Religious Crisis and Reformation Notes

Vast numbers of people in Europe are unaware of the crises within the church.
Corruption exists within the church through:
- Simony: Sale of church offices.
- Pluralism: Holding multiple positions and receiving multiple salaries.
- Absenteeism: Not showing up for the job while still getting paid.
- Sale of Indulgences: A major issue that leads to Martin Luther's break from the church. The Catholic church was seen as flexible in its interpretation of scripture.

Literal interpretation of the Bible can be difficult due to its age.
Priests often couldn't read Latin, leading to misinterpretations of scripture.
Protestantism emphasizes the literal interpretation of the Bible.
Northern humanists were seen as more religious than Catholics because they tried to adhere strictly to the Bible.
The Protestant Reformation was a conservative movement aimed at bringing the Catholic Church back to its roots.
The Bible is the sole authority for Protestants, who rejected the idea of priests, popes, or cardinals interpreting the faith.
Protestants emphasized personal communion with God, eliminating the need for a middleman.

Examples of corruption: leaders having affairs and children out of wedlock while being supposed to be celibate.
The church controlled 30% of the land in Europe, making it a mega institution.

Luther was not the first critic; others included Erasmus, John Wycliffe, and John Huss.
John Huss was burned at the stake for his criticisms.
Erasmus wrote "In Praise of Folly," criticizing various aspects of European society and the church.
Northern humanism involved textual criticism and translations of the Bible into local vernacular languages.

Ulrich Zwingli: Contemporary of Luther, trained as a humanist, used Erasmus's edition of the Greek New Testament.
John Calvin: His teachings were brought back by exiles to Geneva, leading to the spread of Calvinism.
- John Knox: he brought Calvinism to Scotland

French Calvinists became Huguenots.
English Calvinists became Puritans.
Dutch Calvinists emerged.
Calvinism was more influential than Lutheranism, which remained isolated in Northern Germany, Denmark, Sweden, and Finland.
Calvinists were initially seen as religious extremists.

Puritan beliefs became more accepted in England during the English Civil War (1640s-1650s).
Oliver Cromwell, a Puritan, became the military dictator and expelled Presbyterians.
English people fled England due to religious persecution, particularly Puritans.

Pilgrims, the most extremist Puritans, set up colonies in North America, such as Massachusetts Bay Colony.
- Massachusetts Bay Colony was founded in 1618.
Anglicans set up plantation-style farms in the Chesapeake Bay Colony (Southern colonies).
Religious divisions existed among English settlers in America: Puritans in the North and Anglicans in the South.
The North focused on urban centers, while the South focused on plantations.
This division contributed to the sectional divide between the North and South, culminating in the Civil War.

Martin Luther broke away from the church in 1517 due to his opposition to indulgences.
Johann Tetzel was known for selling indulgences: "As soon as a coin in the coffer rings, the soul from purgatory springs."
Luther allegedly nailed his 95 Theses to the door of Wittenberg Cathedral.
Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor, promised Luther a fair trial.
Charles V aimed to maintain religious unity in Europe but faced challenges, including the Turks.
He eventually retired and divided his holdings into Spain and Austria.

Luther was given a trial at the Diet of Worms and received protection.
Charles V tried to stamp out Protestantism in alliance with the Pope but was preoccupied with the Turks.
German peasants revolted.
Early religious wars occurred.
The League of Schmalkalden (1531) was formed by Lutheran princes to defend themselves against Charles V.
Francis I of France, a Catholic, sided with the League of Schmalkalden to undermine the Habsburgs.
The Habsburg-Valois wars involved five conflicts between France and the Habsburgs over Italy.
France aimed to keep the Germans divided, which contributed to the long-term political fragmentation of Germany.

The Peace of Augsburg in 1555 temporarily ended the struggle in Germany over Lutheranism, resulting in the permanent religious division of Germany.
New types of Protestantism emerged, including Anabaptists, Mennonites, and Calvinists.

Calvin was a Frenchman who studied law and embraced humanism.
His version of Protestantism centered on predestination: God knows before birth whether one will go to heaven or hell.
Calvin established a theocracy in Geneva.
Calvinism was the most militant and uncompromising of all the Protestant sects.
Calvinists believed in a Protestant work ethic, seeing financial success as a sign of God's favor.

Presbyterians in Scotland.
Dutch Reformed Church in the Netherlands.
Puritans in England.
Huguenots in France.
Calvinism did not spread to Ireland, Spain, or Italy due to their strong Catholic presence.

Henry VII initiated the path to political centralization in England after the War of the Roses.
Henry VIII broke away from the church to divorce Catherine of Aragon and marry Anne Boleyn, who later bore him his second daughter Elizabeth.
Henry VIII had six wives.
He cracked down on monasteries, leading to the Pilgrimage of Grace, a revolt by northern English nobles that was suppressed.

Edward VI, Henry VIII's only son, was short-lived.
Mary I (Bloody Mary) tried to re-Catholicize England, leading to the death of many who had been loyal to her father.
Elizabeth I came to power in 1558-1559 and was the longest-reigning queen of England at the time.

Elizabeth I was a politique, navigating the Protestant Reformation by not being too strongly Catholic or Puritan.
Henry IV of France (Henry of Navarre) was another example of a politique, being Catholic when convenient and Calvinist when not.

The Defenestration of Prague in 1618 marked the beginning of the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648), the last major religious war in Europe, ending with the Treaty of Westphalia.

The story of the Three Henrys and the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre, where Huguenots were brutally massacred.
Henry IV (Henry of Navarre) started the Bourbon dynasty.