Transcript Reformation - hrsbstaff.ednet.ns.ca

Reformations of Christianity
Causes of the Reformation
• 100 Years War and Black Death
• Scientific Advances which contradicted the
Church
• The Corruption within the Catholic Church
Martin Luther (1483-1546)
• A Catholic Monk in Germany
• Luther argues that faith alone saves the
human sinner
• In 1517, he nails his Ninety-Five Theses,
which confront the church and call for
reform, on the door of the Wittenburg
cathedral
• Luther rejects all but two of the
sacraments, baptism and holy communion
Martin Luther Continued
• Painting of Martin
Luther by Lucas
Cranach the Elder
Martin Luther Continued
• Luther attacks monasticism, clerical
celibacy, and the authority of the pope
• Luther re-translates the Old and New
Testaments, and asserts that the ultimate
authority is scripture
The Diet of Worms
• The Diet of Worms (a German parliamentary
council) charges Luther with heresy
• 1520 Pope Leo X order Luther to give up his
beliefs
• Luther burned the order and was
excommunicated
• Luther went into hiding where he translated the
New Testament into German – spreading his
beliefs even further
Protestant Reformation
• The peasants revolted
• Aristocracy sides with either Catholic Church or
Luther and civil wars break out in Northern Europe
• New religious movements and Protestant sects
arise, like Calvinism and Anabaptism
• Calvinists, followers of John Calvin, believe that only
those who are among the elect will be saved.
• Predestination: a doctrine that states that a the time
of birth God knows who is damned and who is
saved
Protestant Reformation Continued
• Calvinists put great emphasis on work ethic and
condemn dancing, drinking, and public
entertainment
• Anabaptists reject all of the seven sacraments
and believe church and state should be
separate; religious imagery is also denied
• The Anglican Church forms when Henry VIII of
England divorces his first wife, is
excommunicated by the Pope, and decides to
break off from the Catholic church and form a
new Church of England
Pope Alexander VI
• Even before Luther initiated the German
Reformation, anonymous critics of
Alexander VI spread propaganda showing
him to be a devil. By lifting a flap one can
see him transformed into a monster who
proclaims, “I am the pope.”
The Seven Headed Papal Beast
• Around 1530 a Lutheran cartoon was
circulated in Germany, that turned the
papacy into the “seven headed beast” of
the Book of Revelation. The papacy’s
“seven heads” consist of pope, cardinals,
bishops, and priests; the sign of the cross
reads “for money a sack full of
indulgences”: and a devil is seen emerging
from an indulgence treasure chest below.
The Seven Headed Martin Luther
• In response, a German Catholic
propagandist showed Luther as
Revelation’s “beast.” In this cartoon,
Luther’s seven heads show him to be a
hypocrite, a fanatic, and “Barabbas” – the
criminal who was set free instead of
Jesus.
John Calvin and King Henry VIII
Witch Hunts
• Due to the chaotic nature of the time, religious
persecution and witch-hunts become
widespread
• Witchcraft became a convenient explanation for
any unpleasant turn of events – failure of a crop,
outbreak of a fire, an unexpected death, or
inability to conceive a child.
• About 110,000 individuals underwent trial as
suspected witches during the 16th and 17th
centuries and about 60,000 of them died either
by hanging or by burning at the stake.
Witch Hunts
• Women may have accounted for 95% or
more of the condemned.
• Many of them were poor, old, single, or
widowed – they were easy targets
because they had no one to protect them.
• Witch hunting spread through Europe and
into the European colonies and ended by
1700.
Jan Van Der Velde, ‘The
Sorceress’, 1626. engraving
The Self Appointed “Witch finder
Generall.”
Religious Wars
• Religious tensions lead to outright war
between Protestant and Catholic
communities.
• Kings and Queens attempted to force
communities, countries and other royalty
to come to their religion.
The Thirty Years War
• A massive continental conflict.
• By the time the war ended, Spanish,
French, Dutch, German, Swedish, Danish,
Polish, Bohemian, and Russian forces had
taken part.
• Joined for political, economic and religious
reasons.
The Thirty Years War Continued
• The Thirty Years War offered abundant
opportunity for undisciplined mercenary
soldiers to prey on civilian populations.
Only Rarely was a mass hanging like this
punished.
North America
• The events of the reformation, witch-hunts
and wars caused some to leave.
• Many Christians (of all belief systems) left
Europe and settled in North America so
that they could experience religious
freedom.