May 5, 2014 World History

O The Church competed for power against royal leaders O They fought for power against kings/emperors O Much of this power struggle led to corruption in the church O Most uneducated people didn’t understand Latin, but knew the common language or “ vernacular ” O Almost all bibles were written in Latin before the Reformation O It was the job of the clergy to translate the bible to its people O The Church was very wealthy O Gained much of its money from collecting taxes from the people O Used their wealth and power to influence its followers

O In an effort to raise money, Priests and Popes offered the sale of “indulgences” as a way to get into Heaven O Many people in the church were too naïve to realize how corrupt the church was O Some of the educated elite began questioning the church’s actions O The revolt against the church was led by a German monk and professor of theology, Martin Luther

O In 1517 Johann Tetzel offered indulgences for those who offered to help pay for the rebuilding of the Cathedral of St. Peter in Rome O Indulgences – pardons issued by the pope that people could buy to reduce a soul’s time in purgatory O People could buy their way into Heaven O This was Luther’s final outrage O Luther wrote a protest against the church and posted it on the door of Wittenberg’s All Saints Church for all to see O 95 Theses – Luther’s list of complaints against the Catholic church O Thesis = statement/complaint O Luther’s intention was not to break from the church, but to reform it

O Luther began a furious debate with the Church O Luther was charged with heresy O Appeared before the Diet of Worms O Assembly of the Holy Roman Empire held at Worms, Germany O Pope Leo X ordered Luther to give up his beliefs O Luther burned the order and was excommunicated O Luther went into hiding where he translated the New Testament into German – spreading his beliefs even further

O Excommunicated from the church, Luther formed his own religion with his devout followers O His teachings were focused on the following beliefs… O Good deeds are not necessary for salvation O The bible is the sole religious truth O There was no hierarchy in the church O These reforms turned into the Lutheran Church

O Ulrich Zwingli in Switzerland O Theocracy O A government in which church and state are joined and in which officials are considered to be divinely inspired O John Calvin in Switzerland O Predestination O God knows who will be saved, even before people are born, and therefore guides the lives of those destined for salvation O John Knox in Scotland O Laid grounds for Presbyterian Church