Politics and Lutheranism the Reformation Was As Essay

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Politics and Lutheranism

The Reformation was as much a political phenomenon as it was a religious phenomenon. Although the Reformation was guided by common basic beliefs in the individual's capacity for salvation, it proceeded according to the political exigencies required in each country or principality it entered. The Reformation was highly flexible and succeeded for a number of reasons. First, there was no influential, well-heeled organization guiding Lutheranism as there was in Roman Catholicism. Second, Protestantism was less international and more local than Roman Catholicism, which was conducive for the development of local political power. Finally, Lutheran doctrines emphasized a more anti-authoritarian way of thinking which was to precede the Enlightenment.

Lutheranism in Germany

Lutheranism succeeded in Germany largely because of the region's political fragmentation, which offered no centralized authority to negotiate a peaceful sharing of power with the Catholic Church. (Gilbert) The centralized governments in Spain, France, and even Great Britain were able to negotiate mutually beneficial relationships with the Pope, providing them with Papal credibility and tax revenue in return for official recognition of the Church. (Giblert) Germany's various Princes were unwilling to concede political power to the Reich, which allowed the Catholic Church to dominate each principality individually.

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Luther supported the German nobility not only against the Catholic Church, but against the discontented peasantry. Luther's Doctrine of the Two Kingdoms taught that God ruled in two ways, in the Earthly realm through law and secular government and in the spiritual realm through the Gospel. (Bainton 136) Thus, rebellion against the authority of the secular government, even though this secular government was different in each principality, was rebellion against the will of God. With this understanding, the German nobility crushed the Great Peasant Revolt of 1525. (Bainton 149) Martin Luther also appealed to the parochial tendencies of the German principalities by emphasizing the internationalist nature of the Catholic Church. (Gilbert)

Although Luther's conservatism appealed to the nobility in the more rural areas of Germany, his emphasis on individuality made him popular among the middle classes in the urban areas of Germany. The educated city dwellers would project their civic discontent against the established order through the Lutheran rebellion against the Catholic Church. (Wylie 29) These supporters would be crucial for the dissemination of Lutheran ideas throughout Europe.

The Reformation in Scandinavia

Martin Luther made an impression on political leaders as well as religious leaders….....

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