HIST 211 - God and Government | Vocabulary

Renaissance

European cultural revival emphasizing classical Greek and Roman ideas, roughly 1300s–1600s.

Lorenzo Valla

Renaissance scholar who used textual analysis to expose errors in Church documents.

Ad fontes

Latin for “to the sources”; returning to original texts, especially the Bible.

Liturgy

The formal structure and practices of Christian worship.

Jerome / Vulgate

Jerome translated the Bible into Latin; the Vulgate was his Latin Bible translation.

Missa

Latin word for Mass, the Catholic worship service.

Johannes Gutenburg

Inventor of the European movable-type printing press, helping spread Reformation ideas.

Real Presence / Spiritual Presence

Real Presence: Christ is truly present in Communion. Spiritual Presence: Christ is present spiritually rather than physically.

Alexander VI

Pope (1492–1503) from the Borgia family, associated with Renaissance-era papal corruption.

Augustine

Early Christian theologian whose writings strongly influenced ideas about grace, sin, and salvation.

Borgia

Powerful Renaissance Italian/Spanish family that produced Pope Alexander VI.

Vernacular

The everyday language spoken by ordinary people, rather than Latin.

Anfectung

Luther’s term for deep spiritual anxiety/doubt about one's salvation.

Indulgence

A Church grant reducing punishment for sin; Luther criticized abuses involving indulgences.

Purgatory

Catholic belief in an afterlife state of purification before entering Heaven.

95 Theses

Luther's 1517 statements criticizing indulgences and other Church practices.

Menno Simons

Anabaptist leader whose followers became known as Mennonites.

Justification

The process by which a person is made right with God and receives salvation.

Sola scriptura

“Scripture alone”: the Bible is the highest/final authority for Christian faith.

Sola fide

“Faith alone”: people are justified through faith rather than good works.

Sola gratia

“Grace alone”: salvation is a gift from God's grace, not something earned.

Magisterial / magister

Magisterial: Protestant reformers who believed the government/magistrates should support and enforce religious reform. Magister: Latin for “teacher/master”; a religious authority or teacher.

Habsburg

Powerful European ruling dynasty that controlled territories including the Holy Roman Empire and opposed some Protestant movements.

Wittenberg

German city where Martin Luther taught and where the Reformation began.