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Protestant Reformation Research Paper

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he Reformation fragmented the unity of the Roman Catholicism matrix, as the emergence of a new confessional church undermined the traditional religious identity. Martin Luther pioneered a movement in which he critiqued church corruption by posting his 95 theses on the door of a Roman Catholic church in Wittenberg, Germany in 1517. Luther critiqued the Catholic church practices but not the institution in order to save the church's credibility. This event sparked a series of attitudes and actions that divided Europe through the Reformation. This religious movement redetermined the relationship of religion with society as several distinct ecclesiastical systems formed firstly in Germany and then the whole of Europe. The critique on the practices of the Roman Catholic church by Martin Luther resulted in dissatisfaction within …show more content…

Four major sects of Protestantism emerged; Lutheran, Calvin, Presbyterian church of Scotland and Anglican. These offshoots of Protestantism were in direct opposition with the powerful Roman Catholic Church as new doctrines and practises of faith were adopted by the people of Europe. Modern historian, Marvin Perry argues 'The Reformation promoted religious pluralism, for in addition to Lutheransim and Calvanism, various other protestant churches, each with their own distinctive traits emerged' . This religious pluralism allowed for the discourse of different views and practices of religion. This process manifested in religious subjectivity, in which different forms of religion co- existed, the absolute doctrine of the Roman Catholic church had disintegrated in Europe. The remnants were the idea of religious pluralism within the Protestant context, simultaneously the stronghold of the traditional Catholic church was revolted against by the common

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