Church History 2
Lesson 1
Factors making the
Reformation Possible
The School of Athens - fresco by Raffaello Sanzio (w)
Objectives from COS Modules:
• What was the intellectual and cultural climate of Europe on the eve of
the Reformation? Was it conducive for religious reform?
• How did the political and economic situation in Europe—including
trade with Asia—contribute to the Reformation?
• Was the Catholic Church capable of reform from within? Was a
schism necessary? On this topic, compare the views of Protestant
and Roman Catholic historians.
• What are the similarities and differences between Renaissance
humanism and other forms of humanism present in our times?
• We Protestants place a high premium on the individual privilege and
responsibility of reading, studying, and interpreting Scripture. How
can we effectively facilitate this in our places of service?
• What are some potential dangers resulting from taking this view to an
extreme?
• Erasmus sought to get “back to the source,” that is Jesus, primarily
through a study of the revealed Word of God. What is a healthy way
of viewing the relationship between the Written Word (Scriptures) and
the Living Word (Jesus Christ)? How do we avoid “bibliolatry” or
worship of the Bible?
Catholicism
Middle Ages
Map of the approximate political boundaries
in Europe around 450
Peasant
King
Duke
Lord
Noble
Knight
Peasant
Serf
Slave
Middle
Class
Middle class
• It was once defined by exception as an
intermediate social class between the
nobility and the peasantry of Europe.[by
whom?] While the nobility owned the
countryside, and the peasantry worked
the countryside, a new bourgeoisie
(literally "town-dwellers") arose around
mercantile functions in the city. Another
definition equated the middle class to
the original meaning of capitalist:
someone with so much capital that they
could rival nobles. In fact, to be a
capital-owning millionaire was the
essential criterion of the middle class in
the industrial revolution. In France, the
middle classes helped drive the French
Revolution.[3]
Missionary
A missionary is a
member of a religious
group sent into an area
to do evangelism or
ministries of service,
such as education,
literacy, social justice,
health care and
economic
development.[1][2] The
word "mission"
originates from 1598
when the Jesuits sent
members abroad,
derived from the Latin
missionem (nom.
missio), meaning "act
of sending" or mittere,
meaning "to send".
Divine right of kings
Holy Roman Empire
962–1806
Renaissance
"What a piece of work
is a man, how noble in
reason, how infinite in
faculties, in form and
moving how express
and admirable, in
action how like an
angel, in apprehension
how like a god!" —
from William
Shakespeare's Hamlet.
Emphasis on the
human and reason
rather than
“fideism” (nonthoughtful belief)
or tradition.
Humanism
• Humanism is a group of
philosophies and ethical
perspectives which
emphasize the value and
agency of human beings,
individually and collectively,
and generally prefers
individual thought and
evidence (rationalism,
empiricism) over established
doctrine or faith (fideism).
Papal States
Protestant Reformation Henry 8 &
Elizabeth 1
(Anglicanism)
Luther
(Lutheranism)
Calvin
(Presbyterian/Baptist)
Zwingli
(Reformed)
John Knox
(Scottish Presbyterian)
Reformation Map
Sola fide
"Justification by faith"
Tradition
Roman Catholic
Lutheran
Process
or
Event
Type
of
Action
Permanence
Justification
&
Sanctification
Process
Synergism
Can be lost via
mortal sin
Part of the same
process
Event
Divine
monergism
Can be lost via
loss of faith
Justification is
separate from
and occurs prior
to sanctification
Methodist
Event
Synergism
Can be lost
Dependent upon
continued
sanctification
Orthodox
Process
Synergism
Can be lost
through sin
Part of the same
process of
theosis
Event
Divine
monergism
Cannot be lost
Both are a result
of union with
Christ
Reformed
Sola scriptura
by scripture alone
Law and Grace, by Lucas Cranach. The
left side shows our condemnation under
God's law, while the right side presents
God's grace in Christ.
Protestantism
Martin Luther’s
95 Theses (Statements)
Rapid spread of
Protestantism
Iconoclasm in Holland
(Smashing statues)
Global Protestantism.
Global Protestantism.
Dominant religion (over 50%) (Dark)
A large religious minority (over 10%) (Light)
Protestant branches
Jan Hus
Desiderius Erasmus
• The Catholic CounterReformation movement often
condemned Erasmus as having
"laid the egg that hatched the
Reformation." Their critique of
him was based principally on his
not being strong enough in his
criticism of Luther, not seeing the
dangers (from their perspective)
of a vernacular Bible and
dabbling in dangerous scriptural
criticism that weakened the
Church's arguments against
Arianism and other doctrines.
Martin Luther
John Calvin
Calvin = Reformed
(Presbyterian/Baptist)
Calvin preached at St. Pierre
Cathedral, the main church in
Geneva.
Huldrych Zwingli
John Knox
Thomas More
• Thomas More later opposed the
King's separation from the
Roman Catholic Church and
refused to accept him as
Supreme Head of the Church of
England, because such
disparaged Papal Authority and
Henry’s marriage to Catherine of
Aragon. Tried for treason, More
was convicted on perjured
testimony and beheaded.
Anabaptist
•
The burning of a
16th-century Dutch
Anabaptist Anneken
Hendriks, who was
charged by the
Spanish Inquisition
with heresy.
Dirk Willems saves
his pursuer in this
etching from the 1685
edition of Martyrs
Mirror.
“Baptism should be willfull, not in infancy.”
Lutheranism
Topic
Calvinism
Lutheranism
Arminianism
Human will
Total Depravity
without free will
permanently due to
divine sovereignty
Total Depravity
without free will
until spiritual
regeneration
Depravity does not
prevent free will
Election
Unconditional
election to
salvation with those
outside the elect
foreordained to
damnation (doublepredestination)[168]
Unconditional
predestination to
salvation for the
elect
Conditional election
in view of foreseen
faith or unbelief
Justification
Justification is
limited to those
predestined to
salvation,
completed at
Christ's death
Justification by faith
alone, completed at
Christ's death.
Justification made
possible for all
through Christ's
death, but only
completed upon
choosing faith in
Jesus
Conversion
Monergistic,
through the inner
calling of the Holy
Spirit, irresistible
Monergistic,
through the means
of grace, resistible
Synergistic,
resistible due to the
common grace of
free will
Preservation and
apostasy
Perseverance of
the saints: the
eternally elect in
Christ will
necessarily
persevere in faith
Falling away is
possible, but God
gives assurance of
preservation.
Preservation is
conditional upon
continued faith in
Christ; with the
possibility of a final
apostasy.
Presbyterianism
Anglicanism
The Book of Common Prayer
(BCP) is the foundational prayer
book of Anglicanism. The
original book of 1549 (revised
1552) was one of the
instruments of the English
Reformation, replacing the
various 'uses' or rites in Latin
that had been used in different
parts of the country with a single
compact volume in the language
of the people, so that "now from
henceforth all the Realm shall
have but one use".
John Wesley was
an Anglican
priest that
believed in a
lifestyle of
Holiness and
discipline – a
“method” of
knowing God
better.
Anglican World Map
A world map showing the Provinces of the Anglican Communion (Blue). Shown are the Churches in full
communion with the Anglican Church: The Nordic Lutheran churches of the Porvoo Communion (Green), and
the Old Catholic Churches in the Utrecht Union (Red).
Council of Trent
Catholic meetings to
reform the church
and stop
Protestantism.
Counter-Reformation
• The Counter-Reformation (also the
Catholic Revival[1] or Catholic
Reformation) was the period of
Catholic revival beginning with the
Council of Trent (1545–1563) and
ending at the close of the Thirty
Years' War (1648), which is
sometimes considered a response
to the Protestant Reformation. The
Counter-Reformation was a
comprehensive effort composed of
four major elements:
• (1) Ecclesiastical or structural
reconfiguration,
• (2) Religious orders,
• (3) Spiritual movements,
• (4) Political dimensions
Jesuits (Society of Jesus)
•
The Society of Jesus (Latin:
Societas Iesu, S.J., SJ or SI) is
a Christian male religious order
of the Roman Catholic Church.
The members are called
Jesuits. The society is
engaged in evangelization and
apostolic ministry in 112
nations on six continents.
Jesuits work in education
(founding schools, colleges,
universities and seminaries),
intellectual research, and
cultural pursuits. Jesuits also
give retreats, minister in
hospitals and parishes and
promote social justice and
ecumenical dialogue.
Inquisition
Galileo before the Holy Office
Social factors leading to the
Reformation
• Rise in the importance of philosophers that
taught of human abilities to discover
• Science, Astronomy, Anatomy, Chemistry because God is orderly, we can follow His order
and therefore live at greater harmony and
understanding with His Universe
• University = many disciplines coming together
and pointing to God - the great ordered One.
Economic factors leading to the
Reformation
• Riches from new world giving more
freedom to "middle class" people
• More freedom = to think, to study, to break
away
• Perhaps contributes to the "conciliar
movement" seeking more democratic and
less authoritarian/controlled from the top.
Political factors leading to the
Reformation
• Italy became less important as Spain and
Portugal became rich.
• Wealth associated with church positions
led to ungodly people being placed into
church leadership. This led to decreased
respect for religious leadership.
• The rise of nation-states (France/ Spain/
England/ etc) meant that the Pope had to
deal with powerful kings that had their own
opinions – thus there was more
compromise – good and bad.
Geographic factors leading to the
Reformation
• Islamic influence decreased in the West,
increased in the East
• Made Germany more important
• Forced Popes not to deal with a heavy
hand to upset the Germans
• Probably gave Luther some room to start
the Reformation
• Germany = remote, England / Spain /
Portugal / France / Italy not so
Cultural factors leading to the
Reformation
• Rise in the appreciation of the arts led to focus
on externals
• Paintings / Cathedrals / Sculpture /
• Poor understanding of the Bible led to practices
focused on creation of wealth rather than
internal transformation of the heart.
• Indulgences
• Selling of church positions
• Church land holdings
• Priests being exempt from regular laws made
people feel less respect for religious leadership
• No one able to be critical of leadership actions
led to corruption and decreased morality.
Objectives from COS Modules:
• What was the intellectual and cultural climate of Europe on the eve of
the Reformation? Was it conducive for religious reform?
• How did the political and economic situation in Europe—including
trade with Asia—contribute to the Reformation?
• Was the Catholic Church capable of reform from within? Was a
schism necessary? On this topic, compare the views of Protestant
and Roman Catholic historians.
• What are the similarities and differences between Renaissance
humanism and other forms of humanism present in our times?
• We Protestants place a high premium on the individual privilege and
responsibility of reading, studying, and interpreting Scripture. How
can we effectively facilitate this in our places of service?
• What are some potential dangers resulting from taking this view to an
extreme?
• Erasmus sought to get “back to the source,” that is Jesus, primarily
through a study of the revealed Word of God. What is a healthy way
of viewing the relationship between the Written Word (Scriptures) and
the Living Word (Jesus Christ)? How do we avoid “bibliolatry” or
worship of the Bible?
• Discipleship: Many believed so strongly that they were
willing to die for their belief. Many were burned at the
stake so that you could read a Bible in your own
language - how do you feel about that? How do you
think the Lord feels about that?
• Discipleship: Is it really that important to read the Bible?
Why and why not? From today's lecture, was there any
proof one way or the other?
• Leadership: If you have division in the church, is splitting
the easiest way? From today's lecture, what would you
say about splitting up a church? Any ideas on how to
avoid a split in the first place?
Bibliography
• Pictures and quotes from Wikipedia