The beginning of the Reformation movement

1. The Reformation
How it started

2. Humanism
• Definition: Gaining knowledge through reason, not religious faith.
Giving importance to the individual and to society.
• Humanism didn’t stop people from having religious faith, but it did
cause them to question things about it.

3. Problems within the Roman Catholic Church
• The church was very concerned about money. And people were
unhappy with their tax policies.
• Selling indulgences, which was basically selling a pardon for
someone’s sins.
• Bishops were living like Kings and building large castles, etc, for family
members.
• Declarations like the one during the crusades that said anyone who
fought would be free of sin.
• Disputes in the church, such as who was pope, made people question
their church.

4. John Wycliffe
• Priest in England in the 1370’s.
• Preached that Jesus was the head of the
church, not the Pope.
• Said that all religious truth came from the
Bible, and therefore people should be able to
read the Bible.
• Started the first translation of the Bible into
English (this became the King James Version of
the Bible which is the most widely read English
translation)

5. Erasmus
• Christian Humanist who lived in the 1500’s.
• Believed people should use reason to become
better Christians.
• Said it was not enough to participate in
religious activity, but that it was important
how you lived your everyday life.
• 1509: wrote a book where he criticized the
church and their focus on money (even said
the Pope wasn’t a real Christian!)

6. The Reformation Project
• You will be creating a booklet with some information about the
Reformation.
• We will begin this project by coloring in where Christianity was in
Europe before the Reformation (remember there were two brands of
Christianity back then).
• We will be shading in what different branches emerged around
Europe later.