Explain the social, political and religious background of the Reformation: Due Tuesday

 Taking the time to do homework well reduces the time required to study well for an exam. As you invest, so shall you prosper….

 Purpose of this assignment is for you to become a more active reader.
Pages 354-356

1. Read introduction below.
2. Scan the textbook reading and think of questions you would ask the author.
3. Using the Cornell Method, take notes on the reading (right side) and ask/write questions on the left side.   Questions and notes should help answer the 'big question': Explain the social, political and religious background of the Reformation. Generally (not all the time), topic sentences can be turned into great questions.
4. Summary section of Cornell notes should answer the 'big question'. This can be accomplished by writing a paragraph or creating graphic organizer.

Do the work to understand it, not to get it done quickly.

Introduction: The Protestant movement successfully challenged the Roman Catholic Church and triggered changes in all aspects of European life. The weakness of the Church in the late Middle Ages had been amply demonstrated through corrupt popes, schisms, and unresolved doctrinal issues, which made Europeans receptive to a sweeping assault upon religious tradition. In 1517, Martin Luther’s 95 theses argued against the sale of indulgences, but he soon moved well past that issue and adopted positions condemned by the Council of Constance a century before. The unrelated controversy over the election of a Holy Roman Emperor in 1519 drew attention away from Luther, and allowed Protestantism to gain an entrenched position within the Holy Roman Empire. Luther was condemned by the Imperial Diet at Worms in 1521, but other reformers immediately arose and substituted their particular interpretations of Scripture for those of Rome. The second half of the sixteenth century was dominated by the religious reformer of Geneva, John Calvin, whose doctrines spread throughout Europe. Secular rulers anxious to gain advantage through this turn of events were soon involved in doctrinal disputes that spilled over onto the battlefield. The Reformation in England was related to the complicated personality and succession problems of Henry VIII. From 1527 to the Act of Supremacy in 1534, and through the dissolutions of the monasteries beginning in 1536, England moved into the Protestant fold, which Queen Elizabeth’s 45-year reign made permanent. Despite such enormous setbacks, the Catholic Church responded effectively to the Protestant challenge by encouraging the activities of newly formed Counter-Reformation religious orders and a major church council at Trent. Changes at every level of European life followed in the wake of the religious revolution. Protestants rejected the universalism of the Catholic Church in favor of a more secular individualism, and in doing so influenced the nature of Western life ever since. The doctrines espoused in this religious upheaval caused fundamental changes in the Western view of life, in the development of society, in marriage patterns, religious life, education, and in the position of women in society. The Reformation was one of the most, if not the most important event in European history. Its effects affected all aspects of European social, cultural, political, and military history.