The Reformation Continues

The Reformation Continues

Chapter 17 Section 4

Calvin Continues the Reformation

·  Religious reform in Switzerland was influenced by Christian humanism

·  It called for a return to the more personal faith of early Christianity

·  People could now read and decide what they wanted to believe rather than what someone told them to believe

·  Believer or member would have more control of the Church

Calvin Formalizes Protestant Ideas

·  Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses

·  John Calvin was 8 years old at the time

·  Calvin published Institutes of the Christian Religion. This book expressed ideas about God, salvation and human nature

·  Calvin had three main beliefs:

o  Men and women are sinful by nature

o  God chooses a very few people to save. Calvin called these few the “elect”

o  God has known since the beginning of time who will be saved. This is known as predestination

·  The religion based on Calvin’s teachings is called Calvinism

Calvin Leads the Reformation in Switzerland

·  Calvin believed that the ideal government was a theocracy, a government controlled by religious leaders

Calvinism Spreads

·  John Knox put Calvin’s ideas to work

·  Each community church was governed by a group of laymen called elders or presbyters.

·  Followers of Knox became known as Presbyterians

·  On reason Calvin is considered so influential is that many Protestant churches today trace their roots to Calvin

·  In France, Calvin’s followers were called Huguenots

Other Protestant Reformers

·  Christians were now able to interpret the Bible for themselves. Since they could read for themselves they could decide what to believe. New Protestant groups formed over differences in belief

The Anabaptists

·  On group baptized only those persons who were old enough to decide to be Christian

·  These believers were called Anabaptists, which mean “baptize again”

·  Anabaptists also taught that church and state should be separated and refused to fight in wars

·  Catholics and Protestants persecuted them

·  Anabaptists survived and became the forerunners of the Mennonites and the Amish

·  Later their teachings influenced the Quakers

Women’s Role in the Reformation

·  Women played prominent roles in the Reformation

·  As Protestant religions became more firmly established, their organization became more formal

·  Male religious leaders narrowly limited women’s activities to the home and discouraged them from being leaders in the church

The Catholic Reformation

·  Helping Catholics to remain loyal was a movement within the Catholic Church to reform itself

·  This movement is known as the Catholic Reformation or the Counter Reformation

·  Ignatius of Loyola, was an important leader in this movement who founded new religious orders

Ignatius of Loyola

·  Ignatius began writing a book called Spiritual Exercises that laid out a day-by-day plan of meditation, prayer, and study.

·  Ignatius followers became part of the religious order called the Society of Jesus

·  The member were called Jesuits

·  The Jesuits focused on three activities

o  They founded schools

o  They converted non-Christians to Catholicism

o  They wanted to stop the spread of Protestantism

Reforming Popes

·  Pope Paul III directed a council of cardinals to investigate indulgence selling and other abused in the Church

·  The Council of Trent met and agreed on several doctrines

o  The Church’s interpretation of the Bible was final

o  Christians needed faith and good works for salvation. They were not saved by faith alone

o  The Bible and Church tradition were equally powerful authorities for guiding Christian life

o  The false selling of indulgences was to be banned

Political Effects of the Reformation

·  Catholic Church’s moral and political authority declined, and individual monarchs and stated gained power

·  Rulers of nation states would seek more power for themselves and their countries through warfare, exploration, and expansion

·  The Reformation’s questioning of beliefs and authority also laid the groundwork for the Enlightenment, an intellectual movement that would sweep Europe in the late 18th century