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The Northern Renaissance and the Reformation. Northern Europe after the Middle Ages. No sudden break with the past But change was occurring Religion Christian Humanism vs. Civic Humanism Artistic innovation Literature Use of the vernacular Nation States vs. City States
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Northern Europe after the Middle Ages • No sudden break with the past • But change was occurring • Religion • Christian Humanism vs. Civic Humanism • Artistic innovation • Literature • Use of the vernacular • Nation States vs. City States • Emergence of strong monarchies
Religion in the North • Christian Humanism • Scholarly study of Hebrew and Greek biblical texts to deepen understanding • Restore vitality to a decaying theology • No attempt (at first) to change the Church • Universities focused on theology as the foundation of knowledge
Mysticism • Many believed that an individual had the right to commune directly with God. They wanted a more personal connection. • No need for sacraments or leadership • Salvation is still important belief • Nicholas of Cusa • Meister Eckhart • Thomas a Kempis
Nicholas of Cusa • 1401-1464 • German Cardinal • The human mind can know God • Platonic philosophy + Christian theology (neo-Platonist)
Meister Eckhart • German • 1260-1348 • Neo-Platonist • Vernacular • During Avignon Papacy • Preached “detachment” • “Man should be empty of self and things; he should see the simple good that God is.”
Thomas a Kempis • German monk • 1380-1471 • Like all mystics, preached you do not need to be “learned” to know God • "If, however, you seek Jesus in all things, you will surely find Him. " • "At the Day of Judgment we shall not be asked what we have read but what we have done."
Rebellion against the Church • Papal abuses • More emphasis moral education • Basic Education • “Modern Devotion”: humility, tolerance, reverence, neighborly love, duty • Church must change, adapt to “modern” times • Strong monarchs resent the political power of the Church
German States Lead the Northern Renaissance • Strong trade networks • Wealthy families (Fuggers) • New Industries • Mining • Printing: Guttenberg,1450 • Art • Science and Philosophy • Early contributions
Art of the Northern Renaissance • Less concerned with mathematical precision • Color • Detail • Oil paintings • Province of Flanders (Burgundy) – the Florence of the North • Guild System • Wealthy, powerful patrons
Jan van Eyck • 1385-1441 • Dutch
Annunciation • Mary and the angel Gabriel • The study of theology as a noble pursuit • Mary is modeled after the Duchess of Burgundy (van Eyck’s patroness)
Albrecht Durer • 1471-1528 • Nuremburg
Hans Holbein • 1497-1543 • Bavarian • Expert at painting the “true” person
Hieronymous Bosch • 1450-1516 • Dutch • Master of Allegory • Sin, immorality • Surreal images
Pieter Brueghel • 1525-1569 • Dutch • Expert at detail • Painted the sins of the common man
Literature • Erasmus (1466-1536) • Feared rebellion by the “common man” • Education and morality • Reform of the clergy • Strong Biblical education • Handbook of a Christian Knight • Virtues: Action, devotion, reason, tolerance, restraint, education love of peace
Michel de Montaigne • 1533-1592 • French • Conservative Catholic • “What do I know?” – collection of essays • Uses personal judgment to weigh political or religious conflict
Francois Rabelais • 1494-1533 • “low-brow” topics • Vernacular (French) • Introduced new words into French • “Gargantua and Pantagruel” • Role of “free will” and pleasure in society
Miguel de Cervantes • 1547-1616 • Don Quixote • Spanish (vernacular) • Mocks the Code of Chivalry, government • “Quixotic”
England and Shakespeare • Helped glorify antiquity and the modern idea of strong monarchs • Fostered English patriotism • Helped Elizabeth I cement her authority with stories of English history • 100 Years War • War of the Roses
“New” Monarchs • Created modern nation states • Guaranteed law and order. • Hereditary Monarchy is most stable • Supported growth of middle class • Used well organized tax systems for better equipped and well paid armies • Revival of Roman Law, removal of “common (feudal) law” • “What pleases the prince has the force of law”
“The pope is lower than God but higher than man. He judges all, but is judged by no one.” -- Pope Innocent III (1161-1216)
"A Christian man is the most free lord of all and subject to none.“ (1520, Martin Luther)
Cause 1: Corruption of the Church • Sale of Church offices(simony = paying for a church office) • Nepotism(favoring relatives over their relationship to you, instead of their abilities) • Decline of morality amongst the Popes • Sale of indulgences( “buying” forgiveness)
Indulgences • Early Punishment: recitation of prayer, physical discomfort • At the time of Crusades (1200s) the church began to allow payment for repentance • Largest source of church revenue by 1500s “So soon the coin in the coffer rings, so soon the soul to Heaven springs”
What is an Indulgence? • A sinner failing to do penance in this life may be punished in another world (purgatory) • After the sacrament of Penance, sin is forgiven and the threat of eternal punishment no longer exists • However, temporalpunishment still must occur. • Temporal punishment must occur in this life or in purgatory • An indulgence offers the sinner the chance to complete this “debt owed to God” while still on earth • An indulgence is a task or money paid that could erase the debt
What an Indulgence is NOT • Church Doctrine said that an indulgence is not • permission to commit sin • forgiveness of future sin • a way to release the soul of another from Purgatory
Cause 2: Impact of Humanism • Humanism glorifies man’s duty to serve mankind above his duty to serve the Church. • But for the Church, salvation depends on an obligation to the Church and the desire to attain salvation through the Church.
Cause 3: Declining Prestige of the Papacy • Babylonian Captivity – 14th Century • 14th Century • Popes move to Avignon, become “captives” of the French kings • Christendom sees Popes as puppets of the French • Great Schism -- 1378 (lasted 40 years) • Two Popes elected (Rome and Avignon) • Moral decline • Papal involvement in secular politics • Creates confusion and resentment
Cause 4: Religious reformers • Stressed personal communion with God • Less emphasis on the sacraments • Seven Sacraments • Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Eucharist, Penance, Extreme Unction, Holy Orders, and Matrimony • Weakened the influence of the clergy by casting doubt “Extreme Unction” or annointing of the sick – one of the seven sacraments
Cause 5: Secular rulers resented the power of the Popes and clergy • “New Monarchs” resisted papal control national churches • Resented papal interference in politics • Monarchs resented the vast amount of land held by the Church within national boundaries
Cause 6: Invention of the Printing Press • Dissenters can spread their ideas throughout Europe • The Bible becomes available to the common person
Other Causes • Wealth made the merchant class grow bold in their challenges to church law. Usury is an example. • “Usury” = very high rates of interest on loans • The Bible forbids it • The merchant class relied on interest payments as a form of profit. They needed to banish the guilt associated with this practice. • German and English nobility disliked and had always been suspicious of Italian domination of the Church.
John Wycliffe • English (1320-1384) • Remove corrupt church officials; clergy are servants, not “princes of the church.” • Bible is the sole authority of truth • Translated the Bible into English • Preached to those ignored by the church: the poor, the sick, the elderly • Natural death, but as a heretic his body was dug up and his bones were burned.
John Huss • John Huss -- 1369-1414 • A follower of Wycliffe • 1412: “No pope or bishop had the right to take up the sword in the name of the Church” • Forgiveness of sins by real repentance, not through money. • Huss was burned at the stake for his reform beliefs
