Background to the Reformation
-Nominalism: 14th Century; William of Oakham says faith and reason do not cooperate. Reason helps us understand the world and faith can help us understand God.
-Renaissance humanism: 14th-16th Century movement in Western Europe. “Rebirth” was the main idea. Arts, literature and theology made up the culture, which was going back to the classical roots. Humanism is the importance of the human being, this world, and the individual person.
-Ad fontes: to the fountain (origin).
-Desiderius Erasmus’s Greek New Testament---didn’t have notes for this
-Branches of the Reformation: Lutheran Reformation (Martin Luther) Modern Day Germany; Reformed Tradition (Switzerland); Anabaptists (Switzerland); English Reformation (England); Catholic Reformation (didn’t result in a split); Protestant
-Sacrament of Penance in medieval Catholic Church: The reformation process begins with Martin Luther and the Sacrament of Penance. The Sacrament of Penance is seen as a sale of indulgences. There are four key components of penance: contrition (to be sorry for my sins); confess to a priest; Absolution, which is the forgiveness of sin and guilt is taken away; and satisfaction, which is paying penalty for sins through prayers, almsgiving, and fasting.
-Purgatory: Purification. It is the state of purification after a person dies. The image is suffering from a fire.
-Indulgences: This occurred right before the 16th century. Indulgences were the churches cancellation of the penalty of sin. These were sold and preventative, which brought forth corruption. An indulgence seller would travel around and sell indulgences. “ When the coin in the coffer rings, the soul for purgatory springs.
-Pope Leo X: In 1517 he decides to raise money. The money was being raised in order to renovate the main church. Indulgences were sold in order to raise money for this project. Albert of Mainz was the bishop at this time and was known for bribing his way into the position. Both Leo and Albert want to sell indulgences in Germany so they hire John Tetzel to sell them. When Martin Luther catches wind of this, he put together the 95 Thesis and nailed them to the Cathedral in Wittenberg.
-95 Thesis: were based on two central ideas: the Bible was the central religious authority and humans reach salvation by their faith and not by deeds. This sparked the reformation period.
Essay 1: The origins of the Reformation takes place right before and in the early years of the 14th Century. Renaissance Humanism was movement that emphasized “rebirth” for the individual. This movement in Western Europe was veering back to the more classical roots pertaining to the arts, literature and theology that made up the culture. Humanism is the importance of the human being, the world and the individual person. Ad fontes, which means to the fountain, refers to the study of Greek and Latin in Renaissance Humanism. Martin Luther was the figurehead for the Reformation period. There are many branches of the Reformation period. These branches were: the Lutheran Reformation, Reformed