POWER

4 Dissent and the break with Rome 4.2 Critics of the Church
Source 2 From a tract (a
religious pamphlet) written
by Erasmus in 1516.
I strongly disagree with the people
who do not want the Bible to be
translated into everyday language
and be read by the uneducated.
Did Christ teach such complex
doctrines that only a handful of
theologians can understand them?
… I want the lowliest woman to
read the Gospels and Paul’s letters.
I want them to be translated into
every language so that, not only
will the Scots and Irish be able to
read them, but even the Turk and
Saracen. I would like to hear a
farmer sing scripture as he ploughs,
a weaver keep time to his moving
shuttle by humming the Bible.
1 Why was it considered heresy
for tracts like Source 2 to be
published?
Source 4 Martin Luther, writing
about his views on Christian
faith, 1520.
One man builds a chapel, another
donates this, still another one that.
However, they refuse to face the
true issue, that is, they will not give
their inmost self to God and thus
become his kingdom. They perform
many outward works which glitter
very nicely, but inwardly they
remain full of malice, anger, hatred,
pride, impatience, unchastity,
etc. It is against them that Christ
spoke when he was asked when the
kingdom of God was coming, ‘The
kingdom of God does not come
with outward signs or appearances;
for behold, the kingdom of God is
within you’.
2 Read Source 4. What are
the ‘outward works’ Luther
refers to?
3 What is it about the Catholic
Church that Luther rejects?
4 What does Luther want
people to focus on?
Source 3 Thomas Topley, a Suffolk friar, writing in 1528. Topley was introduced to
the ideas of the Lollards by Richard Foxe, a curate (a junior priest).
I found a certain book called Wycliffe’s Wicket. When I read it I felt a great troubling of
my mind. When I remembered it afterwards it troubled me more. Nevertheless, I did not
agree with it, until I had heard Richard Foxe preach. That was upon St Anthony’s day.
My mind was still much troubled by this book .
Humanism
In the late 1400s, another dramatic cultural trend – called the RENAISSANCE –
was affecting intellectual life in Europe. One aspect of the Renaissance was a
movement called HUMANISM, which centred on studying ancient texts.
The most celebrated humanist scholar was Erasmus. He visited England in 1499,
where he met with John Colet, the founder of St Paul’s School in London. English
humanists like Colet believed that individuals could choose a virtuous life. They
took a scientific approach to studying the Bible. They studied the scriptures in
their earliest form – trying to see what the original said rather than what the
Church claimed it said. Colet taught these beliefs at his school. However, there
is little evidence that this sort of teaching occurred elsewhere.
The visit inspired Erasmus to publish the New Testament in Greek so people could
read the original. However, he knew that most people could not read Greek so he
also argued that the Bible should be translated into the language of ordinary
people (see Source 2). Erasmus pointed out differences between the teaching and
practices of the Catholic Church and the original sources in the Bible. He argued
for a religion based less on theatrical ceremonies and more on studying the Bible.
Early European reformers
During the 1520s, a new group of reformers in Europe fiercely attacked Church
practices. The most influential of them were Martin Luther from Saxony and
Huldrych Zwingli from Zurich. They became known as Protestants, as their
Christian beliefs were so radically different from those of the Catholic Church.
Many of their criticisms echoed those of earlier reformers. They believed that:
•
only faith could make people closer to God, and studying the Bible (not
listening to Church leaders) was the only way to improve faith
•
every Christian should be able to read the Bible in their own language and not
be told what to believe by the Church
•
church services should be in the language of the people and should focus on
Bible readings
praying to the Virgin Mary and saints should stop
purgatory did not exist
priests did not need to be celibate
•
religious authority in a country should be the responsibility of the ruler of that
country, not the pope in Rome.
Luther also savagely criticised the Church for some of its practices:
•
The selling of relics: These were items sold to people as things that had been
nearest to Jesus on Earth. For example, wood might be sold as a piece of the
cross on which Jesus had been crucified. They were often sold by fraudsters,
who took the money for themselves rather than donating it to the Church.
RELICS were objects of veneration and believed to have healing powers.
•
The selling of indulgences: INDULGENCES were prayers for the dead to
speed them from purgatory to Heaven.
•
Pilgrimages: PILGRIMAGES were journeys people made to worship at sites
associated with saints (see Source 5).
Uncorrected proof
5 According to Source 5, what does Luther
suggest are the main reasons people went
on pilgrimages?
6 How might Luther’s words threaten the
Catholic Church?
7 What sorts of things are being criticised in
Source 6?
8 Why are the pope, priests and bishops not
welcome in the Kingdom of God?
9 Why is Source 6 useful for historians trying
to find out about critics of the Church during
the 1520s?
Jesus is barring the door
to the unworthy pope,
bishops and priests.
Source 5 Martin Luther, commenting on pilgrimages.
Those who make pilgrimages do so for many reasons, very seldom
for legitimate ones. The first reason for making pilgrimages is the
most common of all, namely, the curiosity to see and hear strange
and unknown things. This levity proceeds from a loathing for and
boredom with the worship services, which have been neglected in
the pilgrims’ own church. Otherwise one would find incomparably
better indulgences at home than in all the other places put together.
Furthermore, he would be closer to Christ and the saints if he were
not so foolish as to prefer sticks and stones to the poor and his
neighbours whom he should serve out of love. And he would be
closer to Christ also if he were to provide for his own family.
Source 6 Christ in the Sheep Shed by Hans Sebald Beham, printed in 1524.
It is attacking the Catholic Church. The house represents the kingdom of God.
Ordinary people
listening to
God’s word.
The pope, priests and
bishops trying to break
into the Kingdom of God.
The sheep represent good Christian people
everywhere. Jesus is often represented as a
shepherd guiding his flock towards God.
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