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The Response to Luther Luther wus astonished at how rapidly his ideas spread and attracted followers. Many people had been unhappy with the Church for political and economic rea- sons. They snw Luther's protests as a way to challenge Church...

The Response to Luther Luther wus astonished at how rapidly his ideas spread and attracted followers. Many people had been unhappy with the Church for political and economic rea- sons. They snw Luther's protests as a way to challenge Church control. lhe Pope's Threat Initially, Church officials in Rome viewed Luther simply as a rebellious monk who needed to be punished by his superiors. However, as Luther's Ideas became more popular, the pope realized that this monk was a serious threat. In one angry reply to Church criticism, Luther actually suggested that Christians drive the pope from the Church by force. In 1520, Pope Leo X issued n decree threatening Luther with excommunication ~ fJcurr, unless he took back his statements. Luther did not take back a word. Instead, his lhe l!,r;, students at Wittenberg gathered around a bonfire and cheered as he threw the aP"rlt', pope's decree into the flames. Leo excommunicated Luther. mllfr-t,,, thwJi The Emperor's Opposition Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, a devout Catholic, also opposed Luther's teaching. Charles controlled a vast empire, including the German states. He summoned Luther to the town of Worms (vawrmz) in 1521 to stand trial. Told to recant, or take back his statements, Luther refused: PRIMARY SOURCE I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted and my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not retract anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. I cannot do otherwise, here I stand, may God help me. Amen. MARTIN WTHER, quoted in The Protestant Reformation by Lewis W. Spitz A month after Luther made that speech, Charles issued an imperial order, the Vocail! Edict of Worms. It declared Luther an outlaw and a heretic. According to this edict, AherEIX ' no one in the empire was to give Luther food or shelter. All his books were to be son v,t,o · bel1ekri& burned. However, Prince Frederick the Wise of Saxony disobeyed the emperor. For lromof'a almost a year after the trial, he sheltered Luther in one of his castles. While there, teaching; Luther translated the New Testament into German. Luther returned to Wittenberg in 1522. There he discovered that many of his ideas were already being put into practice. Instead of continuing to seek reforms in the Catholic Church, Luther and his followers had become a separate religious group, called Lutherans. The Peasants' Revolt Some people began to apply Luther's revolutionary ideas to society. In 1524, German peasants, excited by reformers' talk of Christian freedom, demanded an end to serfdom. Bands of angry peasants went about the countryside raiding monasteries, pillaging, and burning. The revolt horrified Luther. He wrote a pamphlet urging the German princes to show the peasants no mercy. The princes ' armies crushed the revolt, killing as many as I 00,000 people. Feeling betrayed, many peasants rejected Luther's religious leadership. Germany at War In contrast to the bitter peasants, many northern German princes supported Lutheranism. While some princes genuinely shared Luther's beliefs. others liked Luther's ideas for selfish reasons. They saw his teachings as a good excuse to seize Church property and to assert their independence from Charles V In 1529, German princes who remained loyal to the pope agreed to join forces f ' , :J1V· ,· against Luther's ideas. Those princes who supported Luther signed a protcSI 1.,1c1rr_.,, against that agreement. These protesting princes came to be known as Protestants. \\ t -·· :,-:· J;f ,:; ' Eventually, the term Protestant was applied to Christians who belonged to non- 0'l ,1 · '" Catholic churches. 56 Chapter I  Still determined that his subjects should remain Cath olic, C~arles V went to War against the Protestant princes. Even though he defea ted them m 1547, he failed to force them back into the Catholic Church. In 1555 , C~arles, weary o~ fighting, ordered all German princes, both Protestant and Cathohc, to as~emble m the city of Augsburg. There the princes agreed that each ruler woul d decide the religion of his state. This famous religious settlement was know n as the Peace of Auisb..YJt. England Becomes Protestant The Catholic Church soon faced another great chall enge to its authority, this time in England. Unlike Luther, the man who brok e England's ties to the Roman Catholic Church did so for political and personal, not religious, reasons. Henry VIII Wants a Son When Henry VIII became king of England in 1509, he was a devout Catholic. Indeed, in 1521 , Henry wrot e a stinging attack on Luther's ideas. ln recognition of Henry's support, the pope gave him the title "Defender of the Faith." Political needs, however, soon tested his religious loyalty. He needed a male heir. Henry's father had become king after a long civil war. Henr y feared that a similar war would start if he died without a son as his heir. He and his wife, Catherine of Aragon, had one living chil d-a daug hter, Mary- but no woman had ever successfully claimed the English throne. By 1527, Henry was convinced that the 42-year-ol d Catherine would have no more children. He wanted to divorce her and take a younger queen. Church law did not allow divorce. However, the pope cou ld~. or set aside , Henry's marriage if proof could be found that it had never been legal in the first place. In 1527, Henry asked the pope to annul his marriage, but the pope turned him down. The pope did not want to offend Catherine's powe rful nephew, the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. The Reformation Parliament Henry took steps to solve his marriage problem hims elf. in 1529, be called Parliament into session and aske d it to pass a set of laws ~ - - - - Hen ry VIII Causes Religious Turmoil Henry's many rnaffiases led to confl id with the Catholic Church and the founding of the Church of Ensla nd. 1529 Henry summ ons the Reformati~n Parlia ment; disma ntling of popes powe r in England begins. 1509 Henry VIII becom es 1527 1516 king; marries Henry asks the pope Daug hter Mary to end his first marriage; Catherine of Aragon. is born. the pope refuses. 1520 11l1 nizeS H~ Parliament recog h c~urv· as head of t e dt' it c1e,gyun Parliament places divorces tl cl control; Henrv solef~ ' marries Anne Eli!' daugh ter 58 C hapte r I N: ENGLISH LEARNERS. ~.: ngl and { Sam e people executed,· relioin11 ' 4. From where did the term better reason to break with the Church? Pr Protestantism originate? support your answer.. churd1 1 5. What impact did Henry Vlll's 8. ANALYZJNG MOTIVES How did the Calh0 '' thinktl'P actions have on England in the respond to Luther's teachings? Why do you second half of the 1SOOs? was so? rt·,nL#' ! · Ma t. WRmNG ACTMTY IIEVOWTION ] imagine uarin8 ~ r/J and a leader of the Catholic Church are 5 \ entlit public debate. Write a brief dialo,ue betw CONNECT TO TODAY CREATING A GRAPHIC Use library resources to find information on the countries in which Protestantism is a major religion. Use your findings to create a graphk that makes a comparison among those countries. 60 C hapter I  The Reformation Continues predestination Catholic Many Protestant churches began Reformation RELIGIOUS AND ETHICAL Calvinism during this period, and many SYSTEMS As Protestant theocracy Jesuits Catholic schools are the result Council of reformers divided over of-reforms in the Church. Presbyterian beliefs, the Catholic Church Anabaptist Trent made reforms. STAGE Under the leadership of Queen Elizabeth I, the Anglican P,cture