Religious Authority And The Protestant Reformation

During the sixteenth century, numerous conditions and beliefs existed that cause the Protestant Reformation. It was a religious, political, cultural and logical disturbance that had made some Europeans split from the Catholic Church. â€Å"In northern and central Europe, reformers [such as John Calvin, Henry VIII and most importantly Martin Luther] challenged papal authority and questioned the Catholic Church’s ability to define Christian practice.† The tension between the reformers and the church triggered wars, persecutions and the Counter-Reformation, also called the Catholic Reformation. Augustine had emphasized that the bible is more a fundamental source for religious authority than the Bible is. He also believed that humans could not reach salvation by their own act, but only God could give salvation by his divine grace. Throughout the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church taught that salvation was achievable through works of righteousness that made God pleased. Mart in Luther, born in the year 1483 in Thuringia (Saxony), which is what is now the country of Germany, began to have doubts about the theological basis for much of the daily practices of the Catholic Church. In other words, he questioned and wondered if the Catholic leaders’ teachings were acceptable to the Catholic religion. He shared his two central beliefs with Augustine, which would later form the basis of Protestantism. Meanwhile, the Catholic Church’s practice of allowing indulgences to offer absolution toShow MoreRelatedThe Reformation Was the Rejection of the Secular Spirit of the811 Words   |  4 PagesPeople not longer considered their lives solely as a preparation for the afterlife, but instead gave them actual value. The churchs authority fused with that of the state, resulting in a monopolized power greatly influenced by religion. The rejection of the secular spirit of the Italian Renaissance can be seen in the varying art themes of the Reformation. 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