Arise, O Lord, and judge Thy cause. A wild boar has invaded Thy vineyard. Arise, O Peter, and consider the case of the Holy Roman Church, the mother of all churches, consecrated by thy blood. Arise, O Paul, who by thy teaching and death hast illumined and dost illumine the Church. Arise all ye saints, and the whole universal Church, whose interpretations of Scripture has been assailed. (Papal Bull of Pope Leo X, 1520)

The Reformation Dissatisfaction with the Church could be found at all levels of European society Many devout Christians were finding the Church's growing emphasis on rituals unhelpful in their quest for personal salvation The papacy had lost much of its spiritual influence over its people because of the increasing tendency toward secularization

Because so many people were now crowding into cities, the lavish homes and palaces of the Church were noticed by more and more people from all walks of life The clergy had become lax, corrupt and immoral and the people began to take notice that the sacraments were shrouded in complacency and indifference The deepest source of conflict was personal and spiritual

The Fourth Lateran Council of 1215 established the important doctrine that salvation could only be won through good works -- fasting, chastity, abstinence and asceticism The common people, meanwhile, sought a more personal, spiritual and immediate kind of religion -- something that would touch them directly, in the heart

Martin Luther

"For the justice of God is revealed from faith to faith in that it is written, for the just shall live by faith." (Romans 1:17) Luther nailed a copy of the 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church at Wittenberg. The Theses (actually 95 statements), all related to the prevalence of indulgences and Luther offered to dispute them all. A student copied Luther's Latin text and then translated the document and sent it to the university press and from there it spread throughout Germany. It was the printing press itself, that allowed Luther's message to spread so rapidly.

John Calvin

Calvin was a humanist scholar in his own right; he studied Hebrew, Greek, and Latin and thrived on the humanist texts of the classical world and his own By 1533, Calvin fell under the influence of the New Testament translation by Erasmus as well as certain writings of Martin Luther Before Calvin became a Calvinist, he was clearly a Lutheran