Christendom Fractured: A Deep Dive into the Age of Reformation

Christian Humanism

A movement emphasizing a return to original biblical texts.

Martin Luther

The figure who shattered the unity of the Catholic Church during the Reformation.

Indulgences

The selling of forgiveness by the Catholic Church to reduce time in Purgatory.

Simony

The selling of church offices.

Nepotism

Appointing family members to powerful positions within the church.

Pluralism

Holding multiple church offices simultaneously.

Sola Fide

The doctrine that salvation comes only through faith in God.

Sola Scriptura

The belief that the Bible is the only source of authority.

Priesthood of All Believers

The belief that all Christians are equal before God.

The Diet of Worms

An assembly where Luther refused to recant his writings.

Cuius regio, eius religio

The principle that the ruler of a territory determines its religion.

Zwingli

A reformer who led the Swiss Reformation and disagreed with Luther on the Eucharist.

Transubstantiation

The Catholic belief that bread and wine transform into the body and blood of Christ.

Consubstantiation

Luther's belief that Christ is spiritually present in the bread and wine.

Memorialism

Zwingli's view that the Eucharist is only symbolic.

John Calvin

An influential leader of the Protestant Reformation who systematized Calvinism.

Predestination

Calvinist belief that God has predetermined who will be saved or damned.

The Geneva Consistory

A governing body established by Calvin to regulate moral behavior in Geneva.

TULIP

An acronym summarizing five points of Calvinism.

Anabaptists

A radical group advocating for adult baptism and separation of church and state.

Act of Supremacy

The 1534 declaration that the King of England is the supreme head of the Church of England.

Dissolution of the Monasteries

The process by which Henry VIII seized church lands and wealth.

Elizabethan Settlement

A compromise established by Elizabeth I that required conformity to the Church of England.

Council of Trent

An assembly that reformed Catholic practices and reaffirmed Catholic doctrine.

Jesuits

Members of the Society of Jesus founded to reform the Church and spread Catholicism.

The Roman Inquisition

A committee of cardinals tasked with trying heretics.

Index of Prohibited Books

A list of banned texts that Catholics were forbidden to read.

Baroque Art

A style of art commissioned by the Church to emphasize the glory of God.