The document summarizes some of the key factors that led to the Protestant Reformation in Europe, including issues with the Catholic Church that caused unrest, such as selling indulgences and living lavish lifestyles. It describes how Martin Luther drafted the 95 Theses challenging indulgences and certain Church authorities, which spread widely through printing and stirred debate. While Luther was eventually excommunicated, his ideas gained many followers and split from the Catholic Church to form Protestantism, spreading reforms across Germany and Switzerland under Luther and Calvin respectively.

1. Challenges to the
Church
Unintended Consequences From the Renaissance?

2. Objectives
❖ Students will analyze factors that encouraged the Protestant
Reformation.
❖ Students will analyze the changes in European thought and
culture resulting from the Renaissance.

3. Vocabulary
❖ indulgences: pardon for sins committed during a person’s
lifetime
❖ diet: assembly or legislature; assembly of Princes
❖ predestination: Calvinist belief that God long ago determined
who would gain salvation
❖ theocracy: government run by religious leaders

4. Coming of the Reformation
❖ Unrest and uncertainty large part of
Northern Europeans’ lives
❖ Change in traditional economies;
traditional society
❖ Humanism: find ways to understand forces
of their lives
❖ Biggest force in daily life: the Church

5. Church: Issues
❖ Catholic church becoming more concerned with worldly issues
❖ Competing with Italian princes for control and influence
❖ Popes and clergy living comfortable lives
❖ Corruption: Selling indulgences to the wealthy
❖ Until 1400 - only granted for good deeds; after available to
be bought
❖ Caused anger and frustration, especially in the North
❖ Printing press and Erasmus ➙ fuel to the fire

7. Martin Luther
❖ Disillusioned with the church as a Monk
and professor
❖ 1517: Wittenberg, Germany - Johann
Tetzel offering sale of indulgences for
individuals and family
❖ Luther drafted 95 Theses (arguments) to
refute the right of priests or the church
as a whole against indulgences
❖ No basis in the Bible; Christians
could be saved only through faith

8. Spread of Luther’s Word
❖ Copies of Luther’s protest were printed and distributed across
Europe
❖ Stirred debate
❖ Church demanded Luther recant his views
❖ Luther refused and developed even more radical doctrines -
rejecting authority from Rome

10. Outlaw or Hero?
❖ 1521: Pope Leo X excommunicated Luther
❖ Charles V summoned Luther to the diet to demand he give
up his views; Luther refused.
❖ Charles V declared Luther an outlaw; a crime to give him food
or shelter
❖ Luther still had many friends and supporters; support grew

12. Luther’s Movement
❖ New ideas spread quickly throughout the land
❖ Many denouncements of the Church abuses and the hypocrisy
that was seen
❖ Lutherans became Protestants
❖ At the grassroots level: Change of peasants life (Peasants Revolt
- 1524)
❖ For many German Princes: opportunity to throw off rule by
Church and Holy Roman Emperor

13. Peace of Augsburg (1555)
❖ Charles V tried to force princes back into the church
❖ Resulted in wars - costly
❖ Peace of Augsburg allowed princes to decide religion for
themselves
❖ North: Protestant; South: Catholic

14. Switzerland Reformation
❖ John Calvin: French priest who
shared many ideas with Luther
❖ Differed slightly in the idea of
predestination
❖ World was separated into two kinds
of people: saints and sinners
❖ Calvinists believed that saved
individuals were the only ones who
could live good Christian lives

15. Calvinism Spreads
❖ Led to establishing a theocracy in
Geneva
❖ Calvinism spreads to France,
Germany, England and Scotland
❖ Sets off numerous wars across
Europe
❖ Between Catholics and
Protestants; Protestants and
Calvinists; Among them all

16. Page 426 Chart

17. Video at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gi5qR7tflG0