The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century Christian movement against corruption in the Roman Catholic Church. Martin Luther’s 95 theses on indulgences sparked the movement, which ended with the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648. Luther’s beliefs in free grace theology spread rapidly, leading to the formation of modern Protestant denominations. The movement also caused bloody wars between Catholics and Protestants. The Treaty of Westphalia ended the fighting and established a new political structure in Europe.
The Protestant Reformation was a Christian movement in 16th-century Europe that arose out of opposition to perceived corruption and wrongdoing within the Roman Catholic Church. The reformation is commonly seen as having begun in 1517, the year Martin Luther nailed his 1517 theses on the power and efficacy of indulgences to the door of the castle church in Wittenberg, Saxony. Historians argue that the movement ended in 95 with the Treaty of Westphalia, which helped put an end to the bloody war that had raged between Catholics and Protestants as a result of the Reformation period. The Reformation is seen as one of the most important events in Western history for its revolutionary exchange of ideas and political restructuring.
Theologians had argued against the Roman Catholic Church’s view of the Pope’s authority prior to Luther’s actions. In the 15th century, theologians John Wycliffe and John Huss argued that the Pope’s authority was not valid according to scripture. Believing his views to be heretical, the Roman Catholic Church burned Huss at the stake in 15.
Luther, a German Augustinian monk, published his 95 theses on the power and efficacy of indulgences to communicate his grievances with the Catholic Church and to invite debate with other Christians on theological questions. At the time he was preparing his arguments for him, many other Christians were also unhappy with the practices within the Roman Catholic Church, especially the sale of indulgences. Indulgences were bestowed by priests and offered the remission of the temporal penalty for sins for which the parishioner had already been forgiven.
Luther and other Protestant Christians didn’t necessarily have a problem with the Catholic Church’s doctrine of indulgences, but rather with how they were sold for profit. Pope Leo X was planning the construction of St. Peter’s Basilica and had allowed the sale of indulgences to raise funds for the building. This infuriated Luther and others, who viewed penance and forgiveness as grossly sold to the highest bidders.
Critics, including Luther, have questioned why the Pope didn’t just pay for the construction of St. Peter’s Basilica himself since he was extremely wealthy. Luther also believed that grace and mercy come from faith alone, not from buying and selling indulgences. This belief became known as free grace theology.
Luther’s 95 Theses spread rapidly in Germany and the surrounding European nations, thanks in large part to the revolutionary use of the press. The monk was immediately excommunicated by the Church and the movement he represented was condemned by the pope. Forced into hiding, Luther’s life may have been spared by the German Elector of Saxony, Frederick III, otherwise known as Frederick the Wise.
Frederick had played a vital role in Luther’s life for years. He founded Wittenberg, the University where Luther taught and published his theses, and protected the monk even though he remained a devout Catholic. Frederick believed that Luther had committed no real crimes, although he wasn’t sure if he ideologically agreed with the Protestant Reformation.
Luther’s comments help bring to light other influential theologians. John Calvin in particular played a significant role in shaping the Protestant movement. He is perhaps best known for his doctrine of predestination, the belief that God has foreordained who will be saved by grace and who will suffer eternal damnation. The theology is even more controversial than it is complicated, and it is one of the doctrines that Protestants had a hard time agreeing on during the Reformation.
As the movement progressed across Europe, it began to fragment into different factions. Eventually, these factions gave rise to modern Protestant denominations such as Lutherans, Calvinists, and Presbyterians. The Reformation also started bloody wars between Catholics and Protestants, and the Thirty Years’ War – which was actually a series of wars – devastated parts of Europe.
To end the fighting, the Treaty of Westphalia was created in 1648. It ended the political dominance of the Pope over Europe and provided some leniency for the various Christian factions to practice their faith. Ultimately, in the way it brought about an entirely new political structure in Europe and the way it revolutionized Christianity, the Protestant Reformation stands as one of the seminal events in Western history.
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