The Protestant Reformation Mr. Garfinkel 3/3/14. Corruption of the Catholic Church By the 15th century, the Church had grown extremely rich and decadent.

The Protestant

ReformationMr. Garfinkel 3/3/14

Corruption of the Catholic Church

• By the 15th century, the Church had grown extremely rich and decadento Nepotism (or favoritism) was a serious issue

o Priests and even Popes were known to be having affairs with women, a strictly forbidden practice for Catholic clergy

o A particularly corrupt practice was the sale of indulgences

Indulgences

• Originally meant to be a reward for good behavior that one could receive to avoid punishment on earth or in purgatory for sin.

• By the late Middle Ages, became something that an individual could purchase

• The sale of these became extremely corrupt.o Some salesmen began arguing that people could attain heaven simply

by purchasing indulgences

Martin Luther (1483-1546) http://www.history.com/topics/reformation

• Originally a Catholic monk from Saxony

(present-day Germany), he became disgusted by the

corruption of indulgence sales.

• Preached that salvation came from accepting

Jesus, not from the Church

• Translated the bible into the German vernacular so that it was available to the masses

95 Theses

• In 1517, Luther nailed a sheet of 95 Theses, or arguments, against indulgences to the door of the Church in Wittenberg.

• Examples of the content, Thesis 86:"Why does the pope, whose wealth today

is greater than the wealth of the Crassus, build the

basilica of Saint Peter with the money of poor

believers rather than with his own money?"

What happens to Luther

• Martin Luther is called a “heretic” and is “excommunicated”, or kicked out of the Catholic Church.

• His religious protest turned to a political revolt in the Holy Roman Empire

• Luther ended up leading the protest movement against the Catholic Church which became “Protestantism.”

1347 1450 1492-1503

The Black Death hits Europe, weakening public support of the Catholic Church

Invention of the Printing press by

Johannes Gutenberg,

public literacy begins to rise

Martin Luther nails his 95 Theses to the Wittenburg Church door

England leaves the Catholic Church as Henry VIII is declared head of the Church of England

Papacy of Alexander VI, a pope known for his affairs with women and corruption

1517 1534

The Protestant Reformation Time Line

What happened in Englandhttp://www.history.com/topics/reformation/videos/protestand-reformation-english-reformation?m=528e394da93ae&s=undefined&f=1&free=false

Henry VIII

Impact of the Printing Press

How will the invention of the printing press impact this potential movement against the Catholic Church?