April 27th

Last week we spent time looking at reformers and the causes of the Reformation.  This week we will look at how the Church responded to to the Reformation.

As you learned, there were many people who had problems with the Church and I will test your knowledge on the four reformers that you studied in the book and your mini research project.

Martin Luther is associated with the 95 Theses.  He was studying for a law degree when he was struck by lightning.  He prayed to St. Anne, and then became a Monk.  Eventually he challenged the selling of indulgences.  He believed that people justed needed to believe in God and live by the Bible for their souls to be saved.  He also translated the New Testament into German.  He won the support of the nobles because the nobles did not want clergy to interfere with politics.

William Tyndale was the reformer who translated the Bible into English.  This angered the clergy of England who wanted him arrested.  Thomas More ordered that the translated copy be banned.  He had all copies of the translation purchased and burned.  Tyndale fled England, and with the profits from the sale of his translation, continued printing English versions of the Bible.

John Calvin taught followers that God knew who would be saved before they were born, this is called predestination.  Calvin moved to Geneva with his followers and hoped to make Geneva a Christian example for the rest of the world.  He stressed that people should live a good life and obey God's laws.  He banned many forms of entertainment such as playing cards and dancing to keep people away from temptation.

King Henry VIII challenged the pope's authority to give the Monarch commands.  He was very upset that the pope would not end his marriage, so he declared himself the head of a new church called the Church of England.    He broke from the church for personal reasons and thus did not make many changes in church practices.

All of these reformers set about a change in the way religion was practiced, and this eventually will set the stage for religious conflicts.  These conflicts are part of the reason people settled in the new world and many of these ideas shaped our county's laws.