Protestant Reformation Quiz

Causes of the Reformation

The Catholic Church in the 1500s

  • powerful, wealthy

    • religious and political power came from the pope

    • secular leaders had to send taxes to Rome

      • France, England, and Spain push back against this

      • these taxes mostly come from Germany as they don’t push back against this

  • suffering from internal division…

    • aftermath of the plague

    • weakened church

    • proposed reforms (Wycliffe + Hus) p. 362-363

      • Hus was accused of hearsay and burnt at the stake

    • controversial whether or not both body and blood could be received @ communion

      • with that, there was not frequent communion, maybe once or twice a year

    • Avignon Papacy, 1309 to 1377

      • French king bullied people

      • pope lived in France under French influence

      • pope comes back to Rome in 1377 but then dies in 1378

    • Western Schism + aftermath, 1378 to 1418'

      • French Pope? Italian Pope? Another Pope?

        • dispute of who is the pope, three men come out to be the pope

      • the pope of my enemy is…anti-pope?

    • The Council of Constance, 1414 to 1418

      • GOOD

        • church united under ONE pope —> Martin V

        • first discussion of defining dogma of the Immaculate Conception

        • first encouragement of devotion St. Joseph

        • end of schism

      • BAD

        • beginning of the Conciliar movement (p.320-321)

  • …and corrupt

    • clergy behavior

      • parties, sinning, overspending

    • nepotism, simony, indulgences

      • (bishops??) nephews would gain powerful roles and kill to do so and didn’t have the credentials/experience/knowledge to perform their roles well/correctly

      • paid to gain titles and things, like bishop of someplace and indulgences, and almsgiving was abused

    • pluralism and absenteeism

      • pluralism - had two or more major diocese/places to govern at the same time

      • absenteeism

        • popes and bishops were governing from other places, ex. bishop of D.C. governing D.C. from San Diego


Henry VIII’s Church of England

Problem

  • Henry was not able to have a male heir with Catharine of Aragon and feared that there would be a repeat of the War of Roses. He asks the pope to annul his marriage to Catharine so he can then remarry and have a male heir (without facing backlash of the Catholic Church or anything since Catharine of Aragon’s family was very devout Catholic)

Solution

  • The Pope denies the annulment so Henry passes the Act of Supremacy in 1534, making him the head of the church and giving him the title, “The Defender of the Faith”, so that he can annul his marriage and have a male heir.

Did Henry have theological disagreements with the Church?

No, Henry believes in the sacraments, doesn’t change the liturgy, and only has a problem with the popes’ power


Luther + The Church

Problem

  • Luther felt that he was not being a good enough monk and was constantly sinning, and no matter how much he went to confession he was not sure of his salvation. He was also very mad about the church selling indulgences

Solution

  • Luther writes the 95 thesis, becomes a theology professor, leaves the church, and starts his own church/writes about how the Catholic Church should be improved in his eyes (and later gets excommunicated)


Calvin + The Church

Calvin’s Belief’s about God

  • He exists

  • God has absolute sovereignty

  • all powerful

  • pre-determines if you are going to be saved or not

Belief’s about Holy Communion

  • Communion isn’t the substance

  • Jesus is at the right hand of the father

  • Jesus is present ONLY SPIRITUALLY in communion, not bodily (corporally if you will)

Belief’s about Liturgy/Worship

  • sermon was the most important part of the Church

  • the church was not decorated (no images in the physical church)


Protestant Reformation

  • a 16th century movement to change and improve the Catholic Church

  • many new churches that did not accept the authority of the Pope were founded

  • non-Catholic, non-orthodox Christians become known as protestants

  • Happens in the Renaissance during the same time as the Age of Exploration


Timeline

  • Martin Luther - 1517

  • Ulrich Zwingli - 1520s

  • Anabaptists - 1525

  • Henry VIII - late 1520s into 1530s

    • Thomas Cranmer - late 1540s

    • Elizabeth I - 1559

  • John Calvin - 1530s


Important Documents

Church of England

  • Act of Supremacy - English Parliament - 1534

  • Six Articles of the English Church - 1539

  • Book of Common Prayer - Thomas Cranmer - 1549

  • (New) Act of Supremacy - Elizabeth I - 1559


Two Other Protestant Groups

  • Ulrich Zwingli + followers

    • condemned religious images + Catholic hierarchy/authority

    • Eucharist was symbol - reminder of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross

    • Absorbed by Calvinism after his death

  • Anabaptists

    • offshoot of Zwingli circle

    • Baptism was only valid if it was administered to willing adults who understood significance and importance

    • true church was a small community of believers who made a deliberate commitment

    • pacifism, strict morality, extreme simplicity of worship

    • modern Mennonites + Amish


Council of Trent

  • A meeting of all the highest churches in Europe

  • reaffirmed doctrine

the 5 outcomes of the council:

  1. good works

  2. purgatory + indulgences

  3. transubstantiation

  4. hierarchy of the priesthood

  5. the role of the church tradition + teaching


Jesuits are at popes disposal and are very faithful, built schools


RESULTS
as a result of the protestant reformation, many countries were reshaped, much violence in ensued (including from iconoclasm - the destruction of images), much of northern Europe was Protestant and Southern Europe was Catholic