HST 122 -- Reformation

I. Preconditions of the Reformation(s)
        A. Crisis of Faith
                1. focus on external behavior, not inner spiritual intentions
                        a. penance and indulgences (sale of indulgences)
                        b. collection of holy relics
                        	1. skull of St. Ivo (Yves) in France
                        	2. reliquaries with arms/hands in Spain
                        	3. Frederick the Wise of Saxony; 17,443 relics
                2. abuses
                        a. simony
                        b. pluralism
        B. Christian Humanism
                1. tradition of criticizing the various problems of the church
                2. tradition of emphasizing the importance of the Bible and
                        the writings of the early church fathers
        C. Printing Press
                1. about 1000 printing presses in towns and cities throughout
                        Europe by 1500
                2. communication revolution
        D. Fragmentation of the Holy Roman Empire [MAP]
                1. Holy Roman Emperor was very weak
                2. very little real power over German princes and cities
II. The Lutheran Reformation
        A. Why did Luther (1483-1546) post his 95 Theses on the door of 
		Wittenberg castle church in 1517? [MAP]
                1. pope Leo X was offering an indulgence to pay for the rebuilding of
                        St. Peter's Basilica in Rome
                2. the pope chose Prince Albert of Brandenberg to distribute the
                        indulgence in Germany
                3. Albert hired a Dominican named Johann Tetzel to preach the
                        benefits of the indulgence
                4. Frederick the Wise of Saxony banned the sale of the indulgence
                        in his state because it competed with his relics
                5. people flocked to Brandenberg to buy it
                6. all this excitement was causing concern among certain clergy
                        - an indulgence was useless without contrition for one's sins,
                        and it didn't seem like too many of these people were sorry
                        for their sins
                7. finally, Luther posted his theses on the church door in order to
                        initiate a local debate on the subject
        B. What happened after Luther posted his 95 theses?
                1. they became a rallying cry for all who were opposed to the sale
                        of indulgences
                2. his theses were immediately translated into German and 
                        spread throughout Germany by Humanists
                3. the Pope and Holy Roman Emperor called for Luther to recant
                        his views
                4. he refused and was excommunicated by the pope in 1521
                5. the emperor Charles V summoned Luther to the Diet of Worms in 1521
                        a. put on trial for heresy; declared an enemy of the empire
                        b. but he managed to escape; helped by German princes
        C. Luther's theology
                1. background
                        a. Luther was a compulsively guilty person
                        b. performing good works didn't make him feel less guilty
                        c. but he was struck by a phrase in Romans:
                                "The just shall live by faith"
                        d. this meant that God's grace wasn't earned; it was freely given
                2. the three main tenets of Luther's theology
                        a. sola fide
                                1. a person's salvation comes from faith in God's goodness,
                                        not by the performance of good works
                                2. totally against the Church's teachings
                                        - good works and rituals such as the sacraments
                                                are essential for receiving God's grace
                        b. sola scriptura
                                1. a person's faith in God comes from reading and
                                        contemplating the Bible
                                2. this weakened the mediating power of the Church
                                        - the Church had always been the link between 
                                                individuals and God
                        c. priesthood of all true believers
                                1. anyone who has faith, receives God's grace
                                2. God won't give more grace to some and not to others
                                3.  thus, all are equal in God's eyes
                                4. this does away with the need for the Church hierarchy
                                        - priest and monks and the pope were no more
                                                special than the average peasant who believes in God
        D. the Spread of Lutheranism  [MAP]
                1. crisis of faith
                        a. faith could now be personal; no need for the corrupt Church
                        b. especially appealing to women (priesthood of all
                                true believers)
                2. printing press
                        a. Luther's writings
                        b. Bibles (not just Latin ones)
                3. German princes and cities
                        a. now Germans could control their own churches and not
                                send their money south to the Italian papacy
                        b. equality of all believers = clergy not above the laity
                                - thus, civil authorities have power over church
                4. Politics
                        a. king of Denmark needed money after a civil war, thus
                                confiscates all church property and starts a Lutheran church
                        b. Henry VIII (of England) broke with Rome, confiscated
                                all church property and started a Protestant Church of
                                England; Henry's wife had not provided him an heir and he
                                wanted a divorce and the pope wouldn't grant it
III. The Protestant Reformation
        A. John Calvin (1509-1564); Geneva, Switzerland
        B. Calvin's new twists to Luther's theology
                1. faith won't get you grace; Calvin believed in predestination:
                        you're either saved or damned
                2. not all people equal in God's eyes because only some
                        are predestined
                        - the elect are predestined to be saved and they must
                                supervise the moral behavior of the rest
                3. Calvin more interested in the Old Testament than Luther was
                        - emphasis on convenant between God and his chosen ones
        C. Calvin's new Protestant Church
                1. top level: doctors and pastors
                2. lower level: deacons and the elders