Why did people break away from Catholic Churches?

Answer 1

the Reformation was a movement in the 16th century to reform the Catholic Church in Western Europe. Soon, the reformers split from the Church altogether, founding four major church traditions and dozens of sub-denominations, all of which are considered adherents of "Protestantism".

In 1517, Martin Luther published his 95 Theses On the Power of Indulgences criticising the Church, including its practice of selling indulgences. He was building on work done by John Wycliffe and Jan Hus, and other reformers joined the cause. Church beliefs and practices under attack by Protestant reformers included purgatory, particular judgment, devotion to Mary, intercession of the saints, most of the sacraments, and authority of the Pope.

Answer

The class of religion considered protistant is actually a group of religions, Lutheran, Babtist, & Protistant, became religions in that order. The Lutheran religion came about when Martin Luther, a monk, opposed certain practices by the Catholic church that were not condoned by the Holy Bible, which were common practice, such as the selling of indulgences, a monetary price, depending on severity & type of sin, that would buy forgiveness. So, if you cheated on your wife, for a small amount of coin, you could buy forgiveness from God, for murder, of course, the amount of coin was larger. Martin Luther found this practice attrocious, and also believed that the common person should be able to read the scriptures themselves, not rely on a corrupt Bishop or Priest to interpret what they believed that God wanted the people to do. Luther transcribed the Latin Scriptures into common German so all could see for themselves the word of God in their own language. Luther also posted opposition letters and arguments on church doors, to practices of the Catholic Church that he disagreed with, believing them to be blasphemous attempts to control and take advantage of the common people. For all this, the Catholic Church set inquisitors upon Luther, for Heresy, blasphemy, and for opposing and therefore commiting crimes against the Catholic Church, and against God. Conviction or no, even the accusation of such deeds would inherantly include punishments & submission/cleansing techniques such as burning of the hands in boiling oil, scalding of the body by fire, and other brutish techniques used at the time to force a submission and repentance of the deeds. and if guilty, after whatever torture was awarded for the conviction, death. Martin Luther pleaded guilty to charges, and refused to repent, claiming that that what he did was only to spread the word of the Holy Gospel, and to expose that which went against God's written word. Amazingly enough, Luther was not sentenced to death, or tortured for such a bold statement against the Catholic church. The people who shared in Luther's beliefs, became known as Lutherans, following the Holy Bible, and considering themselves no longer part of the Catholic religion. this was the first break-away from the Catholic Church, and paved the way for many others. in later years, the Babtist and Protistant religions also broke away from the Catholic Religion. each religion bares a large resemblance in their belief, and each has different sects, or chapters, which differentiate from each other in the way they choose to worship. some are more strict and traditional, some are more laid-back and less restrictive. but they all have very simalar, if not the same core values & belief system, they are all considered Christian religion, and considered protistant religions. basically, the reason for the break in the Catholic Church is because the all-powerful Catholic Church was doing things that weren't acceptable, claiming they were "ordained by God". While keeping the people blind of the words of the Scriptures, except that which the church decided to tell them, or thought appropriate, or made up. When people were suddenly able to read for themselves what the scripture said, it threw a new light on things, and like minded people who were tired of being oppressed and paying tribute for it, broke away in a bold new revolution, which is why the period of time is known as a religious revolution. As far as the difference between the religions, it's best to research them all and decide for yourself. They each believe in the Holy Bible, the old & the New Testament, they each believe in the Holy Trinity, God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, they each partake in communion, a symbolism of the last supper, but the Catholic religion has a lot of Traditions & practices that the other religions do not believe in, or partake of, believing the measure of the man in God's eyes, not the pope's.

AnswerDuring the 16th century a movement swept through the Christian provinces of the European continent. This movement began as a conflict between the newly emerging nation-states, and the local governments they hoped to incorporate in their fold. Locals found their customs and traditions being overridden by the decrees of leaders who were no involved in their daily affairs. Leaders of this movement preached a strong independent message, which struck a chord with the common people of the day, whom related the words of the message to their current situation. Thus Reformation was a movement born out of religious frustration that was greatly aided by a need for social upheaval. The door was left open to Reformation by the medieval church's overall failure to keep its parishioners complacent. The world was changing during the late 15th and early 16th century, and the church influence suffered because of it. Information had become more readily available to the common person that it had ever been before. The crusades had opened new trade routes, which helped to establish an improved postal service, spread news faster, and expose many to new cultures and ideas. Additionally, the newly invented printing press, propelled by the advent of moveable type thanks Johannes Gutenberg, spread literacy in the lower classes and made possible for more people to have access to the written resources of their faith. With printed bibles, the word of God was no longer only in the hands of the clergy. People could, and would, now develop their own thoughts, and freely exchange them. Intellectuals and lay people took the lack of satisfaction they had received on an intellectual and person level from the medieval church, and focused it on creating a sense of individual piety.The Modern Devotion is a prime example of such actions in motion. Founded by Gerald Groote, and based in the Netherlands, the brothers of the Modern Devotion attempted to live a life of piety, in a way unlike that of other monasteries. Brothers and the limited number of Sisters, of the Modern Devotion were not required to wear specific dress or to remove themselves from their secular duties and responsibilities. This was a stark contrast to the Catholic institution of clergymen whom took full advantage of their freedoms from taxes, military service, and immunity from civil disputes. A book, explaining the intent and message of the Modern Devotion, titled "Imitation of Christ" was published and as it became wide spread, was a great influence to many on eve of the Reformation movement.The Reformation has it's origins in Germany and Switzerland. These sections of Europe had lacked the unification found in France or England, and had thus escaped the same level of political control the Holy Roman Church had on those states. However, during the 16th century various Princes in the German and Swiss provinces began to consolidate their power and enforce the will of the Church. This was not something that free cities, which had a legacy of self government, were ready to accept. Many citizens were dismayed at the tightening of their political freedoms, and to those with religious concerns were increasingly suspect of the financial abuses perpetrated by the church. These frustrations created a platform for Martin Luther to stand on, and perhaps pushed him to be so defiant as to post upon the doors of the Castle Church of Wittenberg 95 theses against indulgence. This act made Luther the first prominent leader of the Reformation movement. The son of a peasant copper miner, Luther was afforded the luxury of a fine education, including a stay at the University of Erfurt during which he completed both bachelor's and Master's degrees. Following this, Luther had intended to follow his Father's wishes and study law. However, this was not to be. During the summer months of 1505, Luther entered the Augustinian Monastery in Erfurt, intending to devote himself to his faith. This swift decision can be credited to a chance event in his life. Whilst on a trip, Luther found himself caught in a fierce lightning storm; he feared for his life. Under duress, he made a pledge to St. Anne, Patron Saint of Travelers. If he should survive the night he would dedicate his life to the church. He was ordained in 1507 and was soon asked by his peers to begin a study of theology so that he might become a professor of the subject in one of the new established German Universities. By this time, Luther had heard of problems and corruption within the higher ranks of the church, however, it wasn't until a 1510 visit to Rome that he was able to witness them first hand. A slightly disillusioned Luther, returned to his studies and teaching, eventually earning a doctorate in Theology. It was during this cycle of study and lecturing that Luther became plagued by a question of his own faith. His own sense of sinfulness, of himself and the human race, left him pondering the true aspect of the righteousness required by God for salvation. Eventually, a conclusion was reached. Luther came to believe that the perfect righteousness of God was found through Jesus Christ. The son of God was alone the perfect righteousness. "To believe in Christ meant to stand before God dressed in Christ's sure righteousness." It should go without saying that this was not the typical view of the time. Luther would soon begin to preach his new views to the public, and spread his new word.It wasn't until 1519 that Luther was able capture widespread attention for his cause. The 95 theses against indulgence were a direct attack on the policies of the Catholic Church that resonated with the mood of the German people. Luther would have found himself in much more trouble for his actions had events of the political world not provided him with a favorable situation. The death of Emperor Maximilian I moved the concerns of the governing powers away from the heresy of Luther and onto the process of electing a new emperor. This allowed for the fledgling Reformation movement to expand, while Luther decided what to do next. In 1520, Luther published 3 pamphlets to popularize his movement. The Address to the Christian Nobility of the German Nation was an attempt to convince the German Princes to force reform on the Catholic Church in order to ebb the tide of their political and economic influence in the region. Babylonian Captivity of the Church was an attack on the 7 sacraments of the Church, of which Luther argued only two; Baptism and Eucharist were actually of biblical merit. This pamphlet was a showcase of Luther's desire to return the teachings of the Church to those only based on scripture. His third pamphlet titled Freedom of a Christian explained his new faith to the more and more literate masses. Shortly after the release of these works, Luther was excommunicated by the Church for refusing to retract his views. Then, in 1521, Luther presented his views to the Diet of Worms, over which the Emperor Charles V presided. Again, Luther was asked to retract his views or face harsh punishment, and again, Luther adamantly refused. As result Luther became an imperial outlaw, and spent the next year of his life hidden away, out of the reach of those who would seek to harm him. During this time, He was able to translate the New Testament into German. Giving the people of the German Nation a chance to interpret the teachings of Jesus for themselves, this also went a long way to establishing a common written form of German. Luther remained in hiding until Charles V relinquished territorial control of religious matters to German Princes in an attempt to establish good relations and round up troops to fight in his war against France and the Ottoman Turks.It was these events that stirred up the German populace and brought about reform in numerous cities and villages. However, it is important to understand that the movement had as much to do with social changes, as it did with changes in religion. Early supporters of Luther and his calls for change saw in him an ally in their own desires to free themselves from the political and economic holds of the Catholic Church. Local magistrates favored Reformation because it allowed them to profit greater than they could have under the Catholic regime and Peasantry found that the theology of "Justification by Faith" quelled their anxiety over their own need to find salvation. However, favor of Luther by those seeking to push their own social agendas would recede as Luther refused to support a peasant uprising in 1524. Luther viewed the uprising as unchristian, and stayed firm in his position that the freedom of the Christian was to be found through spirituality. Through causing much dismay amongst numerous supporters, had Luther contradicted his teaching by supporting the rebellion, the lasting effect of his teachings would have perhaps not reached as far as they did.While he might have been the first, Luther was not the only person leading a reformation movement in Europe during the first half of the 16th century. Ulrich Zwingli began his own movement in Switzerland that occurred nearly co-currently with the Lutheran movement. Zwingli believed firmly that "Whatever lacked literal support in the bible was not to be believed nor practiced" He pushed his agenda by protesting the Lenten fast, and soon began to disagree with other Church practices such as worship of saints, and most importantly clerical celibacy. Zwingli's Protestant sect was the first to allow clerics to marry, a policy quickly adopted by the other sects. Soon, attempts were made to unify the Swiss and German Protestant sects, however Luther and Zwingli never saw eye to eye and such a union never occurred.By 1550 the Lutheran movement had established Protestantism as a religion that was here to stay. However, another sect would rise to take Protestantism further. Calvinism rose up in France, Netherlands, and Scotland; areas that had been largely unaffected by the original movements lead by Luther and Zwingli. The Calvinist differed from other Protestant sects in that they strongly believed in the concept of divine predestination. To them, their purpose on earth was to shape events to follow God's plan. This attitude gave the Calvinist a strong work ethic, which would later be credited to helping shape the economic system of capitalism. Additionally, their belief in predestination inspired political resistance within countries with a high population of Calvinists. The founder of this Movement, John Calvin, came from a different background than earlier reformers, in that he was of a high social class. Calvin was educated; completing a study in law before briefly working with French reformers and eventually being pulled into the service of faith. Calvin desired to transform society morally, basing his faith on conforming to the demands of God. It was with this in mind that he led for reforms in the church, and did manage to accomplish in the city of Geneva. Some viewed Calvin's reforms as overbearing and too extreme, and has such he was eventually thrown out of Geneva and his reforms repealed. Later in life however, Calvin was able to return and reinstitute his rules.Soon the Catholic Church grew increasingly concerned with the spread of Protestantism. Numerous wars on the European continent during the 16th century had prevent secular authorities under the influence of the church from stopping the spread of Protestantism. The new religion had grown roots, and could no longer simply be squashed out. The Catholic decided to begin a series of it's own reforms, designed to lure back those on the fringe of Protestantism. These reforms of this "Counter-Reformation" were made during the Council of Trent. This council was able to address some of the issues of corruption which had spurred Reformation in the first place, yet, over the course of the twenty five meetings that took place between 1545 and 1563 compromises could not be reached to draw the Protestant back into the church. The move seems to have been too little too late. With Protestantism firmly established by the time it took for these changes to finally be enacted, all the Church could do is sit back and watch their influence dwindle. Regardless of the outcome, this move by the Church was a brilliant political maneuver. One has to wonder how things might have been if the church had recognized a need to change earlier in the course of history. The Reformation movement was able to succeed beyond its early days thanks in part to the general population jumping aboard in search of social and political changes. If the Catholic Church had been able to offer the changes that people wanted at the start of the Reformation Movement, it would have not been as quick to spread throughout Europe. However, it seems clear to me that no reasonable effort could have been put forth to stop the gradual separation of church and state. During this time period the modern Nation-State was slowly arriving and the economic burdens of having to submit to some external authority would have been less than ideal to the leaders of these states. Economic policy slowly became more prevalent in running a country, and leaders increasingly viewed the Pope as more rival than peer or leader. Money was power and leaders saw no reason in funding the opposition. I can be argued that the Reformation did a lot to speed this process along by helping to diminish the influence of the papal regime across Europe. If Protestantism had been stopped, or delayed, I think that the separation of church and state would have been hindered, but not stopped. It is in the overriding interest of people to not have to answer to a religious authority, if they have a desire to increase their profit margins. Greed in regard to money is such a driving force that eventually, the issue would have forced itself regardless of the achievements of the Reformation Movement.The Reformation Movement was an important step in freeing people from the overwhelming control of the Catholic Church. By forcing a change in the political system of the day it improved the daily lives of many. The Reformation made it important to read the bible, and thus increased literacy among all classes. It also helped to push forward the separation of Church and state, which allowed easier development of the modern Nation-State, causing economic improvements on national levels. But, in the end, it seems, the Reformers succeeded in their prime objective; they made the world a better place.

Even though the catholic church did opress people doesn't mean that it's a bad religion. 500 Years ago the catholic church needed a reformation and that just what it got. You must rember that these churches are run by men, humans. Were all imperfect, and as a cathloic I reconize that. People got to big for the britches, and so they striped the church of all in imperfections and started over and still it's not perfect because men have caruptted it ( sorry I misspelled) but It is a church over 2,000 thousand years old and I belive that means something.

Answer 2

The Protestants were started by a German priest called Martin Luther. Luther never intended to cause a revolution, but became angry at the corruption in the Church. To raise money to build churches, priests often encouraged people to give money to the church and in return they would be forgiven for their sins. He wanted the Catholic Church to reform but they rejected him. Luther got more radical and called for a new independent church. His ideas were:

• He rejected the idea that that priests and clerics were needed to stand inbetween the believers and God, and instead said that everyone who has been baptised has priesthood.
• He rejected the authority of the Pope. The Catholic Church believes that the Pope acts as a source of divine knowledge, and if The Bible isn't clear on something, the Pope would provide the answer. Luther said that only the Bible was a source of divine knowledge.
• He also rejected the Catholic idea that you needed to do good deeds to be accepted by God and to go to heaven. Luther believed that you only needed faith to be accepted by God.
• He wanted the Bible translated into German so people could understand it. He also encouraged development of Church music.

In the case of England, Henry VIII actually opposed Martin Luther's ideas. However he broke away from Rome after falling out with the Pope who refused to let him divorce his wife Catherine of Aragon. The King also resented the fact that the Pope had a lot of power over his kingdom. The Church of England was originally just a Catholic church, but reformers such as his successor Edward VI and the Archbishop Thomas Cranmer helped take it in a more Protestant direction.

Answer 3

People thought that the Catholic Church was corrupt, especially in their sale of indulgences. In response, they turned to Calvinism (Puritanism), Zwingliism, and Anglicanism which had less corrupt churches but still offered the same religious experience and relationship with God.

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Catholic AnswerA few people left the Catholic Church, primarily because of sin - their own. Martin Luther and Henry VIII both left the Church, the first because of a combination of being unable to live with his solemn lifelong vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. He had particular problems with alcohol and sex. Henry VIII pretty much had the same problems. Both of them subsequently left the Church because they could not live according to the moral standards which Our Blessed Lord, Jesus Christ, had left His Church, so they started their own "churches" which did not ask as much of them as God had. The vast majority of people did not leave the Church, they had the Church removed from them as their princes (or in Henry's case - himself) removed the Catholic Church from their provinces or states and installed their own "churches," so the people had little choice in the matter. For a more complete description of this sad history in England, please read Eamon Duffy's The Stripping of the Altars: Traditional Religion in England, 1400-1580. (see link below). For a complete history on Martin Luther and his problems, please read Msgr. Patrick F. O'Hare's The facts about Luther.

Answer 4

A Catholic Answer

Because of sin. Those who headed the movement to start a new Church all had massive problems living with the moral code that Our Blessed Lord had handed down through His Church. Martin Luther took solemn life-long vows that he broke, out of hand. He had taken solemn vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. He broke all of them, without even bothering to ask permission from Rome to be released from his vows - which he had many years in the Friary to try before he made them. After that, it was all downhill. Henry VIII had similar problems with sex, he wanted a new wife - again, and again. And he had problems with the "to death do us part" although later in life, he remedied that as well. All of them split from Christ's Church on earth as they could not live with Our Blessed Lord's demands to "be holy as I am holy." Everything else was just excuses and window dressing.

Answer 5

The Puritans did not directly break from the Catholic Church. They broke from the Church of England, a Protestant Church. They did so because they felt that the Church of England was too similar in practices to the Catholic Church. I suppose that makes the Puritans Protestant Protestants.

Answer 6

A:

The underlying reason for the Protestant Reformation and the break from the Catholic Church was the systemic corruption evident in the Catholic Church. Martin Luther objected to the sale of indulgences, largely for the enrichment of the pope and senior clergy. He also objected to the sale of bishoprics and other improper practices that had continued almost without a break for previous centuries. Luther then put his mind to Catholic rituals that he believedtook the Church away from Christianity's origins, but these were not as significant as the problems of simony, nepotism and other forms of corruption.

The break that occurred in England was quite the reverse of that which had ocurred in Europe. King Henry VIII considered himself a staunch Catholic and accepted the existence of corruption in the Church as part of the natural order. It came as a surprise to him that the pope, largely for political reasons, would not grant him an annulment when it seemed that those closer to the pope had had little trouble in obtaining annulments. Angered by this, Henry declared himself head of the Church in England.

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Catholic AnswerThe Protestant Catastrophe

The events and causes that led up to the Catholic Reform and the protestant revolt were manifold and stretched over the two centuries prior to Martin Luther posting his famous 95 Theses. These are seen by some Catholic historians as divine chastisements. For a more complete discussion of all of this, please get Ten Dates Every Catholic Should Know by Diane Moczar, you may view it at the link below.

A massive famine struck Europe in 1315 and continued to 1322, causing mass starvation in northern Europe. That was followed by seven other famines in southern France in the same century. And that was only the beginning, it was shortly followed by the Black Death, the Hundred Years' War, the papal catastrophe in the Avignon Papacy, known as the Great Schism, and the heresy of Conciliarism which taught that a Church council was a higher authority than the pope.

In addition there was the coldness that was seeping into society which had previously been totally devoted to religion. Late Medieval society had gone commercial to such an extent that they began to keep two sets of books, one for God and one for themselves. On fifteenth-century merchant headed the pages of his ledger, "In the name of God and profit."

One interesting sign of this spiritual chill, as Ms. Moczar puts it, was the fact that the Fourth Lateran Council in 1215 had to require reception of Holy Communion at least once a year under pain of mortal sin. As she puts it: "That this central expression of Catholic piety, not to mention inexpressible privilege, should have to be made an obligation rather than naturally be considered a joy shows us again how religious fervor had diminished.

Also, many intellectuals were enamored of the new philosophy of Nominalism put out by William of Ockham, which subverted the great scholastic synthesis of faith and reason by destroying its philosophic foundation in Aristotelian realism.

Finally, the later Renaissance, (late fifteenth and sixteenth centuries) finished off Medieval civilization with individualism fueled by such writers as Pico della Mirandola, Machiavelli, and others.

The entire conventual wisdom about the corruption of the Catholic Church leading to dissatisfaction with the Catholic faith and leading to a simple monk (Martin Luther) standing up to the Church and trying to reinstate the simple faith of the apostles is so much bunk which has been swallowed whole by too many for too long. I should recommend the book entitled The European Reformation by Euan Cameron put out by Oxford University Press for anyone interested in the real story.

The above was extracted mostly from Ten Dates Every Catholic Should Know by Diane Moczar, c 2005 by Diane Moczar, Sophia Institute Press, Manchester, NH 03108.

Answer 7

Because of sin. Those who headed the Catholic Church had massive problems living with the moral code that the Church espoused. Martin Luther, who founded the Protestant Reformation, saw that the Church seemed excessively concerned with raising revenue and too little concerned with maintaining the ancient principles of faith. He is well known for having objected to the sale of indulgences, but he also objected to the cult of relics to raise money. Martin Luther saw that the veneration of saints had turned into the worship of semi-divinities who were addressed exclusively for some need, with no reference to Christ. John Calvin and Ulrich Zwingli also viewed images, relics, shrines, and the devotion attached to them as superstition at best and idolatory at worst.

Sin was not only on the Catholic side. King Henry VIII of England, who had been a staunch supporter of the Catholic Church, split from the Church purely because he wanted a male heir to the throne, and felt that a new wife would give him that chance. This was morally wrong, but he appealed to the pope for the annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. The pope had already granted Henry a dispension to marry Catherine, his late brother's wife, so Henry might have expected him to continue to bend the rules for him. When the pope refused, Henry ordered the Archbishop of Canterbury to grant him a divorce so that he could marry Anne Boleyn. Henry was made Supreme Head of the Church in England by an Act of Parliament in 1534. Henry VIII may not have been able to carry off this act of defiance without support from the English people, for whom change was unpopular but not as unpopular as the wealthy monasteries.