. In the Self Portrait Along the Borderline Between Mexico and the United States by Frida Khalo a painting that shows the differences between Mexico and America in the 1900s, there appears to be a difference of culture between America and Mexico. America is more modern, as Mexico is more classic. America’s modernization is shown in the different factories in the background, and Mexico’s classicism is shown through the ancient Mexican temple in the background. As stated in “Vanishing Voices”, written by Russ Rymer, “As modern inventions like cars enters their world, the Seris tend to adapt their language rather than import Spanish words. Erica Barnett uses an abandoned car as a hothouse to grow mangroves to replenish an estuary” (21). Rymer is stating that with new technologies, people need to adapt. I believe that not only do people need to adapt, but also governments need to be more accustomed to advances in technology. With the introduction of the Internet many governments need to change. This change would come through passing different laws which would censor the Internet and in doing so, limit freedom of speech, because this is widely controversial in the US. I began to look at why this is so controversial. According to Andrea Leadsom, a Conservative Member of Parliament for South Northamptonshire, the Internet should be censored for the kids.

After the Black Plague crippled Europe, a new period of time erupted known as the Renaissance slowly developed. The Renaissance is known as the “rebirth” for Humans. The reason for this meaning during the 14th century was because of the radical changes in the culture of Europe. The Middle Ages was surrounded by religion in many aspects. The Black Plague helps stimulate the idea that religion is through the individual. Religion in Europe was starting to becoming not so literal, but more of a personal connection with God, instead of a strict public connection. The starts of the renaissance, commoners or nobility were not focused on taking over the family business, but focusing on other career options of interest. The ideas and the development of Humanism were established during the renaissance through the idea of religion being more personal.

Religion was also viewed differently. The Catholic Church was the one universal church during the Middle Ages. People believed that only church officials could interpret the scriptures. People also believed in the absolute authority of the church. During the Renaissance, the Protestant Reformation led to the development of many churches. People believed that each individual could interpret the Bible for himself. The church no longer had absolute authority as it did during the Middle Ages.

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) provides leadership and technical assistance in the development, implementation, and operation of new approaches, techniques, and methods related to juvenile justice and delinquency prevention. In 1999, OJJDP created the Safe Start Initiative to prevent and reduce the impact of children 's exposure to violence in both the home and the community, and to expand the knowledge base of evidence-based practices. Exposure to violence is defined as being a victim of abuse, neglect, or maltreatment, or as witnessing domestic violence or other forms of violent crime in the community.

Many things changed from Medieval Times to the Renaissance. The catholic church saw it’s reign secede and individualism increase in the minds of the people of the time. Because of this, people in the Renaissance now looked at themselves in a way that was never seen before. Slowly but surely, the whole world changed. The rise in individualism and humanism signified a change in the way people thought about their purpose in life. In the Medieval Times, people believed that they were at the mercy of God, and they had no control over their own bodies or lives. From the change in Medieval Times to the Renaissance, whole fields were changed, especially art and the medical field, because of the rise of the individual and that way of life.

The renaissance and the reformation were two of the most significant changes in history that has shaped our world today. Both of these great time periods are strikingly similar in some ways and totally different in others. This is because the renaissance was a change from religion to humanism whether it is in art or literature; it is where the individual began to matter. However, the reformation was,” in a nutshell,” a way to reform the church and even more so to form the way our society is today. The first half of this paper will view the drop in faith, the economic powers, and the artistic and literary changes during the renaissance, while the second half will view the progresses and changes the church makes during the reformation.