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John Wycliffe was an English priest, most often referred to as the "Morning Star" of the Protestant Reformation. Wycliffe is called as such, as he is recorded as being the first dissident of the Church regarding taught doctrine on the sale of indulgences, transubstantiation, and purgatory. He is also responsible for the first translations of the Bible from Latin into English. He passed away on December 31, 1384 of a stroke.
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Jan Hus was born in Husinec, Kingdom of Bohemia (which is now the modern-day Czech Republic). He served and sang at churches to put himself through school, and upon becoming ordained, joined Wycliffe in his condemnation of many doctrines of the Church at that time. The Czech-born priest used his pulpit to further his stances and soon gained attention of the Church, He was burned as a heretic on July 6, 1415.
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Martin Luther, credited as a formative leader of the Protestant Reformation, was born to a working class family in Germany. In 1505, after a severe thunderstorm, Martin decided to become a monk. In 1517, he penned and presented his now famous 95 Theses, which outlined his beliefs in justification by faith and criticized the sale of indulgences by the Church. This earned him many followers and an excommunication by in 1520. He married in 1525 to Katharina von Bora, a runaway nun.
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Zwingli, a Swiss born leader of the Reformation, became convinced with the idea of a literal interpretation of the 'Sermon on The Mount' as outlined in the Gospel of Matthew. He questioned the practices of excommunication,baptism of infants, and the honoring of saints. Further on, Zwingli and Luther greatly disagrred as far as Eucharistic presence and Zwingli insisted that the meal was in symbol only.
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Calvin, a French born theologian, aimed, at first to broaden an define the Lutheran tradition. Eventually, however 'Calvinism' broke with the Lutheran doctrine of consubstantiation and held that the real presence of Christ occured at time of consumption apart form the actual items being consumed. Calvinists also subscribe to the 5 doctrines of grace outlined in TULIP.
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Placed for all to see, Luther's condemnation of the sale of indulgences by the Church also included his belief of justification by faith alone. This notion greatly disempowered the Church and caused huge repercussions for all.
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Luther is identified and warned in a bull issued by Pope Leo X to recant his statement within 60 days or risk excommunication. A copy of the warning, published in June was publicly burned by Luther in December of that same year.
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Luther is requested to appear before the Diet and ordered to recant his statements. When he refuses, he solidifies his stance against the papacy, however he is not arrested. Under the protection and orders of Frederick of Saxony, he is 'kidnapped' and placed into hiding at Wartburg Castle, where he focuses upon the translation of the Bible into the common German language for all.
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Pope Leo X formally orders the destroying of all of Luther's works and forbids any to assist him in any way. Leo declares Luther a heretic and offers reward to any who capture him and bring him before the Church so that he may be condemned as a 'notorious heretic'.
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George Blaurock and Conrad Grebel were at the forefront of a radical response to the Reformation. Born of the radical end of Zwinglism, Grebel and Blaurock insisted in the 're-baptism" of Christians. Citing scripture, the Anabaptists stated that an understood confession of faith is required (as an adult), to obtain salvation. They rebaptized themselves and their followers. Eventually they came under severe persecution for their theologies.
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When requested to appear before Emperor Charles V, several German Lutheran princes, presented what laid the ground work for the Protestant Church. The statement, penned by a close friend of Luther and fellow professor at Wittenberg, Philipp Melanchthon, was presented without Luther present, as he had previously been declared an outlaw.
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In the second war of Kappel, in Zurich, a suprise attack was launched. Reports are blurry but many hold that within one hour, Zwingli, along with 500 others had been slain.
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Officially brought into existance by Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse, and John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony to defend against the Charles V, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. The Alliance, begun upon religious ground, eventually became a support to try to replace the Holy Roman Empire as a power and the Schmalkaldic War resulted.
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King Henry VIII of England, after much conversation with the Pope over the legality of Henry's many political marriages, breaks with Rome. The act is put into place and effectively declares Henry as head of the Church in England and the Anglican Church was born.
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Luther passed away in the early morning hours after a stroke, in the city of his birth, Eisleben, Germany.
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Organized by Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury and supporter of the Act of Supremecy. The first in a series of revised editions, this work first defined the structure of several Anglican services including daily, Sunday, wedding and funeral services. Also included were readings dubbed appropriate and songs to be sung.
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The treaty that offically ended the tension between the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V and The Schmalkaldic League.
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Following a long bout with illness, Calvin passed away in Geneva. Before and up to his passing, he penned what are his most famous works "The Institutes of the Christian Religion" revered by all Calvinists today.
