AGE OF REFORMATION

The Age of Reformation

1517-1600

Protestant reformation

Luther

Catholic or Counter-Reformation

Religious causes

• Luther argued that the church had to be reformed. He believed that individuals could be saved only by faith.
• He thought the Catholic Church’s practices focusing on works (such as pilgrimages, the sale of indulgences to obtain forgiveness) were immoral
• He rejected the ecclesiastical system
• Based his ideas on the Old Testament

Started in Germany as an objection to particular corruptions.It was an intent to reform the catholic church

• Its purpose was to stop the growth of protestantism and to increase the faith within church members.
• Reorganized the papal finances, and eliminated abuses.
• Reaffirmed values and beliefs such as the sacraments, transubstantiation, invocation of saints and the belief in purgatory and the importance of worship
• Good works were as necessary as faith
• Education of ignorant Priesthood
• Prohibition of holding more than one benefice from church.
• Creation of orders such as the Jesuits
• Creation of schools and universities
• Spread of Christianity through the world
• Brought back the Inquisition
• Religious persecution and religious wars
• Violence, intolerance and unreason.

• Abuses in the Catholic Church:

• Religious values corrupted by money.
• Ignorant and corrupt Clergy
• Sale of indulgences, dispensations and offices in the church
• Concentration of power and wealth through the Clergy

Political and economic causes

• Growth of nationalism
• Rise of despotic governments: Powerful monarchs challenged the Church as the supreme power in Europe

• Desire to get possesion of church's wealth, who was an economic empire and drained the northern countries to enrich Italy.
• Conflict between the rising middle class and medieval Christianity: Church collected money from everywhere and were exempted from taxation, which meant more burden for kings and this new middle class.
• Rise of capitalism & mercantilism

• The printing press allowed rapid dissemination of his ideas

Reformation spread throughout Europe

In Switzerland, Calvinism became a branch of protestantism.In England the papal authority was abolished and emerged another branch, Anglicanism In Scotland came up the Presbyterianism as a form of radical Calvinism.