Roman Catholic Church History

Counter Reformation

Period: Jan 1, 1545 to Jan 1, 1648

This was a time period when the Catholic Church was taking measures to prevent the spread of protestantism. The Council of Trent was a major part of this. The reason for the Counter Reformation was, of course, the Protestant reformation.

The Council of Trent

Dec 13, 1545

Here's a good source. The Council of Trent was a very important event in Catholic Church History. The council was one of the major things done by the Catholic Church to counter the Protestant Reformation. The Council went from December 13 1545 to December 4 1563. In the end, the council had accomplished many things. It reaffirmed traditional Catholic Doctrine. It reformed the corrupt practices of the church. It Revived the Inquisition. Lastly, it published an index of forbidden books.

Quo Primum

Jul 14, 1570

In this papal bull, Pius V promulgated the Roman Missal, a liturgical book that contained the text and rubrics for the celebration of mass in the roman rite. In this way, an important part of Catholic theology is revealed. In Catholicism, everything is centered around what the theological authorities say. Whatever the pope says goes, especially in matters of worship. Basically, in this papal bull, Pius restricts people to one method of worship.

The Age of Reason

Period: Jan 1, 1600 to Jan 1, 1699

The age of Reason was the philosophical age directly before the enlightenment. In this age, philosophies of rationalism and empiricism were born, both not requiring any faith. It wasn’t until the enlightenment that people used them as an excuse to give up on faith altogether. This didn’t really directly affect the church, but it indirectly affected the church in a big way because of the way it influenced the age of enlightenment.

The Age of Enlightenment

Period: Jan 1, 1640 to Dec 1, 1740

The age of Enlightenment (1640-1740) was a time when people began to look to reason instead of faith. Logic was the main asset for an intellectual. People began to question everything, including the church. The church’s influence began to wane, because people began to find it more acceptable to disagree with the church. Humanism became a very real religion. Reason pushed the church out of the way. The age of enlightenment was when the ideas in the age of reason really took hold in Europe.

Revolutionary age (America)

Period: Mar 1, 1763 to Mar 1, 1820

Colonial America was very anti-catholic. The Americans would persecute Catholics, and mistreat them often due to their mainly being made up of protestants. This anti-Catholicism halted during the Revolutionary era, because the colonists had to focus on a different enemy. Today, the Catholic Church is very large in America.

Ineffabilis Deus

Dec 8, 1854

Here's a link. There are many doctrines in Catholicism regarding Mary, because Catholicism is a mariological religion. The dogma of the immaculate conception is very important to Mariology. The immaculate conception is the idea that Mary was completely free from sin at the time that Jesus was born. This constitution is basically officially saying that Mary is divine and deserves worship.

Ad Universalis Ecclesiae

Feb 7, 1862

This constitution marks a distinct departure from the Tridentine law, both as to the necessary age and other requirements for admission of men to solemn vows in orders, congregations, and institutes, old and new, in which solemn vows are prescribed. It says that solemn vows are null and void unless one has been making simple vows for a certain period of time.Link

The First Vatican Council

Jun 29, 1868

The First Vatican Council was another ecumenical council. This council was largely to combat modernism. One of two constitutions which were promulgated defined the dogmas concerning Christ, the nature of God, and his founding of the Catholic church. The second of the two was mainly concerned with the role of the church leaders in spiritual affairs, and the lack of power of secular authorities thereof.
Here's a link.

The Lateran Treaty

Jun 7, 1929

This treaty guaranteed the Catholic Church independence from secular rule, officially separating the Catholic church from the Italian government. <a>http://www.aloha.net/~mikesch/treaty.htm</a>

Mit Brennender Sorge

Mar 10, 1937

Originally, the Catholic Church had a deal with Nazi Germany called the Reichskonkordat. This guaranteed the rights of the Catholic Church in Germany. However, when the agreement was violated by the Germans, Pius denounced the Nazis, and called for the protection of the Jews.

Munificentissimus Deus

Dec 1, 1950

Link. This is another constitution on the holiness of Mary. This one is similar to Ineffabilis Deus in that it is a doctrine about Mary being higher than regular humans. The assumption of Mary is the idea that Mary was taken into heaven without ever dying, like Enoch or Elijah. Once again, because Mariology is a big part of Catholicism, this is an important constitution as it defines a key idea in mariology.

Vatican II

Oct 11, 1962

A link. Here's a link.This council was largely to prevent the church from becoming distant from the rest of the world, and for it to have a greater effect on the world. The change was in the way people thought of the church. Before, the church had been sovereign over all, but now, the church is made of people. However, many things stayed the same, such as the infallible pope. Still, the main theme of the council was aggiornamento, a renewed understanding.