Glossary

Reformation

1)     The Reformation occurred in the sixteenth century as a protest against the late medieval church. There is a history of protest from various groups (Lollards in East Anglia and Hussites in Bohemia) all of them calling into question Papal authority and what exactly happens when the bread and wine are blessed at the Eucharist. The break with Rome first came with Martin Luther’s protest over papal excesses. He focused on the idea that we were not ‘justified by works but by Grace’. Simplifications in worship and faith practices followed and many ornamentation and works of art were destroyed as idolatry. The Bible was translated into the language of the people and made more generally available. Many northern European states, including this country, severed their connection with Rome and developed their own national churches.

1 Terms with 1 Definitions