Gigi Papasavvas
Honors English 12
Ms. Sheinberg
October 17, 2018
The English Reformation Period
The reformation which at times is referred to Protestant Reformation was a major event in the church history. The two key-leaders that played a key major role in this historic event were Martin Luther and John Calvin. The impact of this revolution affected both the political, economic and social spheres. This is much to prove in your paper. It led to the emergence of Protestantism, one of the primary branches out of three constituting Christianity(Source) How do you know?. It is from the composite feudal Roman Catholic Church that gave genesis to the 16th-century group of reformers(Source) How do you know?.. For a period of a long time the church, the post of the papacy to be exact, was a major influence in regards to the political arena of western Europe(Source) How do you know?.. This power that the church had been entitled with and having the ability to offset the politics of the country made the church to deviate from its respective purpose which was majorly spiritual intercession (Lincoln, pp.387).
The church abused the spiritual privileges it had been accorded by unscrupulous acts by clergy and involvement in the fraud(Source) How do you know? . This led to the degradation of its reputation(Source) How do you know? . The church was exempted, however, from any condemnation and it continued to offer spiritual guidance to its follower(Source) How do you know?s. Despite evidence pointing towards some element of anticlericalism, there were no changes in a question of devotion from its members and everything seemed to be running as earlier(Source) How do you know?. The role played by the church concerning the public was a chief concern to various political figures(Source) How do you know?. They plotted on means of causing disharmony to this privilege that the church had for so long enjoyed. It marked the commencement of tension(Source) How do you know?. You need to provide resources to support the claims as you were not alive at this period. Once you provide the sources, you will need to provide analysis.
The Reformation was not an instant historical event as reformers such as St. Francis, Jan Hus, Valdes, and John Wycliffe who were members of the medieval church had given insights on the position of the church in periods as earlier than 1517(Source) How do you know?.. Popular incoherent understanding in the Catholic was disregarded after Erasmus of Rotterdam was on the forefront of the whole activity of liberalism and emphasized on adherence of the moral teachings of Christ(Source) How do you know?.. There was an unending necessity to change in the church that prompted reformation even further. On October 31, 1517, it was the eve of All Saint's Day, which also marks the day that Reformation began officially. Luther made acclaims that previous reformers were not direct in their attempt to make the church a better place as they addressed the vices instead of taking action against the root cause, the false doctrinal teachings on redemption and grace(Source) How do you know?.. Link to your thesis.
Luther addressed several things in his Ninety-Five Theses that he felt was not in tandem with the gospel(Source) How do you know?.. Link to your thesis.. His excommunication took place in 1512 leading to the main division in western Christendom(Source) How do you know?.. Link to your thesis.. Despite the Reformation movement occurring in Germany, it later spread autonomously across other nations(Source) How do you know?.. Link to your thesis.. One of the reformers that broke from the Catholicism includes Huldrych Zwingli who established a Christian theocracy in Zurich where Christian as a whole could congregate to worship together(Source) How do you know?.. Link to your thesis.. He concurred with Luther’s Theses but had a different perception on the holy communion(Source) How do you know?.. Link to your thesis.. Other reformers include Anabaptists (radical reformers), Socinian of Poland and Calvinism. They are among well-known reformers(Source) How do you know?.. Link to your thesis.. Reformation spread and dominated almost the whole of Northern Europe, Eastern Europe and in England it was more of a combination of both political and religious factors.
The Catholic’s and Protestants have little in common and differ in a lot of things. They both worship under the roof of a church and have a common belief in the second coming of Christ. They also believe to have a common origin which includes majorly, Palestine and Rome. Catholic’s and Protestants are of the same school of thought pertaining crucifixion of Christ and the virgin birth. The belief that God reveals Himself as a Trinity can be noted in both the two groups. Much of what the Bible teaches such as sin coming to the world through Adam is accepted by both. On the other side, Catholic’s have one central head which is the Pope followed by other officials such as cardinals, archbishops, bishops and priests. Protestants have each church being independent of another. The use of statues in Catholicism is not done in Protestantism. Another significant difference is the confession of sins to God through priests in the Catholic church while protestants confess through Jesus. Protestant accord to Mary the respect of being the favored one among women but do not go ahead to use her as an intercessor to God as the Catholics do. All of this needs to be cited.
The Reformation was marked by various significant happenings throughout the time of history. The 95 Theses nailed by Luther on October 31st, 1517 was a religious ignition that exploded all over Germany and beyond. In 1529 was the year that Luther and Zwingli had a discussion regarding the Lord’s Supper (Marburg Colloquy) and they failed to reach an amicable agreement leading to further split of Protestants. Luther's interpretation of the New Testament took place in 1522. It led to other translations and more criticism on the Papacy. Church of England was founded on 1534 by Henry VIII who also declared himself as the head of the Church brought reformation in England and onset of problems. In 1559, John Calvin developed The Institute of Christian Religion that is considered the visionary explanation of theology. The Huguenot movement was made radical after the Catholic crusade against them. It was in 1572, and it came to be known as the St. Bartholomew‘s Day Massacre (Avihu, pp302).
The various causes of the Reformation included: disagreement of Martin Luther and the Catholic’s in various perspective; John Calvin's Institute of Theology began a revolution; the Catholic had to undertake reformation on its own and the abuses and corrupt nature of the church initially. The effects of Reformation include: the church is divided into separate groups; almost a quarter of the Christian population became protestant; religious tension among Lutheran, Calvinist and Catholics and war emerged in Northern Ireland. Protestant Reformation has contributed to freedom of religion, conscience, the pride of the individuality and political equality. Protestantism has developed roots in Africa, Latin America, and Asia. Publications by Reformist who are scholars prove that reformation is still ongoing till today (Davide, pp561).
Works cited
Avihu, Z. “Reformation, history, and eschatology in English Protestantism.” History and Theory. Vol 26, Issue 3. (1987): 300-318
Davide, C. “ The economic effects of the Protestant Reformation; testing the Weber Hypothesis in the German lands. Journal of the European Economic Association.” Vol 13, Issue 4. (2015): 561-598
Lincoln, R. “Church History: From Pre-Reformation to the Present Day; The Rise and Growth of the Church in its Cultural, Intellectual, and Political Context.” Horizons. Vol 41, Issue 2 (2014): 386-388
BAckerman
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