Mr. Valiente
Block 6
January 17, 2015
Renaissance, Reformation, Age of Exploration
The spirit of Renaissance encouraged the Protestant Reformation and Age of Exploration to take place. During the Renaissance, Reformation, and Age of Exploration, humanists flourished throughout Europe. Each is connected in a way. Each time had an immense impact on what and how we are today. Each was a movement that was about to change the world.
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that took place in a period during the 1300s to the 1600s when knowledge and intelligence played an important role in life. The definition of a humanist is a person who specializes in the humanities, the study of grammar, history, and poetry. During this period, many European scholars and artists studied the knowledge and art of the ancient Greek and Roman Empires with an aim of reviving and improving on the works accomplished by these two cultures. This began, in Italy and soon spread to England, France Germany, and the Netherlands. The renaissance marked the time in European history referred to as the Middle Ages. During the Middle Ages, most people in Europe believed that the most important task for all human beings was the acceptance of God. Everyone’s ultimate goal was to behave in a manner that would ensure that they went to heaven. The renaissance thinkers emphasized people’s responsibilities and duties to the society in which they lived in. They paid great attention to the study of humanities. The Renaissance marked the beginning of the modern era of human history. The popes of Rome spread Roman Catholicism to Western Europe. Monasteries were established for nuns and monks where they lived a strict life.
During the Renaissance, the Catholic Church was losing its grip on Europe, as people began to criticize its logic and practices. They wanted a more personable and intimate connection with God rather than some priest telling them of God. Also, the Catholic Church was corrupt and many renaissance thinkers hated this thus, the Reformation began. During the Reformation, humanists questioned the Roman Catholic Churches ways. Humanists revolutionized a way of thinking that led to new ideas and values taking hold in Europe. Humanists were people that focused their studies on the humanities. Humanists emphasized on education and individual achievement, and believed greatly in leading a fulfilled life. The Renaissance had a great impact on the Reformation. Martin Luther, a Protestant reformer, who believed that God knows in advanced that are going to go to heaven by faith in God alone. His father intended him to study law and legal career the only stepping stone to public life, but he became a priest and monk instead. According to the Catholic religion, individuals who sin against God .Martin Luther was on his own path letting no one stop him; he saw things that others didn’t. Martin Luther put his statements on the church door, in Wittenberg. Martin Luther claimed that what distinguished him from previous reformers was that while they attacked corruption in the life of the church. In his Ninety Five Theses, he attacked the indulgences, insisting that the pope had no authority over purgatory. While he did not intend to separate the Catholic Church, a confrontation with the papacy was not long in coming. Luther was tried before the Imperial Diet of Worms and was eventually excommunicated. Martin Luther had both immense and some not so good effects on the period.
The Renaissance was embodied with ideas of greatness, individual achievement, and the desire to seek