to syllabus

Unit 14:  The Reformation (or should that be plural?). 

readings: 

QUIZ will be on Key Terms in Hunt, p. 579.

 

Questions on Hunt

Ch. 15 (pp. 547-579)

1.  What sorts of practices by the Catholic clergy and hierarchy led to criticism of the Church in the early 1500s?  And what sorts of changes in the Church and in society did Christian Humanists like Erasmus and Thomas More hope for? 

2.  Explain in detail Martin Luther's criticisms of Catholicism and his own vision of Christianity (the ideas that became the core of Lutheranism).  Did Huldrych Zwingli's religious views differ from Luther's?  Explain.  What about John Calvin--what were the main ideas behind his version of Protestantism? Finally, how did the religious beliefs of the Anabaptists contrast with other Protestant movements? 

3.  The Protestant Reformation unleashed mass social rebellions and also changed the way governments behaved in Protestant lands.  Why didn't Martin Luther support the peasants in the Peasants' War of 1525?  And what kinds of new institutions did states (both Catholic and Protestant) create as a consequence of the Reformation?   

4.  Why and where did the Reformation result in wars and civil wars, and what steps did monarchs take to make their territories more politically stable during these religious conflicts?  Be sure to consider conflicts in France and in Germany and events in England!

5.  What measures did the Catholic Church take to preserve its influence and reform and re-energize itself during and after the Protestant Reformation? (Put a different way, what was the Counter-Reformation, or what some historians call the Catholic Reformation?)

BIG QUESTION 1:  Think about the entire chapter.  What were the main goals of the Protestant reformers and how were they trying to change society?  Include Henry VIII of England in the "list" of reformers to consider!

BIG QUESTION 2:  Provide and explain three specific examples of the connection between religious and political conflict in 1500-1555. 

 

Questions on Lualdi

We will focus on two documents for this unit:  St. Ignatius, "A New Kind of Catholicism" (pp. 261-264) and John Calvin, "Articles Concerning Predestination" and "The Necessity of Reforming the Church" (pp. 265-267).

Answer the "Six Questions" for these document:

Notice that the St. Ignatius document is made up of selections from several essays Ignatius wrote in different years, and that the John Calvin document is made up of selections from two different works by Calvin.

OK.  Here are the main discussion questions for these documents:

1.  What solutions did Ignatius offer to the challenges that Protestantism posed to Catholicism, and how did he hope to revitalize and spread the word of the Church?

2.  What did Calvin believe was necessary for a Christian to gain salvation and what did he think about the rituals and practices of the Catholic church?  (As always, refer to specific evidence!)