106 HIS Dr. Hooper 2/28/07 History 106 World Civilization II Essay portion The late 16th and 17th centuries were a time of tremendous anxiety because demographic and economic pressures eroded the confidence and security of many Europeans.
The Confessional Faith provided reassurance to specific religious followers of the various faiths that had fragmented from the Roman Catholic religion after The Reformation. It was also used to impose strict social discipline. Where different confessions continued to persist in one state, the result was violence as distinctive religious communities competed for power. Meanwhile, states determined their foreign policy based on other states confessions, and the West split into religiously driven national camps.
Discuss A. How did adherence to a confessional faith help people to deal with the uncertainties of their times? Following the Protestant Reformation, the people were left with great uncertainties in their world. Now that the Church no longer held absolute control over its dominion in the form of absolute monarchs, people were left without any true spiritual guidance. Unexplainable events and catastrophes could no longer be named as God's will, as explained by the priests. Also, because the Scientific Revolution had no occurred
yet, there wasn't any rational explanation for these occurrences either. With no answers, the people were frightened. Thus, the need for a binding force came to be. Different confessional faiths began to pop up to take the place of the Church, or in the case of Catholics, to revive their views in a new manner. These faiths brought the masses back under the guidance of God, but different as each different sect of Christianity tended to vary on many issues. But regardless of those variations, the confessionals brought people back in from uncertainty, because they were not ready to face the world without some sort of explanation for its happenings, religiously or scientifically. Only when the Scientific Revolution would occur, and the Enlightenment would begin, would people truly begin to realize they might not need to cling to religion to explain their world, and could move forward without adhering to a particular faith. B. What were the confession doctrines of ____ (and) C. Discuss in Detail a. Catholics The Catholics following the Reformation adhered to the decrees of the Council of Trent. A summation of the decrees is as follows: First, and foremost, it rejected the Protestant Reformation. While the initial impetus for the Reformation was the Indulgence Controversy, it quickly became apparent that the Reformers desired a thorough doctrinal reformation of the Church. They put forth the five great themes of sola scriptura, sola fide, solus Christus, sola gratia, and soli Deo Gloria. These five phrases encapsulate the Gospel: salvation is revealed in the Scriptures alone, purchased by Christ alone, received by faith alone, offered by grace alone, and is to the glory of God alone. This understanding of the Gospel was rejected by Rome. In its place was substituted a Gospel that was provided by the Church alone, mediated by the sacraments alone, and based on the authority of an enlarged canon: Scripture and tradition. What was lost at the Council of Trent was the Gospel of grace itself. No matter how the canons were framed, it made the individual dependent upon the
Church for the knowledge and receiving of the Gospel that he so desperately needed. When it came to the practical matters of clerical and moral abuse, the Church made an attempt to root out the most grievous breaches. However, these were the surface manifestations of the much deeper theological differences that needed to be resolved. The Reformers were convinced that the moral problems of the Church were a result of false teaching. Rome rejected that analysis by reaffirming their doctrinal stance. The Council also increased the power of the Papacy over the Church. While the theory of Conciliarism failed in not giving the Scriptures the supreme authority in the Church, the movement, nevertheless, sought to implement the principle that there is wisdom in a number of counselors. Through the various maneuverings, the Popes determined that such a situation would never take place. Power was now officially concentrated in a single person who alone had the authority to determine the answers. In declaring the Pope of Rome to be the Vicar of Christ on earth, the Council of Trent has officially given to the Bishop of Rome authority that the Scriptures teach is to be held exclusively by the Lord Jesus Christ. (The Council of Trent)
These laws and decrees were meant to keep the Catholic faith afloat during the turmoil the Protestant Reformation had caused. But rather than admit the wrongs of certain Church practices, the Council instead reaffirmed those practices, under the guidelines that traditions are paramount in observing the faith. This allowed the Catholic faith to consolidate its power after the loses the Protestant Reformation had taken from the Church. Though weaker than it was before the Reformation, this unification allowed the Church to combat other losses and to bring the fight to hopefully bring Protestants back under the influence. b. Lutherans Lutherans were the fore-runners of the Protestant Reformation, and as such, their doctrines reflected the `false' teachings of the Catholic Church, and intended to rectify those mistakes and return to `true' Christianity. In the Augsburg Confession, Lutherans attempted to define their new faith as follows:
The Augsburg Confession contains articles of definition regarding the Lutheran concept of the Trinity, being very careful to remain within a catholic understanding of God. It contains articles regarding sin and forgiveness through faith alone in the saving work of Jesus Christ; concerning the Church and ministry, defining the Church as the assembly of believing people of all time, with the administration of the Church as being a matter of purely human decision; concerning the Sacraments (Holy Baptism and the Lord's Supper) and their use and purpose. It defines the role of the clergy of the Church as being servants of Jesus Christ and His people, the Church, placing their role as being administrators of the Word of God and Sacraments, not rulers over them. The matter of repentance is thoroughly considered, with faith as the bottom line of the Christian's relationship with God, with a presentation good of deeds that are a result of faith, rather than a cause of salvation. Therefore, free will is taught as something that a Christian has only in part, in the sense that one can reject freely what God offers, but one cannot believe or accept faith in Jesus Christ unless the Holy Spirit creates such faith within a person. There is a lengthy discussion of priestly celibacy, the doctrine of the Roman Catholic understanding and practice of the Mass (worship service), distributing both kinds (bread and wine) in the regular communion or Lord's Supper. Discussions regarding the taking of vows, fasting as a necessity, and the power of the Church are also included. (A Summary of the Lutheran Confessions) Because Lutherans were arguably the first, their doctrine was mostly to counter the practices of the Catholic religion. Under the Church, grievances and wrongs had been committed in the name of God, and Lutherans sought to correct those errors by returning to the `true' path of Christianity, and following the word of the bible above the word of man. c. Calvinists Calvinists didn't believe the Reformation had gone far enough. Lutherans were far too soft in their mind. As such, their confessional reflected these radical views. Their confessions, the Helvetic Confessions, can be summed up as: Due to its origin as Bullinger's personal confession, which followed the order of the twenty-seven articles of the First Helvetic Confession, the Second Helvetic Confession is really a theological treatise
with thirty chapters and over twenty thousand words. This lengthy scholarly statement shows the consistency of the Reformed position with that of the Greek and Latin church fathers. Although the confession accepts the ecumenical creeds, it does not accept the primacy of Rome. Scripture is given primacy, and this is shown by the fact that the first two chapters emphasize that belief. Scripture is God's Word, which has precedence over the church fathers, councils, and church tradition. Chapters III-V deal with God, his unity, his trinity, the problem of idols, images, and with God's proper worship. The doctrine of providence and creation are the topics of chapters VI-VII, while chapters VIII-XI cover the fall, free will, predestination, where election to reprobation is not mentioned, and Christ as the true God-man and only Savior of the world. The next five chapters generally cover the way of salvation and the new life in Christ. Chapter XII discusses the law of God; XIII the gospel of Christ; XIV the repentance and conversion of mankind; XV justification of faith; XVI faith and good works where good works are done out of gratitude for God's grace and not for merit. Chapters XVII-XXI present the Reformed position on the church, the role of the ministry, and the two sacraments, baptism and the Lord's Supper. The last nine chapters cover church ordinances; XXII is on religious and ecclesiastical meetings; XXIII deals with prayers and singing; XXIV with holy days and fasting; XXV catechizing and visiting the sick; XXVI burial; XXVII rites and ceremonies; XXVIII possessions of the church; XXIX marriage and celibacy; and XXX the magistry, where the taking up of arms is affirmed but only in selfdefense and as a last resort. (The Second Helvetic Confession of Faith) The Calvinists, under this confession, were the extreme zealots of the Reformation. Different sects under the Calvinist faith would spin off; one such group was the Puritans, who attempted to purify even the reformed churches. Calvinists also were proponents of the covenant of Grace, claiming that only God's personal grace could save a person from damnation, not anything in the here and now. This doctrine shows the length and the extremity of which Calvinists took the Christian faith, and thereby could widely be viewed as the extremists of their time.
d. Anglicans
Anglicans were a watered down form of Protestantism. Not truly embracing the concept of reform that the Lutherans and Calvinists adhered to, Anglicans instead simply wanted to break from the church while keeping those catholic ideals. Thus under the Thirty-Nine Articles of Faith, they described their faith as such: The 39 Articles form the basic summary of belief of the Church of England. They were drawn up by the Church in convocation in 1563 on the basis of the 42 Articles of 1553. Clergymen were ordered to subscribe to the 39 Articles by Act of Parliament in 1571. As part of the via media (middle way) of Elizabeth I, the Articles were deliberately latitudinarian but were not intended to provide a dogmatic definition of faith. It is clear that they are phrased very loosely to allow for a variety of interpretations. The Church of England still requires its ministers to publicly avow their faithfulness to these Articles. The 39 Articles repudiate teachings and practices that Protestants in general condemned in the Catholic church. For example, they deny the teachings concerning Transubstantiation (XXVIII), the sacrifice of the Mass (XXXI), and the sinlessness of Our Lady (XV). However, they affirm that Scripture is the final authority on salvation (VI), Adam's fall compromised human free will (X), both bread and wine should be served to all in the Lord's Supper (XXX), and that ministers may marry (XXXII). (The Articles of Religion) This loose doctrine allowed the nation of England to avoid early on the civil wars that had so divided much of Europe. Unfortunately, this weak approach would ultimately lead to tension between different English, and outright violence would occur against Catholics. When James II was forced from the throne of England in The Glorious Revolution, these tensions finally culminated in an English Civil War. Pitching Protestants vs. Catholics, and summarily Parliament vs. the Crown.
Works Cited Samworth, Dr. Herbert. "The Council of Trent." Sola Scriptura. 26 Feb. 2007 <http://www.solagroup.org/articles/historyofthebible/hotb_0010.html>.
Stahlke, Professor Leonard. "A Summary of the Lutheran Confessions." Concordia. Concordia U. 26 Feb. 2007 <http://www.concordia.edu/page.cfm?page_ID=507>. " The Articles of Religion." VictorianWeb. Dec. 2001. University Scholars Program. 26 Feb. 2007 <http://www.victorianweb.org/religion/39articles.html>. "The Second Helvetic Confession of Faith." Public Service Projects. 2 Jan. 2007. 26 Feb. 2007 <http://mb-soft.com/believe/txh/helvconf.htm>.