Religion

European Religion

In the beginning of the Renaissance, most Europeans believed in Christianity, which in their case meant they belonged to either the Roman Catholic or the Orthodox Church. These two churches split apart from each other in 1054. The Orthodox Churches all looked to their leader, the Patriarche, whereas the Roman Catholic Churches looked to the Pope as their leader. Nearing the end of the Renaissance, Catholics wanted to reform their church, but their proposal was rejected. More information here, [|here] and [|here]

Plague Sometime during the Renaissance, a deadly disease had killed hundreds of thousands of people. It was passed down to people from the bacteria of fleas and rats. Symptoms consisted of fever, aching limbs, swollen glands in the neck armpit and groin, and blackening of the skin. People continuously prayed and wondered why God had not answered their prayers. Some people even considered that it was a punishment from God for all their sins.

Monks and Nuns Only Men could be Priests of a church, whereas men could become Monks, and women could become Nuns. Monks and Nuns both took a vow to never marry and have children. They may only live in work, study, and prayer. Nuns mostly lived without contact to the outside world, though Monks regularly did charity for poor people.

Friars A Friar was a 'member of the religious order' which were devoted solely to the community. Bigger, more powerful Friars were called Dominicans, or Franciscans. They would work with people by preaching, teaching, and listening to confessions.After confessing your sins, you would be told to do something to counteract the bad deed with a good one. When finished with your good deed, you would go to the church and purchase an indulgence, which symbolized that the purchaser was free of his sins. Selling these indulgences made the churches very rich at the time.

Missionaries Missionaries were people who are sent by the church to bring Non-Christians into their religion. They would willingly travel to unknown territory through harsh conditions to bring as many people in as possible. When new lands have been discovered, Monks and Friars would come and set up new churches. In the 1600's, missionaries traveled to North America and a Franciscan named Louis Huron wanted to teach the Iroquois to read and write.

Sin Christians believed that wrong doing such as stealing broke God's law, and depending on what you have done you will go to Heaven, Purgatory, or Hell. Heaven is a place of love and joy with the Almighty God, Purgatory is where the soul stays to suffer for as long as 1,000 years, which can be shortened by being prayed for ou soul, and Hell is a place to suffer for all eternity.

Reformation In the year 1517, a German Humanist disliked the church's practice and believed it led to abuse. He challenged the authority of the church which four years later, led him to be expelled. This expulsion led to new confidence to other such as King Henry VIII. King Henry didn't want to be married to his wife any more because she couldn't have babies, but divorce wasn't allowed in the church. He decided to make a new church called the church of England, which allowed.divorce.

Bibliography Religion in the Renaissance By Lizann Flatt The Renaissance By James A. Corrick