PROTESTANT REFORMATION: CAUSES, CHARACTERISTICS, CONSEQUENCES - HISTORY

The Protestant Reformation was a religious movement that began in Germany in the 16th century. Symbolically, this movement is often considered to have started when its promoter, Martin Luther, nailed a document prepared by himself, The 95 Theses, on the doors of the Church of Wittenberg.

The Catholic Church was the most powerful institution of the time. However, during the 16th century some of their practices began to be questioned. Accusations of corruption were numerous, as were allegations of lack of religious piety. The sale of indulgences was the final trigger for the Protestant Reformation.

Martin Luther - Source: Attributed to Lucas Cranach the Younger

The Protestant theses reduced much power to the papacy, both religious and economic. In the second aspect, the reformists tried to end mercantilism in the institution. In the religious sphere, they declared that Christians did not need the figure of any intermediary to understand the teachings of the Bible or to save themselves.

Protestantism, with its Anglican and Calvinist variants, spread across part of the continent, causing a schism within European Christianity. This caused, among other things, an increase in religious intolerance and several wars between the believers of each of the options.

Causes

In the 16th century, the Catholic Church began to show signs of weakness. Although her political power was considerable, accusations of corruption began to take a toll on her influence.

The event that filled the patience of many believers was the sale of indulgences to pay for the works of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome.

Corruption of religious clergy

In their quest for money, the Roman clergy used methods far removed from the teachings they promoted.

Thus, for example, the trade in holy relics became big business. Thousands of people were tricked into buying supposedly sacred objects, such as chips from the cross where Jesus Christ died or cloths soaked with his blood.

Another great business of the Church was the sale of indulgences. These consisted of granting forgiveness of sins for those who paid a certain amount.

Ignorance of the Clergy

Many priests showed almost total ignorance of Catholic doctrine. To be ordained, they did not need any preparation to perform religious functions. In addition, the behavior of many of them was not appropriate for the position they held.

Since the Church presented them as intermediaries between believers and God, the incompetence of the priests led many parishioners to seek new ways to get closer to God.

Different interpretations of the Bible

The invention of the printing press also brought about a great change in how men approached the Church. Thanks to this invention, more Bibles could be printed and, therefore, the population who could read and scholars could face it directly, without intermediaries.

This ended up causing new interpretations to appear, some contrary to those defended by the Catholic Church.

Socio-economic causes

Although in practice it did not set a good example, the Catholic Church condemned excessive profit and took a position in favor of a fair price. This moral in the economic sphere generated rejection in a new social class that was gaining presence and importance: the bourgeoisie.

The merchants, members of that class, saw how these teachings went against their claims to obtain the maximum possible profits.

The bourgeoisie were in favor of a new ethic, more adapted to that era of commercial expansion. In short, it was a question of seeking a religious interpretation to move from feudalism to capitalism.

Nobility in Germany

One of the reasons why the reform was so well received in Germany was because of the socio-economic conditions of the Holy Roman Empire. Many cities had been enriched by trade and, furthermore, the bourgeoisie was embracing humanism.

The most important social class at the time was the high nobility. These, in practice, had almost as much power as the emperor and behaved with feudal lords.

But, alongside those, there was also a small nobility, almost ruined since the beginning of the 15th century. This group sought to recover their wealth and, to do this, they sought a way to seize the assets of the Church, including its unproductive lands.

For this reason, when Luther proclaimed the reform, the gentry became one of his first supporters.

Political causes

The Catholic Church, during the Middle Ages, had had more power than the kings themselves. Starting in the 16th century, this began to change and the monarchs began to grow stronger.

Along with the above, an incipient nationalism appeared. The Church, until that time, had functioned as the nerve center of all Christian peoples, but that vision began to lose strength when each country began to affirm its particular differences.

The best example is in the language. While the Church only allowed Latin as a language for religion, Protestants promoted the use of each national language.

goals

Luther started the Protestant Reformation scandalized by the abuses committed by the leaders of the Catholic Church and by the clergy.

A fundamental character was the Dominican Johann Tetzel. This one was in the towns near Wittenberg, where Luther resided, raising money for the Church. The pope wanted to build a great church, St. Peter's Basilica, and had sent representatives to sell indulgences.

Luther was scandalized by this fact, especially since Tetzel was dedicated to terrorizing the population with images of eternal suffering if they did not agree to buy indulgences.

Reform within the Catholic Church

In its early days, the goal of Luther and his supporters was solely to force the Church to reform. The purpose was for him to recover the Christian faith as it had been in its origins.

However, the holding of ecclesiastical meetings called "diets", similar to parliaments, made it clear that the Catholic Church was not going to accept the requests of the reformists.

These had requested independence from the pope, use the vernacular languages in worship and that the clergy could marry. After the Diet of Speyer, in 1529, hopes that the reform would be promoted by the Church were dashed.

At this, the followers of Luther wrote a letter of protest. In it, he declared his refusal to submit to ecclesiastical authority and assumed the name of Protestants.

Suppression of abuses by the Church

One of the objectives of the Reform was to end the abuses committed by the Church, especially in the economic sphere.

Luther had studied the Bible in depth, emphasizing the Epistle to the Romans. Finally, he came to the conclusion that salvation was a free gift, not something that could be bought and sold.

Sola Scriptura

One of the most controversial aspects of Luther's message was related to his attempt to downplay the pope. Although he recognized him as the leader of the Church, for the reformists he should not be the highest authority in matters of faith, since only the word of God, recorded in the Scriptures, could be taken as such.

In this way, Luther argued that the work of the Church was not essential to achieve salvation. The believers had to discover the truth directly, in the pages of the Bible. This concept received the name of "sola Scriptura", only the scriptures.

characteristics

The Reformation spread throughout much of the European territory. This caused that, apart from the common characteristics, there were also differences depending on the place.

Led by Martin Luther and originated in Germany

As already noted, the initiator of the Reformation was Martin Luther, a German Augustinian monk. A great student of the Scriptures, Luther was scandalized by the scandal of indulgences, the forgiveness of sins in exchange for money.

For the German monk, the indulgences were a hoax for the believers and a scam regarding the salvation of their souls.

As a sign of his anger, in 1517, Luther nailed a letter to the doors of Wittenberg Cathedral in which he attacked indulgences and explained his reforming doctrine. That act is considered the beginning of the Protestant Reformation.

The Bible as the sole source of God's word

Among the theses of Luther, which became the basis of the Reformation, was the conviction that salvation could only be achieved through the practice of faith and never through the purchase of indulgences.

Likewise, he defended the need for the Bible to be translated into all languages. Thus, any believer could access its pages, without the need for intermediaries. This meant, in practice, that the Catholic Church lost some of its power as the sole institution to interpret the Scriptures.

Ecclesiastical affairs

Among the characteristics of the Reformation in the field of ecclesiastical practice, there were some very controversial aspects and contrary to the Catholic tradition. Thus, Protestants rejected the presence of images in churches, as well as hierarchical differences in the clergy.

Another issue that generated, and still generates, controversy, was the declaration that the clergy did not have to be celibate.

Sola Gratia

For Luther and his followers, salvation was granted by God, without the works of men having anything to do with it. The concept that only Faith serves to achieve that salvation, left the religious practices of the Church with little relevance.

Likewise, the Protestants reduced the number of valid sacraments, leaving only the Eucharist and baptism with that consideration.

Protestant proliferation

The Protestant Reformation ended up splitting into three main branches. The first, the one maintained by the followers of Luther.

After this, the Presbyterians appeared, who were inspired by the teachings of the theologian John Calvin. Finally, in England the Anglican branch appeared, more moderate and that maintained part of the aspects of Catholicism.

Protestant Reformation in England

The initiator of the reform in England was his own monarch, Henry VIII. His motivation was far from being strictly religious, as he broke up for Rome when the pope refused to annul his marriage.

The monarch then decided to found Anglicanism, in addition to taking part of its lands from the Catholic Church.

By the Act of Supremacy, Henry VIII declared the crown as head of the Anglican Church. In practice, he did not change anything in the liturgy or doctrine apart from forbidding the clergy of his country to associate with Rome.

Protestant Reformation in Switzerland

In the 1530s, the French theologian John Calvin pioneered his own vision of the Reformation in Switzerland. For him, both the saved and the damned by God were chosen in advance. This was known as the Doctrine of Predestination.

One of the clues to whether the person had been chosen to be saved was professional success at work. This idea, which was perfectly suited to the commercial bourgeoisie, attracted many bankers and merchants to Calvinism.

Consequences

The Protestant Reformation was a true revolution in Europe. Its consequences were reflected in the form of religious confrontations and the attempt of the Catholic Church not to diminish its power.

Religious intolerance

One of the most immediate consequences of the Protestant Reformation was the increase in religious intolerance. During the following decades, persecutions and wars took place for this reason.

In places like Spain or Portugal, citizens had to remain faithful to the Catholic Church. Those suspected of sympathizing with the Reformation could be sentenced to death by the Holy Inquisition. In England, despite having created their own Church, Protestants were persecuted.

That persecution also ran in the opposite direction. Thus, in Germany, Catholics ran the risk of being punished for their beliefs.

The Catholic Counter-Reformation

The hierarchy of the Catholic Church reacted to prevent the Reformation from spreading further. To do this, he established a series of measures to control the dissemination of these ideas.

The Catholic Church convened the Council of Trent to try to stop the reformists. Among the agreements reached is the reactivation of the Court of the Inquisition.

Likewise, a list was established with the books prohibited to be read by Catholics; the Society of Jesus was founded; and the hierarchy of the Church was reaffirmed, with the Pope as the highest leader.

Religious wars

Religious intolerance did not only manifest itself in the form of persecution. In some countries, open wars broke out between different ecclesiastical powers.

In Switzerland, for example, the Protestant leader Ulrich Zwingli started a civil war. For their part, in Germany the Lutherans staged a series of riots until the Treaty of Augsburg established peace.

France also suffered bloody clashes. The protagonists were the Huguenots, Calvinists, and Catholics, supported by the monarchy. Part of the Huguenots, a minority, had to leave their country after several massacres.

Innovative ideas

Despite the fighting, the Reformation also led to the emergence of some new ideas, especially in countries that adopted Protestantism.

Little by little, medieval ideas were disappearing. Society began to revolve around a new social class, the bourgeoisie, increasingly influential and powerful. The Catholic Church lost ground, especially in the economic sphere.

All of the above, according to historians, paved the way for the capitalist system to settle in Europe shortly thereafter.

Translation of the Bible into other languages

Although it may seem like a minor consequence, the translation of the Bible into other languages was a great social change. The Church ceased to be the sole intermediary between the Scriptures and the people, which resulted in its loss of influence.

Main characters

The protagonists of the Protestant Reformation were Martin Luther, John Calvin and Henry VIII, each in his own territory. His attempt to bring the Roman Curia back to the original spirit of Christianity ended up causing a great change throughout the continent.

The precursors

Already during the Middle Ages some characters appeared who, due to their teachings, can be considered as precursors of the Reformation.

The Albigenses, for example, asked to change the way the Church works. Although few in number, the Catholic institution fought them with arms and they were declared heretics.

For his part, the writer and professor at the University of Oxford, John Wiclef, went further. In his works, he considered the Pope as an Anti-Christ and maintained that the sacraments were useless. Thus, he requested the disappearance of bishoprics and archbishoprics.

Finally the rector of the University of Prague, John Huss, rebelled against papal authority. This intellectual opposed the wealth of the clergy and argued, as Luther would later do, that the Holy Scriptures were the only thing necessary for all Christians.

Martin Luther

The father of the Protestant Reformation was born in 1483 into a very humble family. Thanks to a patron, he was able to enter a monastery to become a priest at the age of 24.

The event that changed his life occurred in 1510. That year, he traveled to Rome and was disillusioned by the luxury in which the clergy lived. Returning home, he studied theology and began teaching at the University of Wittenberg.

Luther wrote a document with 95 theses and nailed it to the doors of the cathedral in 1517. In 1520 he was excommunicated by the pope. Luther burned the bull of excommunication in Wittenberg University Square.

The protection of Frederick of Saxony saved him from the condemnation promulgated by Charles V, Emperor of Germany and King of Spain. While in the shelter he had prepared for him in Wartburg Castle, he translated the Bible into German, allowing the people to read it.

Luther, who had married in 1525, continued his efforts to promote the Reformation until 1546, when he died at Eisleben.

Henry VIII

Henry VIII was born in Greenwich, England, in 1491. During his youth he studied theology and later was one of Luther's greatest critics. This earned him that Pope Leo X granted him the distinction of Defender of the Catholic Faith.

Despite his defense of the Catholic faith, Henry VIII ended up breaking with the Catholic Church. The reason was his need to have an heir to the throne. His first wife, Catalina de Aragón, did not give him any male children, so he decided to separate from her and marry Ana Bolena. Pope Clement VII did not want to annul his first marriage.

After several years of tension with the papacy, the situation changed in 1531. The monarch had the support of the country's priests, who were against the accumulation of wealth by the clergy and the control exercised by Rome.

Henry VIII was appointed head of the Church of England. Later, he put Thomas Cranmer as Archbishop of Canterbury, who annulled his first marriage and confirmed the one he had contracted with Anne Boleyn.

The king created the Anglican Church through the Act of Supremacy. One of his measures was to close down many monasteries, appropriating their lands and wealth. However, he upheld fundamental Catholic dogmas and even condemned Protestants to the stake. Similarly, many Catholics were hanged for their fidelity to the pope.

John Calvin

John Calvin was born in Noyon, a French town, in 1509. Although he studied theology, he never became a priest. His reading of Luther's work led him to embrace the reform, but with a personal and more radical interpretation.

The persecutions against the reformists unleashed, in 1533, by Francis I, caused Calvin to flee to Basel, Switzerland. It was there that he published his main work, Christian Religion Systems.

Within his doctrine his vision of predestination stands out. According to him, God would have chosen a certain number of creatures to be saved, regardless of the sins or the efforts made to be more virtuous. Nothing could change the divine will.

At age 26, Calvin moved to Geneva to teach theology. According to historians, his character was very authoritarian and inflexible. He immediately tried to impose his vision on the population, so he was expelled from the city. However, his supporters managed to make him return in 1541.

Calvin became something of a tyrant. He established surveillance over the private life of citizens, even controlling their way of dressing. Likewise, he condemned to death all those who opposed him, as happened to the Spanish doctor and theologian Miguel Servet.

References

Bedoya, Juan G. Lutero: The 95 theses that revolutionized Europe. Obtained from elpais.com
Vega Carrasco, Miguel. Brief history of the Protestant Reformation. Obtained from discoverlahistoria.es
Biographies and Lives. Martin Luther. Obtained from biografiasyvidas.com
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. Reformation. Retrieved from britannica.com
Dr. Steven Zucker, Dr. Beth Harris. An introduction to the Protestant Reformation. Retrieved from khanacademy.org
Burton, Tara Isabella. The Protestant Reformation, explained. Retrieved from vox.com
Theopedia. Protestant Reformation. Retrieved from theopedia.com
Gundacker, Jay. Historical Context for The Protestant Reformation. Retrieved from college.columbia.edu

PROTESTANT REFORMATION: CAUSES, CHARACTERISTICS, CONSEQUENCES - HISTORY - 2025