Catholics and Protestants (pages 642-650)

Did You Know?

Before he became king, Henry VIII was a devout Catholic. He wrote
several pamphlets in support of the Catholic Church and attacking Lutheran
ideas. Pope Leo X granted Henry the title of "Defender of the Faith" in
1521.

Counter-Reformation (pages 643-646)

Although the Catholic Church warred against Protestantism, it knew it
needed to reform some practices. Pope Paul III called a church council at
Trent, near Rome, to reform the Church.

Catholic clergy were instructed to do a better job teaching people in
the faith. The Church created seminaries, or special schools, to
train priests.

The priests belonging to the Society of Jesus, known as the Jesuits,
were the pope's agents in Europe. Ignatius of Loyola founded the
Jesuits. The Jesuits taught, preached, and fought heresy, or
religious beliefs that contradict what the Church says is true.

The lower classes in France were mostly Catholic. But many French nobles
were Protestant. French Protestants were known as Huguenots. The Bourbons,
who were Protestant, were the second most powerful family in France.
Huguenot nobles wanted to weaken the king, while Henry II wanted to build a
strong government.

The son of Henry II, Charles became king in 1560. Because Charles was
still a boy when he became king, his mother, Catherine de' Medici ran the
government for him. Catherine was part of the powerful Medici family from
Italy. Catherine opposed the Huguenots.

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A civil war broke out in France between the Catholics and the
Protestants that lasted more than 30 years. It ended when Henry of
Navarre, the leader of the Huguenot forces and head of the Bourbon
family, became King Henry IV. Henry agreed to become Catholic.

Henry IV issued the Edict of Nantes. This recognized Catholicism as
France's official religion but gave the Huguenots the right to worship
freely.

The Thirty Years' War was fought between the Catholics and the
Protestants in the Holy Roman Empire from 1618 to 1648.

During the Middle Ages, Spain was ruled by Muslims. Non-Muslims and Jews
had some limitations placed on them, but Jews were treated better than in
most other European countries at the time. Jewish scholars flourished during
this period.

When Catholics took control of Spain, Jews and Muslims were no longer
welcome. Ferdinand and Isabella established the Spanish Inquisition to
ensure religious unity.

Discussion Question

Why was Muslim Spain one of the better places for Jews to live? (Jews
in Spain had to pay taxes to the Muslims and had limited rights, but the
Muslims did not kill or expel them.)

The English Reformation (pages 648-649)

During the 1400s, English nobles had fought each other to control the
kingdom. The Tudor family won. Henry VIII was the second Tudor king
of England. He wanted to make sure that peace was maintained and that his
family remained rulers.

When Henry's wife, Catherine of Aragon, did not have a male child, Henry
asked the pope to annul his marriage. This would leave him free to
marry again. Henry hoped to have a son with another wife to maintain Tudor
control of England.

The pope refused to annul the marriage. Henry asked the highest
religious official in England, the archbishop of Canterbury, to annul the
marriage. The pope then excommunicated Henry.

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In response, Henry declared that the king, not the pope, was the head of
the Church in England. All priests and bishops were forced to accept Henry
as the head of the Church. Some who did not were executed. Henry gave Church
properties and lands to loyal nobles.

Mary I was the daughter of Henry and Catherine of Aragon. When
she became queen in 1533, she tried to reinstate Catholicism as the religion
of England. Some people supported this, but others resisted. After she died,
her sister Elizabeth became queen. Elizabeth was a Protestant. She
restored the Anglican Church as the official religion of England.

Some people wanted the Anglican Church to give up some of its Catholic
ways. They formed their own congregations that were not a part of the
Anglican Church. The Puritans were one of these groups. Elizabeth tolerated
these groups, but James I and Charles I, who came after her, did not. They
shut down the Puritan Church and arrested its leaders.

Discussion Question

Why did Henry VIII break with the Catholic Church? (England had been
involved in a long civil war and did not have a king. The Tudor dynasty was
still new when Henry became king. He needed a son to ensure that the Tudors
continued to rule. Since his first wife was unable to bear a son, Henry
wanted to remarry as quickly as possible in order to have an
heir.)

Missionaries Go Overseas (page 650)

In response to the Reformation, many Catholics became missionaries. They
travelled across the world to spread their faith.

Jesuit missionaries were active in America and Asia in the 1500s and
1600s.

Missionaries had great success in the Philippine Islands, which today is
the only Asian country with a Catholic majority.

Discussion Question

What was the experience of Catholic missionaries in Japan? (At first,
the missionaries were welcomed and many Japanese converted. In time, the
missionaries clashed with followers of Buddhism and Shintoism, and the
Shogun banned Christianity and expelled the
missionaries.)

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