The Protestant Break : Leo X 1513-21

The Catholic Church during the early 16th Century was rooted throughout Europe. The Church influenced every country and its respective monarchs through the Church’s wealth and power. The Catholic Church placed a tight hold on the general populace with individuals who went against the Church being branded as heretics and excommunicated. The wealth and power of the Church eventually caused the quality of the clergy to deteriorate. Priests became corrupt and subjected to their physical desires. They frequented taverns, gambled and kept mistresses. The reputation of the clergy were horrid as the general populace was relieved that “their priest [kept] a mistress” because it “[secured] their wives from seduction” The knowledge of the clergy degenerated as well as they were no longer required to learn and teach the Holy Scriptures because the Church dictated their actions. The pinnacle of the Church’s corruption was the sale of indulgences. An indulgence was the “extra-sacramental remission of the temporal punishment” sold by priests as a temporary relief from sins. The indulgences were then sold to the general populace for money as the monetization of a priest’s services. Johannes Tetzel was a prominent preacher of indulgences who relied on the money from the sales to subsidize the rebuilding of St. Peter’s basilica in Rome. The corrupt sales did not go unnoticed as Martin Luther, in an effort to stop the corruption of the Church, posted the 95 Theses on the door of a Castle

Additionally, Davis’s monograph explores detailed information regarding the shift of many people at the time from Catholicism to Protestantism, which is extremely important to the

Towards the end of the Middle Ages and into the duration of the Renaissance, the Medieval Church’s social and political power dwindled. Centuries prior the Catholic Church gained a surplus of control, largely due to the stability it maintained during the chaotic breakdown of the Western Roman Empire . Yet toward the end of the Middle Ages the Church set in motion factors that would ultimately lead to its downfall as the definitive figure of authority. However, despite political and social controversy surrounding the church, the institutions it established cleared a path for a new way of thinking, shaping society in an enduring way.

Catholic leaders believed they were defending traditional Christian civilization against rebellions and anarchical forces, whilst the latter argued they were restoring pure religion and defending against corruption and superstition. To them, the Pope was anti-Christ, whilst to the Catholics, Luther, Alvin and all other ‘reformers’ were heretics. Consequently, the secular rulers sought to base their political unity upon that of a religious nature, using their authority to compel their subjects into adopting one form of Christianity. In contrast to Pope Leo X, who face the Lutheran revolt, who urged secular leaders to suppress Protestant heretics by force, Luther appealed for this same force to be used against Catholics, and even Calvin, considered to be an apostle of religious tolerance didn’t permit Catholics to reside in Geneva. Meanwhile, Spain, Portugal and Italy all used methods such as the Inquisition and the Index to eliminate religious dissent and persecute Protestant subjects. Therefore, this shows that despite the argument regarding whether England was ‘torn apart’, the rest of Europe was considerably so, which could subsequently have impacted England.

1) The Protestant Reformation Produces Puritanism a) 1517 - Friar Martin Luther nailed protest on Catholic door of Wittenberg’s cathedral i) he said that the Bible is the only truth of God’s words ii) he started the Protestant Reformation b) Reformation bloomed in Geneva by John Geneva i) He elaborated on Luther’s ideas that affected the future men and women in New England and American settlers c) 1536 - Calvin wrote basic doctrine in Latin tome, named Institutes of the Christian Religion i) He said that God is all mighty, and humans are sinful ii) your fate is chosen by him and you cannot do anything to change it d)

Discuss the political and social consequences of the Protestant Reformation in the first half of the sixteenth century.

The protestant reformation happened at the moment that it did because the Catholic Church was very a powerful force in Europe. It controlled people lives both spiritually and temporally. The church had so much power that it maintained political control over a large portion of Italy. The fact that the church held so much control over countries and governments became a point of contention among European countries such as the Holy Roman Empire, Italian city-states outside of Rome, England, France and Spain. The power of the rulers of these areas had greatly increased in the 14th century and they were eager to take the chances offered by a Reformation to weaken the grip of the Catholic Church in Europe and also to develop their own powers across the European continent. For quite some time the Catholic Church had been an institution rampant with internal struggles. Such as the Avignon Papacy from 1309 to 1377 when seven popes opted to live in Avignon, France and not reside in Rome which was and is the traditional home of the Papacy. The Pope and other high ranking church officials often lived opulent lifestyles rather than a more austere lifestyle that should befit a spiritual leader. Many church leaders and Popes maintained political powers. They led armies, waged wars and made many political decisions. Church offices were sold, and many Popes and bishops practiced nepotism to fill church offices. With all of these worldly issues for the Pope

13. ‘01 Discuss the political and social consequences of the Protestant Reformation in the first half of the sixteenth century.

The Protestant Reformation opened the door for discussing and change with the inner workings of the Catholic Church. The Reformation occurred towards the end of the Catholic Church’s political stronghold on the Holy Empire’s region in the 16th and 17th centuries, periods known as the Middle Ages. The Church’s actions gave protesters legitimate arguments against the papacy. Leadership in the Church, particularly from Pope Leo X who deemed the selling of indulgences was necessary, and Pope Clement VII, who was unconcerned about the protests cemented Protestant frustrations across Europe, particularly in Germany. This led to violent protests from a Counter-Reformation within the Church and ultimately led to reform and the creation of new monasteries around the world, such as the Society of Jesus.

In the late 1520’s- 1530’s, the reformation passed from the free hands of the theologians and pamphleteers into the firmer ones of the magistrates and princes. Many cities in the latter mandated new religious reforms.

In the early fifteenth century Martin Luther appealed to Pope Leo X to settle the Indulgence Controversy. This controversy extended far beyond the original appeal. It hosted a wide spectrum of theological debates concerning doctrine, the sacraments, abuse of authority within the clergy and many other essential issues of the Church. These issues required answers, the demand for moral reform. At all levels the Church was experiencing moral lapses that caused the people to lose trust in the Church and the clergy. A deep dissatisfaction and skepticism was widespread throughout the Church. Luther original request, extended far beyond struggles within the Roman Catholic, to an unofficial permission giving recognition to all those who follow. Of our rights and obligation to bring forth

When thinking about the historical events that are associated with the reformation movement that can be traced back to the late 1300s and early 1400s with men like John Wycliffe, The Lollards, and Jan Hus (Men who rejected the Divine origin of the Roman Catholic Church and the alleged authority of the Pope) I can't help but feel the table had been set, that is, the conditions were perfect for Martin Luther's placing of the ninety-five theses on the church door at Wittenberg in 1517. By God's providence Luther was to undertake the most difficult task of returning the church to its intended authority - The Scriptures. Luther understood as well as anyone the sad state of affairs as it related to the Church, the Papacy, its politics and the increasing corruption of the sale of indulgences to his fellow countrymen.

During sixteenth century Europe a wave of religious dissatisfaction swept the European continent. There were cries for the restructuring of the Catholic Church. These cries grew into more than just a simple remodeling of the Catholic faith they grew into the Protestant Reformation. Martin Luther is credited for the reformation movement against the Catholic Church that began in 1517.

The intent of this paper is to evaluate the distinct character and quality of the expressions of the Protestant Reformation. This paper will discuss Lutheran Reformation, The Anabaptist, and The English Puritans as well as the Catholic Reformation also known as the Counter Reformation. It is the hope that after the reader has had the opportunity to view each of the characteristics and the expressions of each of the reformation the reader will have a better understanding of each and will be able to articulate the differences of each.

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.