The Counter Reformation
Feb 24, 2016
The Counter Reformation
Counter ReformationActions taken by Catholic Church to counteract the Protestant Reformation“Counter-Reformation” invented by German Protestant historians. Not liked by Catholic historians, but now generally accepted.
Ingredients of the Counter Reformation
ReformationHumanism– Secularism
Religious WarfareNew versions of the Bible– Vernacular
ScienceRenewed religious emotionalism– Baroque Art
Pope Paul III (1534 – 1539)• The first “Counter-
Reformation” pope• Viewed the church “as
a fortress to be guarded, defended, and kept on the alert”
Council of Trent (1545 – 1563)Debated the legitimacy of Protestant theology.Most attendees were Italian bishops.
Council of Trent (1545- 1563)
Defined Catholicism for the next 400 years– All medieval church law was valid– Latin would remain official language– Re-emphasized the importance of “good
works” and “faith”– No change to sacraments– No more money for indulgences– Priests must be educated
Roman Inquisition
What is an Inquisition?A tribunal designed to find heretics and bring them to justice
How does it work?AccusationAnyone could testify against youNo attorneyNo appealsTorture allowed
Inquisition PunishmentsGo to churchTake a pilgrimageWear a “cross of infamy”Imprisonment (if you confessed)Burned at the stake (if you didn’t)What if you begged for mercy?– They’d strangle and then burn you
What if you died before the trial ended?– They dug up your body and burned you
Results of the Inquisitions?About 5,000 people burnedLand and property of all heretics seized by ChurchPersecution of scientistsWitch hunts
Scientists
Copernicus– Sun is center of
universe– Excommunicated
(posthumously)– Banned his books
Bruno– Believed in aliens and
that Bible was not divine
– Burned at the stake
GalileoWarned by Church to stopWrote books in Italian– “Scriptures teach us how to
go to heaven, not how the heavens go.”
Threatened with tortureGalileo backed downGalileo was acquitted– in 1992
Roman Index of Prohibited Books
Process of reviewing and censoring books– Galileo’s books on list until 1835– All Protestant works– Any Bible not in Latin
Some books on the list until 1960s
Roman Missal
A uniform liturgy for the Mass that would be used in every Catholic church throughout the world.
Jesuits
New religious order devoted to teaching CatholicismExtremely militant, well-educated men focused on revival of CatholicismLoyola was their first leader
Jesuits and Education
Jesuits established excellent schools across EuropeMany famous Europeans educated by Jesuits– Descartes– Voltaire
Even Protestants attendedRatio studiorum became the model for modern universities