7th Grade “Reformation” Study Guide

Name_________________________ Date______________ Class_____________________

I) The Catholic Church Faces Challenges” (Page 748 – 754)

** What was the Reformation? What was its purpose?

The Reformation was a movement of Western Christianity to end the

corruption church leaders have used for their own benefit, and to
concentrate on the religion. As the church reformed it also separated. It was
important because it brought Christianity to only focusing on the religion. It
also eliminated some of the church’s practices.

A) The Reformation was needed, some said, because of “unpopular practices”. Explain
these two and why they were unpopular. Write in complete sentences, Using a Thesis,
Examples and Restating “ These practices were “unpopular” because:

1) Lay investiture:

Lay investiture was an unpopular and criticized practice during the

Reformation. An example of the Lay investiture is if a king not a pope elected
a bishop or other high-ranking officials. These practices were unpopular
because people didn't believe a king who was qualified to appoint church
officials. We would also see kings appointing people he trusts such as his
family just for the king’s benefit. Kings could corrupt the church with people
who didn’t care about the religion, and only worked for money for the king
and themselves. Finally, lay investiture was unpopular because the king
could use the church as power over many followers of Chrisitanity because
the main goal for Chrisitians was to go to heaven and with that power the
king was in total control.

2) The Great Schism:

The Great Schism was a break or separation of the church, and brought
people confusion. The Schism first started in 1309, when the pope had been
invited by a French king to move to Avignon, France. The pope after almost
70 years returned to Rome in 1377. At the same time in France a group of
Bishops elected a new pope for France. Now, there were three popes that
started a rivalry until 1417. The Great Schism was important because people
had learnt that they needed the pope and the church to reach heaven
however now with multiple popes people didn’t know who to follow, and if
they didn’t follow the right one they were scared they would get
excommunicated.

B) “The Wealth of the Church” (pages 749- 750)

1) The Catholic Church had become very rich during the Middle Ages. List
three ways they had gained that wealth. Define in complete sentences with Thesis and
examples. these and explain how they worked to make the church so wealthy.

1) Taxes:
One way the Catholic Church had become very rich during the Middle Ages
was without paying taxes. The church had become so rich and powerful that
they even controlled the government and worked with the king. The church
could still remain powerful and rich because they didn’t have to pay taxes
such as building churches, libraries, and schools to teach Chrisitanity.
2) Indulgences/Purgatory:

Two ways the church became rich was through Indulgences and purgatory.
Indulgence was a way to reduce the punishment of a sin a person has
committed. People used to have to pay to reduce their penalty for their sins.
Many people believed that bishops and priests were just using this as a way
to make money and the only one that can remove your sins is God.
Purgatory was the place your soul went to to be punished of any sins you
have committed before you go to heaven. People believed that indulgences
were a way to reduce your time in the purgatory before going to heaven.
People came upset that the church was making people buy their way to
heaven not earn it.
3) Simony:

Simony was selling a position to work at the church or other benefits the
church could provide. For example, a father might pay for his eldest son to
become a bishop of the church. Wealthy people would pay to get their
family to work for the church because as a bishop or priest you would make
lots of money.

C) The Call for Reform. (Page 750)

1) Who was one of the first to “call” for the reform of the Catholic Church? How did he
do it and did he get what he wanted????
The first person to “call” for the reform of the Catholic Church was
Desiderius Erasmus. He wrote a book called The Praise of Folly where he
criticized the clergy by saying they weren’t upholding their responsibility,
and how they lived easy wealthy lives. His book influenced later reformers
who broke from the Catholic Church such as Martin Luther. You could say he
got what he wanted because through his humanistic ideas he impacted the
Catholic Church by making them lose followers and believers. However, he
wouldn’t have wanted to influence a 30 year war in the whole of Europe. His
beliefs had some good and some bad impacts on the Catholic Church and
Europe.

D) Martin Luther Urges Reform: (Page 750)

1) Who started the great “urging for reform”? What did he do to get the attention of the
Catholic Church? Were these his ideas? Explain.

Martin Luther started the great “urging for reform”. To get the attention of
the Catholic Church Martin created his famous Ninety-Five Theses. This was
a very humanistic thing because all of these theses were made up of his very
own beliefs. Normally, people would obey the Catholic Church because
everyone was taught that the only way you could go to heaven, which was
what everyone wanted to go after they died, was through the church.
However, Martin Luther believed that only God could shorten your time in
purgatory, and forgive you for your sins. He believed that the church was
taking money from the poor through indulgences. The first print of the
Ninety- Five Theses was nailed to a door of a church in Wittenberg in the
German state of Saxony. His beliefs had later been spread throughout
Europe because of the famous printing press. It is very important though to
remember Martin Luther just as Desiderius Erasmus wanted to reform the
Catholic Church not destroy it. Martin Luther’s words from his Ninety-Five
Theses were his own beliefs, but they could have been encouraged by
Desiderius Erasmus’ book The Praise of Folly.

2) List the steps that Luther went through (some not because he wanted to) that,
eventually, led to a split in the Catholic Church. ( Use the paragraphs on the bottom of page 750
– 751 to explain step by step what happened.)

1)
Nailed the 95 Theses on the Wittenberg Church wall October 31 1517

2)
German bishops learnt of Luther’s Theses and sent a copy to Pope Leo X

3)
The Pope called Luther a heretic and later excommunicated him

4)
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor ordered Martin to appear before the Diet of
Worms, a council of the clergy and nobles in the the German city of Worms

5)
Some of the nobles who were part of the Diet of Worms agreed with Luther,
and believed the church had too much power. Charles V though disagreed
with the other rulers and banished Luther. However, Federick the Wise or
Federick III ruler of Saxony at the time, and had Martin Luther as his subject
secretly helped Luther escape from Worms, and took Martin to castle where
he hid from the Holy Roman Emperor for over a year.

6)
Martin Luther’s ideas later tore the Catholic Church in two. People who
believed in Martin Luther became known as Protestants, people who
protested against the Catholic Church. Protestants later split into many other
divisions. Protestants who follow Martin Luther’s teaching are called
Lutherans.

7)

Some Protestants made violent actions against the Church, and started
destroying the church instead of reform it.
E) Luther’s Teachings: List his beliefs below:

1) He believed people could have a direct relationship with God

2) Luther believed that only God not even the pope could forgive you for
your sins

3) He thought buying indulgences was just a way for the church to make
money

4) People didn’t need priests to talk to God for them

5) People’s beliefs shouldn’t be based on the church or tradition, but on the

Bible, the word of God

6) He thought people should live as directed by the Bible, not the priests or
the pope

7) He argued that people wouldn’t please God or be saved from evil by doing
just good work

8) Only the faithful will be offered salvation

 F) Later on he tried to help people understand how God wanted them to live. What did
he do to help them? List these ideas below. (752)

1) He translated the Bible’s New Testament into German, the

common language in Saxony
2) He wrote pamphlets, essays, and songs as a way to share his
ideas, also written in German
3) He wrote the Ninety-Five Theses to show how the Catholic
Church was misusing their power, and making commoners pay for
indulgences that did nothing

G) How was Henry VIII involved in this “Reformation”? (Page 754)

Henry VIII is famous for the amount of wives he had, and because of this he
became a major figure of the Reformation in England. Henry VIII realized he
couldn’t have children with his current wife, so he called upon the pope to
end his marriage. However, the pope refused to. Henry, mad at the pope,
ignored him and broke from the Catholic Church. In 1534, the king
announced he was the head of a new church, the Church of England, or the
Anglican Church. As seen, Henry VIII didn’t break from the church because of
a disagreement religiously, but personally. As he didn’t care much of
changing the church practices the Church of England kept the same
traditions as the Catholic Church. However, by creating the new church he
allowed Protestant beliefs to be in England.

II) The Catholic Reformation: (Pages 755 – 759)

A) Define what is meant by:

1) The Catholic Reformation
The Catholic Reformation was the response to the Protestant Reformation.
From the late 1500s and 1600s the Catholic Reformation was a way to
strengthen people’s belief in the Catholic Church and stop the spread of
Protestant ideas in Europe.

2) The Counter Reformation:

The Counter Reformation was another name for the Catholic Reformation.
They called it Counter Reformation because they were countering the
Protestant Reformation.

B) Why were the Catholic leaders of Spain so upset with Jews and Muslims
in their country?
Catholic leaders of Spain were so upset with Jews and Muslims in their
country because they saw that Jews, Muslims, and Christians together were
making great advancements and this time was being referred to the Golden
Age. Catholic leaders of Spain were upset because they only wanted
Christians to be making these great advancements not with the Jews and
Muslims. Also, as German states started losing Catholic followers because of
Martin Luther, Spain was the only country that had Catholic Christianity as
their main religion and they didn’t want to lose their power of the Catholic
Church to Protestants. Finally, Catholic stands for universal, and Catholic
leaders of Spain wanted Catholic Christianity to be the only religion in their
country.

C) Spanish Inquisition:
1) What was the Spanish Inquisition?

The Spanish Inquisition was a Roman Catholic Church organization ordered by

Spanish Monarchs and the Catholic Church to punish people who didn’t follow the
Catholic Church.

2) What was its purpose?

Its purpose was to dispose of any Muslims, Jews, Protestant Christians, and any
other who didn't agree with the idea of the Spanish church.
 3) What were its methods?

The Spanish Inquisition didn’t care how they had to finish off their prey. Two
of the worst torture methods used during the Spanish Inquistion were the
Head Crusher and the Judas Chair/Cradle. The Judas Cradle was invented
during the Spanish Inquisition. The victim was first seated on a
pyramid-shaped seat, and was being held by ropes and a circular waist band.
The point of the seat was inserted into the person’s body, and then the
person was slowly deeper and deeper into the seat. The victims were
normally naked to humiliate them even more. This torture could last from up
to several days, it was just a matter if the person was willing to give
themselves to the Catholic Church or not. These tortures were a very harsh
way to test your faith. The Head Crusher was a simple yet painful device
where your chin was place underneath a crusher that would lower as the
torture turns the screw. The torture usually made it a slow process to add to
the pain.

D) Catholic Reforms: (Page 756 – 757)

1) By the mid-1500’s the Catholic Church was responding to the Protestant

criticisms in many ways.
 a) What were two of these ways and give examples to support each.

Some Catholic reformers created religious orders to win back faith in the Catholic
Church. One order was called the Ursuline Order created in 1535 in Italy by Angela
Merici. This order only taught girls, and believed that if they started educating
girls early they will grow strong faith in the Catholic Church and taught them
about the Catholic Church. They tried to limit the teaching of Protestant teachings.
The Council of Trent, was a group of Catholic leaders who believed that some
change was necessary. They met three times throughout the years of 1545 and
1563 to discuss and debate what Catholic teachings needed to be reformed. One
big change they made was that bishops who oversaw a certain area had to live
there. Before this, many bishops lived far from the areas they ran. However, they
still stated that only the clergy could interpret the Bible and no one else.

III) Effects of the Reformation: Color in the countries ( using a color key)
that became Protestant and those who stayed Catholic.
A) Religious Division:

1) Reading the section called “Division within Europe:, explain what the
most important idea that came about that led to all these divisions in Europe.
The most important idea that came about that led to all these divisions in
Europe was now in the Holy Roman Empire, each king could choose the
religion of their region. With this decision kings and princes didn’t have to be
ruled by the pope, and they could use their own Protestant church for
themselves.

2) How was the Americas affected by the desire to be Protestant?

As explorers and missionaries set out to the Americas they brought their
beliefs with them. Many Catholic explorers who went to Canada, Mexico,
Central America, and South America brought their religion so most of these
areas became Catholic. However, England for example, traveled to North
America and created the 13 colonies. These 13 colonies and the United
States became mostly Protestant.

B) Religious Wars: ( Page 761 – 764)

1) How did the decision of the French king to get rid of all Protestants in
France cause trouble? Explain.
The French king founded all Protestant religions in France and punished or
killed any Protestant he found. His decision to get rid of all Protestants in
France created lots of tension between the Catholics and Protestants.
However, in 1562 a Catholic noble killed a group of Protestants in France.
The French king sparked tension between these two groups, and the
Catholic noble lit the fire. He influenced years of war, and later he realized he
made the wrong decision and allowed Protestants in certain towns. A few
years after peace though fighting continued, and on August 24, 1572
Catholics killed about 3,000 Protestants in Paris. This occasion is called St.
Bartholomew’s Day. The French King started over 20 years of war, and
caused thousands of deaths.

2) What was the “Edict of Nantes” and what did it achieve?

The Edict of Nantes was a law issued by King Henry IV, who was raised a
Protestant, granting religious freedom in most of France. The law stopped
the war, but there was still tension between the Catholics and Protestants.
3) What did “throwing two Catholic officials out of a window” lead to in The Holy
Roman Empire?

The king of Bohemia, part of the Holy Roman Empire, enforced a law to
make everyone in his kingdom Catholic. In doing so, he angered many
Protestants. Then, in 1618 a few Protestants responded to the king by
throwing two Catholic officials out of a window in the city of Prague. The
Protestants later overthrew the king, and replaced him. However, this struck
a religious war through the Holy Roman Empire. This war became known as
the Thirty Years’ War.

4) Was the “30 Years War” a religious or political war? Explain in detail.
The 30 Years War started off as a religious war between Protestants and
Catholics, but as the war got out of control the Holy Roman Emperor went to
Spain for help. The Protestants also received help from the Catholic king of
France. The king of France was a Catholic, but he didn’t like the Holy Roman
Emperor so he sided with the Protestants. This became political as countries
were now fighting for land not religion. For example, France was Catholic,
but the king of France wanted the Holy Roman Empires land. It also became
an economic war as countries were also fighting for trade routes.
IV) Social Changes: ( Pages 763 – 764)

A) What was a huge change in the social understanding in Europe for

hundreds of years seen in the first paragraph of “Social Changes”?
In the first paragraph of “Social Changes” one of the huge changes in the
social understanding in Europe was that now everyone started to become a
humanist, and started questioning the government and church. More people
were wondering why there was very little science in their lives. Also, the
Catholic Church was no longer the universal church, and the Catholic Church
was just one of the many churches in Europe.

A) Self Government:
1) How did the influence of the Catholic Church change as a result of
the Reformation?

The Catholic Church had no little to no political, social, and economic power
now. People used to follow the Catholic Church without questioning
anything, but now with Protestant churches each congregation, a church
assembly, got to choose their leader and they weren’t bossed around by
priests and bishops anymore. People began to see that their own ideas were
important. The Catholic Church’s influence had no impact on the whole of
Europe anymore, and the church only influenced their own followers now.

2) How did the Reformation lead to the growth of “federalism”?

Congregations are a church assembly. Congregations wanted political power,

and they started to rule their own community and church. As their power
grew, congregations had an impact on a larger number of people. These local
governments didn’t take over the national government, but they worked
with them and shared their power together starting the growth of
federalism. Federalism is the sharing of power between national and local
governments.