UNIT ONE: The World Reinvented 1480-1715
Chapter One: Renaissance and Reformation
The Catholic Reformation (Counter Reformation)
Introduction:
By Luther’s death in 1546, about half the princes within the Holy Roman Empire had adopted
the new Protestant faith. In response, the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V launched a military
campaign in 1547 to force the Lutheran princes back into the Catholic Church. When neither
side won the war, Charles accepted a compromise. In 1555, at the Diet of Augsburg, he agreed
that each prince could choose whether his lands would be Catholic or Lutheran. By allowing
individual rulers to determine the religion of a territory, the Peace of Augsburg officially
recognized the newest split within Christendom.
By 1555, most princes in northern Germany were Lutheran, while most princes in southern
Germany were Catholic. Lutheran ideas had also spread into Scandinavia. However, the dispute
between Catholics and Protestants did not end. As other reformers won followers, the conflict
spread.As Protestant movements sprang to life, the Catholic Church took steps to stop them and
to revive its spiritual leadership of the Christian world.
I. Pope Paul III (1534-1549)
He led the reform of the Catholic Church. Paul appointed able scholars and reformers to high
church offices. He also summoned many officials to a church council at Trent to discuss
reforms.
II. The Council of Trent (1545 to 1563)
Trent was an Italian-speaking alpine town just outside the boundaries of Charles’s empire. This
meeting went off and on for 18 years was all in all victorious for the Pope and the Catholic
Church.
In response to Protestant attacks, the council reaffirmed traditional Catholic doctrines.
- It reaffirmed the body of medieval Church Law and the protestant “scripture only” belief.
- It reaffirmed the Latin version of the bible (was against the other translations)
- It reasserted “works” against the protestant “faith only” belief.
- It reaffirmed old definitions of sacraments, kept purgatory and all the saints, and proclaimed the
priesthood as men with holy power, not mere ministers.
However, the council did make some changes:
- It required Bishops to remain in their cities and strengthened their authority.
- each diocese (a bishop’s district) had to have a seminary to train priests.
Page 2
- also for reformed church finances and administration.
As a result of the Council of Trent, the Catholic Church ended many abuses that Luther and other
Protestant reformers had criticized Catholic rulers in Spain, France and Italy strongly supported
the reforms.
III. The Roman Inquisition (1542)
- The Catholic Reformation also included the revival of the Inquisition.
- The Inquisition was the Church court that had tried to root out heretics (those who held
unorthodox beliefs) during the Middle Ages. The Inquisition was most active in Spain, Portugal,
and Italy in the middle ages.
- It was revived in 1542 to maintain Italian orthodoxy (greek word meaning “opinion” –
currently accepted beliefs); to track heretics
- Pope Paul IV (1555-1559) orders the establishment of the Roman Inquisition, the first
inquisition on Italian soil in over 200 years. Six cardinals would run and under the sole power of
the Pope. Other inquisitions ie. Spain, would under the power of the monarchy.
-Prisoners could retain an a free attorney (public defender) and have those charged to summon
friends be witnesses.
- By the 1700s and early 1800s, Spain and Portugal end their versions of the inquisition.
- In 1965, Pope Paul VI reorganizes the holy office and renames it The Congregation for the
Doctrine of the Faith - advisory body on ecclesiastical matters; it does not enforce church
doctrine
IV. The Roman Index of Prohibited Books (1559)
In addition, the Catholic Church published the Index, a list of forbidden books (100s of book and
authors. Authors only had to have a couple of sentences in question to have their work included
in the list of forbidden books (ex. Sir Thomas Moore and Girodano Bruno –
philosopher/visionary On the Infinite Universe and Worlds
His vision of the cosmos believed intelligent life existed beyond the stars
Unification of all religions including Jews and Muslims was the only salvation of mankind. In
1591, Bruno was arrested and his trial went on for 7 years and refused to recant. On Feb 8, 1600
Bruno was burned alive after the Pope Clement VIII (1592-1605) personally sentences him to
death in the heart of Rome.; Galileo 1613- wrote two books The Starry Messenger and The
Sunspot Letters which stated the Earth turned on its own axis and that the earth spun around the
sun; The church believed the earth was static and was itself the centre of the universe. Galileo
later recants these ideas at the Roman Inquisition; in 1992, Pope John Paul II stated the verdict of
Galileo as a heretic in 1633 was wrong.)
Page 3
By limiting what books Catholics could read, the Church hoped to prevent the spread of the
Protestant ideas.
Some of the famous authors listed in the index included Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Rene
Descartes, Francis Bacon, John Milton, John Locke, Galileo Galilei – those who are today being
studied in universities around the world
Any citizen found in possession of a banned book could be subject to arrest
(overhead: “Officials burning books)
Throughout the 16th century, many cities have book stores that sell books on the forbidden list.
Many book sellers played “stupid” in not knowing which books were in Roman Index of banned
books.
In June 14 1966, Pope Paul VI abolished it.
However, some authors whose views are generally unacceptable to the Church (e.g. Charles
Darwin, Karl Marx or Hitler) were never put on the Index.
V. The Society of Jesus (Jesuits) (1540)
-New religious orders also helped to strengthen the Catholic Church.
In Spain, Ignatius Loyola formed the Society of Jesus, a group of dedicated missionaries.
(A young Spanish knight, Ignatius Loyola, became wounded in combat. A bone protruding from
his broken leg was sawed off. Despite his agony, he asked only for a book of knightly romances
to read. Instead, someone brought him a book of the lives of the saints and the life of Christ.)
He spent hours reading about the saints and thinking about religious questions. Loyola then
wrote Spiritual Exercises, a manual that taught strict religious discipline.
The Jesuit plan of studies incorporated the Classical teachings of Renaissance humanism into the
scholastic structure of Catholic thought.In addition to teaching faith, the Ratio Studiorum
emphasized the study of Latin, Greek, classical literature, poetry, and philosophy as well as nonEuropean languages, sciences and the arts. Furthermore, Jesuit schools encouraged the study of
vernacular literature and rhetoric, and thereby became important centers for the training of
lawyers and public officials.
Under the notion that God can be encountered through created things and especially art, they
encouraged the use of ceremony and decoration in Catholic ritual and devotion. Perhaps as a
result of this appreciation for art, coupled with their spiritual practice of "finding God in all
things", many early Jesuits distinguished themselves in the visual and performing arts as well as
in music.
Page 4
In 1540, Pope Paul III officially recognized the Society of Jesus. The Jesuits, as Loyola’s
followers were called, swore absolute obedience to the pope. They traveled to the new lands that
Europeans (North America, South America,.. Sainte-Marie (Among the Hurons) in Midland
Ontario was the 17th century fortress and headquarters for the French Jesuit mission to the
Huron nation and was Ontario's first European community. In 1639 the Jesuits, along with lay
workers, began construction of this palisaded community that would include barracks, a church,
workshops, residences, and a sheltered area for Native visitors. By 1648, Sainte-Marie was a
wilderness home to 66 Frenchmen, representing one-fifth of the entire population of New
France. Sainte-Marie's history culminated in 1649 when a dramatic turn of events forced the
community to abandon and burn their home of 10 years. ) were exploring and won many
converts. In addition, they brought many Protestants in Germany and Eastern Europe back into
the Catholic Church.
By the time of Ignatius' death in 1556, the Jesuits were already operating a network of 74
colleges on three continents.Jesuits opened highly-regarded schools, tuition free and open to all
including protestants. Catholicism in Austria, Belgium, Hungary, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and
parts of Germany owes a lot to the Jesuits.
There are many famous Jesuits including Saint Jean de Brébeuf (25 March 1593 – 16 March
1649), Canada’s patron saint. There are approx 19,000 Jesuits working in six continents and 112
countries around the world.
Conclusion:
After the Counter-Reformation, Protestants made few new gains. By 1600, the lines between
Catholic and Protestant areas in Europe were sharply drawn. They have remained largely
unchanged to the present. Lutherans, Calvinists, and other Protestant sects flourished in
England, Scotland, Scandinavia, and Northern Germany. Catholics remained strong in Italy,
France, Spain, Ireland and Southern Germany. (overhead – map of Europe, 1600) These
religious divisions contributed to bitter wars in near future.
Modern day versions of inquisitions (in wars,…) still exist were groups of people with a certain
belief try to impose their will other groups with different beliefs.
THE CATHOLIC CHURCH & THE COUNTER REFORMATION
Galileo facing the Roman Inquisition
Ignatius Loyola
Title page of Index Librorum Prohibitorum
Jesuit missionary, painting from 1779