The Protestant Reformation, Religious Unity, and Calvinism Essay examples

It was a respectable movement involving the most responsible and accomplished people of France"3. This new reformation showed that the French Protestants wanted freedom politically and religiously. In Salman's article "Who Were The Huguenots?" He explains that almost one third of the French nobility, including some of the most powerful in the land became a part of the new reformation4. Although a heavy number of Huguenots were a part of this new reformation the Huguenots were still a minority group considering that ninety five percent of France was still Roman Catholic. In Scoville Warren's journal article, "The Hugunots in the French Economy" he explains that there is ample evidence that the French Protestants constituted a "penalized minority"5. The Huguenots were conscious of the social and political discrimination directed towards

The Protestant Reformation forever changed the religious, social, and political aspects of the world. These changes forever altered the world and paved the way for revolutions to

Martin Luther and Jean Calvin were the two of the most influential reformers during the Protestant Reformation. Luther began the Protestant Reformation by nailing his 95 Theses to the Wittenberg Chapel in 1517 in response to the corruption and abuses of the Catholic Church. In Switzerland, Calvin also had new ideas about religion, the main being predestination (the belief that people's fates (whether they go to Heaven or Hell) are predetermined when they are born). Their reforms and ideas definitely laid the foundation for capitalism, free government/democracy, religious tolerance, and individualism, but I do not believe that the reformers (people like Luther and Calvin) had the direct intention of doing these things.

Long before the creation of the Geneva Church and the establishment of the rules, John Calvin had doubts about his religion. Thomas Beza, author of Life of Calvin said, “he could not properly fulfil his ministry, unless, along with Christian doctrine, a regular presbytery which full ecclesiastical authority were established” (Calvin and the Reformation in Geneva 188). The Geneva Church required people to attend sermons on Sunday, with few exceptions. Ensuring absolute belief in Calvinism was important to the survival of the growing religion. When a person was convicted of violating the rules of the Geneva Church, often they were sentenced to death. The Inquisition of the Catholic Church and the Geneva consistory by Calvinists were essential to maintain the power of the religious groups. It must be remembered what happened to Michael Servetus. Initially condemned by the Catholic Church for his viewpoints, which doubted Christ, he escaped to Geneva on route to Italy. There, Calvinism members discover him, which lead to his condemnation by yet another religious group. Zophy sums his ordeal when he says, “After a lengthy trial at which Calvin testified extensively and was counterattacked by Servetus, the Spaniard was found guilty and burned at the stake” (225). Servetus serves as a painful reminder to those who question religious leader’s authority. Equally, Calvinists and the Catholic Church members used the horrific tactic or burning individuals alive to prove their viewpoints. It was normal during the 1500s. Ultimately, people lost their lives over conviction from religious

Religion in Europe was affected by the religious movements and because of it caused many problems for the churches in Europe and the people. The church controlled the people and did not allow anyone but people of the church to recite the bible, in doing so the people had to trust what the church was saying. The church would use the bible as a way of controlling the people, they would lie about what the bible said in order for them to receive money or to make people do what they wanted (Doc.2). The church would lie to the people and tell them that the only way to help free a loved one from Purgatory would be to pay for them to

The period immediately following the Protestant reformation and the Catholic counter reformation, was full of conflict and war. The entire continent of Europe and all of it's classes of society were affected by the destruction and flaring tempers of the period. In the Netherlands, the Protestants and the Catholics were at eachother’s throats. In France it was the Guise family versus the Bourbons. In Bohemia, the religious and political structures caused total havoc for over thirty years; and in England, the Presbyterians thought that the English Anglican Church too closely resembled the Roman Catholic Church. Religion was the major cause of the widespread

The Effects of the Reformation on European Life European society was divided from the word go, people all around Europe were dominantly Catholic before the reformation. This time was bringing change throughout Europe with a heavy influence on art and culture because the Renaissance was occurring; a religious revolution was also beginning, which was known as the Protestant Reformation. The Protestant Reformation was the voicing of disagreements by a German Catholic priest about the Catholic Church; this priest was Martin Luther and was excommunicated from the church for his actions. The Protestant Reformation helped to influence and strengthen the Renaissance that was just arising in England.

The Protestant Reformation was a major 16th century European movement aimed initially at reforming the beliefs and practices of the Roman Catholic Church. The Reformation in western and central Europe officially began in 1517 with Martin Luther and his 95 Theses. This was a debate over the Christian religion. At the time there was a difference in power. Roman Catholicism stands with the Pope as central and appointed by God. Luther’s arguments referred to a direct relationship with God and using the local vernacular to speak to the people. Luther’s arguments remove the absolute power from the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church in general. The revenue from the taxes paid to the Church would be reduced with Luther’s ideas, in part because of

During the 16th century the Protestant Reformation was blooming. Catholic Europe was being broken due to the challenges in political, religious and intellectual belief. In 1534, Calvin underwent a sudden change and became an ardent Protestant. With everyone having different beliefs, Calvin had his own and wanted to share it with the world. A Protestant is a Christian who belongs to one of the many branches of Christianity that have developed out of the Protestant Reformation started by Martin Luther in 1517. After Journeying to Basel, a Protestant city within Switzerland, Calvin published his first systematic theology, Institutes of the Christian Religion. Institutes of the Christian Religion became highly influential with the Western civilizations. Calvin’s writings gave an introductory

with his 95 Theses. A strict father who most likely did not accept “no” as an

John Calvin, a Genevan, modified Martin Luther’s ideas of the Reformation to create the faith of Calvinism, and later wrote the Latin tome Institutes of the Christian Religion in 1536.

During the 16th century, Protestantism emerged as a new sect of Christianity. This process was not calm or peaceful in the slightest. Protestant leaders like Martin Luther and John Calvin fiercely attacked and denied traditional Catholic beliefs, causing much controversy and debate upon religion. Many regions of Europe as a whole were converted to Protestantism, and many more Protestants emerged in areas where Catholicism remained the state religion. The Catholic faith became less and less appealing to people as the abuses of the clergy were now publicly addressed by reformers and a new, personal approach to religion was offered in Protestantism. In addition, rulers favored Protestantism as a state religion because it meant that no power

The Protestant Reformation was the 16th-century religious, political, intellectual and cultural upheaval that splintered Catholic Europe, setting in place the structures and beliefs that would define the continent in the modern era.

The citizens of Geneva saw Calvin as imposing a new form of papacy on the people. Calvin was exiled from Geneva in 1538. Calvin moved to Strasburg and began writing commentaries on the Bible which he entitles "Institutes of

John Calvin was born on July 10th, 1509 in Noyon, Picardy, France. He studied at the universities of Paris, Bourges, and Orleans. He was a key leader of the Protestant Reformation. He wrote many protestant works like Institutes of the Christian Religion. Calvin was also a revolutionary theologian and leader, developing the religion of Calvinism and doctrine of predestination. In addition, Calvin reorganized the city of Geneva, Switzerland and made it into an example theocracy. John Calvin died on May 27th, 1564 in Geneva, Switzerland, but his ideas and achievements have lived on. In fact, the average citizen should care about him because of the contributions he has made to the world, however positive or negative they may be. John Calvin’s three main contributions that make him historically significant are his development of the doctrine of predestination, his revolutionary reform of the education system, and his emphasis on the protestant work ethic.