The Protestant Reformation
1517-1648
Objectives
To understand the causes of the split in
Western Christianity
To understand the underlying differences
between Catholicism and Protestantism
To understand the results and relevance
of the Protestant Reformation in
Western society
Conflicts That Challenged the
Authority of the Catholic Church
Merchant wealth challenged the Church’s view of
usury-the lending of money and charging interest
German and English nobility disliked Italian
domination of the Church.
The Church’s great political power and wealth
caused conflict.
Church corruption and the sale of indulgences were
widespread and caused conflict.
Holy Roman Empire in 1500
Located in modern day
Germany
Not a united nation but a
patchwork of
independent states
Each State had its own
Prince
The Ruler of the Holy
Roman Empire was
Charles V
The Hapsburgs Ruled the HRE
Holy Roman Emperor Charles V 1519-1556
Inherited the Holy Roman
Empire at the age of 25
Had to hold his empire
together
He was Catholic-The
Princes were converting
to Lutheranism!
Empire of Charles V
The Catholic Church in 1500
The Catholic Church was the most powerful
institution in Europe
Held the monopoly on information and
education
Owned a great deal of property
People resented the wealth of the Church
The Church and Clergy did not pay taxes
The Church was corrupt!
The Catholic Church
Power of the Pope:
Head of the Catholic Church
Occupies God’s position on earth
Infallible
Above any earthly power
Made international treaties
All clergy take vows of celibacy -stay
unmarried
What Catholics Believe
The Seven Sacraments:
Baptism
Eucharist (mass/communion)
Confirmation
Confession
Anointing of the Sick-Last rites
Holy Orders –men to become priests
Marriage
Height of Papal Corruption
Who?
Pope Leo X- 1513-1521
Medici Pope-second son of
Lorenzo the Magnificent
What did he do?
Depleted Papal coffers
Money needed for
St Peter’s reconstruction
Solution:
Sale of Church offices-Simony
Sale of indulgences
Pope Leo X with cardinals
Giulio de' Medici and
Luigi de' Rossi by Raphael
Prior to the Reformation all Christians
were Roman Catholic
The Reformation was an attempt to
REFORM the Catholic Church
Martin Luther and others wanted to get
rid of the corruption and restore
people’s faith in the church not start a
separate church
Martin Luther 1483-1546
Born in 1483 in Eisleben, Germany
Joined the Order of Saint Augustine
1505 became a monk
Moved to Wittenberg in 1511
Strong sense of unworthiness
Troubled by the sale of indulgences
Church taught that it was faith and good works that
saved a person
Luther’s Issues with the Catholic Church
Luther had two major problems
with the Catholic Church:
Indulgences and Justification
Luther believed that the Bible was
the ultimate authority- not the
pope or clergy
Of the seven sacraments only
Baptism and Holy Communion
were found in the Bible
He also came to believe in
justification through faith alone
not faith and good works
What Luther Wanted
Sola Fidei Justification/Salvation by Faith Alone
Sola Scriptura Authority of the Scriptures Alone
Sola Gratia By grace alone
Sale of Indulgences
Dominican friar Johann Tetzel was selling
indulgences in Wittenberg in 1517
“As
soon as a coin in the coffer rings
the soul from purgatory springs.”
What was an Indulgence?
A Papal pardon for sins.
A lessening of the time a soul would have to
spend in purgatory
Purgatory-a place where souls too impure to
enter heaven atoned for sins committed
during their lifetime
Purchase for yourself or a departed relative
Indulgences had no basis in the Bible and the
Pope had no authority to release souls from
purgatory according to Luther
Martin Luther’s Actions
Luther posted his 95 theses on the door of the
castle church in Wittenberg on October 31, 1517
His intent was to reform the Catholic Church,
not create a separate one.
How Did Word Spread So Quickly?
Gutenberg’s Printing Press made it possible
for Luther to spread his beliefs
Copy of Luther’s 95 Theses from Gutenberg's Press
Reaction To Luther
Gained support from people and criticism
from Church
Luther had the support of many, including the
princes in the HRE
Millions converted
Luther’s Beliefs and Teachings
All Christians have equal access to God through faith
and the Bible.
Romans 1:17 “The righteous shall live by faith.”
Banned Indulgences, confession, pilgrimages and
prayers to saints
Simplified the elaborate mass and emphasized the
sermon
Permitted clergy to marry
Luther’s Showdown with the Church
June 15, 1520 Pope Leo X issued a Papal Bull of
Excommunication
Papal Bull-Official document issued by the Pope
Luther was ordered to recant-take back- his
teachings
Luther burned the Papal Bull
Excommunicated!
This behavior caused a conclusive and irrevocable
break with Rome
The Diet of Worms-April 1521
Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, summoned
Luther to a diet in the city of Worms
Diet-assembly or meeting-of German princes
Luther asked to recant, he again refused.
Charles V issued the Edict of Worms
Luther at the Diet
of Worms
By Anton von
Werner
Edict of Worms
Declared Luther an outlaw
It was a crime to give Luther shelter or food
Frederick the Wise, Elector of Saxony hid
Luther in his castle
Spent his time translating
the New Testament into
German (Vernacular!)
This spread his beliefs even further
Greatly contributed to the development of the
written German language.
The Peace of Augsburg 1555
The Protestant Reformation divided Germany
politically
Princes in Germany converted to Protestantism,
ending authority of the Pope in their states
Charles V, the HRE tried to force Princes to
accept Catholicism again, with little success
The Peace of Augsburg:
Recognized Lutheranism as a legal religion
A Prince could decide if his realm was to be
Lutheran of Catholic
Reformation in France:
John Calvin-Calvinist Tradition
Literal interpretation of
the Bible
Predestination
Faith revealed by living
a righteous life
Protestant work ethic
Expansion of the
Protestant Movement
Predestination
Calvin set forth the idea of Predestination
God decided at the beginning of time who would
go to heaven after death and who would not
Calvin set up a theocracy in Geneva, Switzerland
Theocracy-government run by church leaders
Geneva became a magnet city for other reformers
who took Calvin’s message home with them
Reformation in England
Henry VIII: The Anglican Tradition
Henry VIII-King of England
Reformer due to circumstance
not personal beliefs
Opposed Luther’s beliefs
Saw himself as a Roman Catholic
even writing a pamphlet
denouncing Luther
Named ‘Defender of the Faith’ by
Leo X
Henry VIII Needs a Divorce!
Catholic Church does not permit divorce
Marriage to Catherine of Aragon did not produce
male heir only a girl- Mary Tudor
Henry needed a male to preserve his throne
Henry asked the Pope for an annulment so he
could marry someone who could give him a
male heir
The Pope denied his request
Henry created the Church of England and
established his own supremacy over it
Act of Supremacy-1534
Parliament passed the Act of Supremacy
Made Henry “the only supreme head on Earth
of the Church of England”
The all monarchs of England continue to hold
that title
Many refused to accept Henry as the head of
the church and were executed for treason
Sir Thomas More was one of them!
Another Girl for Henry
Henry divorced Catherine and promptly
married Anne Boleyn-there was actually a
bit of an overlap!
He hoped for a male heir but Anne bore him a
girl- Elizabeth
BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENT OF
PRINCESS ELIZABETH
SEPTEMBER 7, 1533
BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENT OF
PRINCESS ELIZABETH
SEPTEMBER 7, 1533
By the Queen
Right trusty and well-beloved, we greet you well. And whereas it hath pleased the
goodness of Almighty God of His infinite mercy and grace to send unto us at this
time good speed in the deliverance and bringing forth of a princess to the great joy
and inward comfort of my Lord, us, and of all his good and loving subjects of this
his realm, for which inestimable benevolence so shown unto us we have no little
cause to give high thanks, laud and praise unto our said Maker, like as we do most
lowly, humbly, and with all the inward desire of our heart. And inasmuch as we
undoubtedly trust that this our good speed is to your great pleasure, comfort and
consolation, we therefore by this our letters advertise you thereof, desiring and
heartily praying you to give with us unto Almighty God high thanks, glory, laud and
praise, and to pray for the good health, prosperity, and continual preservation of the
said Princess accordingly. Given under our signet at my lords' Manor of Greenwich.
The 7th day of September, in the 25th year of my said lord's Reign
Henry’s Six Wives!
Divorced, Beheaded, Died, Divorced, Beheaded, Survived.
Catherine of Aragon
Annulled
Catherine Parr
survived
Anne Boleyn
Annulled then
beheaded
Catherine Howard
Annulled then
beheaded
Jane Seymour
Died
childbed fever
Anne of Cleves
Annulled
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc/horriblehistories/song4.shtml
Elizabeth I
Daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn
Returned the country to the Protestant faith
after her Catholic sister
Queen Mary I died
Through compromise Elizabeth
found middle ground with
Catholics and Protestants
Made England a firmly
Protestant nation
Little religious turmoil for decades
Branches of Christianity
CHRISTIANITY
Protestant
Roman
Catholicism
Eastern
Orthodox
Lutheran
Martin
Luther
Anglican
Henry VIII
Calvinist
John
Calvin
Puritan
Huguenots
Presbyterian
Protestant
Catholic
The Protestant Reformation Map
Results
In the end reformers like Luther established
their own non-Catholic traditions
The Reformation caused a permanent split in
Christianity with the formation of new
Protestant faiths
The Catholic Counter-Reformation
The Catholic Church wanted to stop the
spread of Protestantism.
It was losing followers which meant it was
losing money.
They refocused on strictly following the
commands and rules of the Church.
The Council of Trent
The Council of Trent met between 1545 and
1563 to make reforms
The Council of Trent reaffirmed most Church
doctrine and practices:
Salvation comes through
faith and good works
The Bible is not the only
source of truth
Council took steps to end
Church abuses
The Jesuits
Ignatius of Loyola- religious order to defend
and spread the Catholic faith world wide
The Society of Jesus, the Jesuits, was founded
to spread Catholic doctrine around the world
Sent missionaries to Asia, Africa
and the Americas.
Known for setting up schools
Spread of
Christianity
Protestant England
settled in what is
now the United
States.
Catholic Spain and
France settled in
what is now
Mexico and South
America.
END
Conclusion
The Protestant Reformation began as a theological
dispute between Martin Luther and the Catholic
Church
Theological dispute becomes religious conflict, as
Catholics and Protestant are persecuted for their
beliefs
Religious conflict becomes a political conflict between
states seeking to advance their positions
Luther’s Marries Katherine von Bora