Protestantism - one of the spiritual and political movements, belongs to the varieties of Christianity. Its appearance is directly related to the development of the Reformation, which began after the split in the Roman Catholic Church. The main directions of Protestantism: Calvinism, Lutheranism, Anglicanism and Zwinglianism. However, the crushing of these faiths has been ongoing for several hundred years.
The origin of Protestantism
The emergence of the Reformation in Europe occurred as a result of discontent among believers with immoral behavior and the abuse of their rights by many religious figures of the Catholic Church. All these problems were condemned not only by simple pious people, but also by public figures, theological scholars.
The ideas of Protestantism and the Reformation were proclaimed by professors of Oxford and Prague University, J. Wycliffe and Jan Hus, who opposed the abuse of priests and exactions of the pope imposed on England. They expressed doubts about the right of the clergy to forgive sins, rejected the idea of the reality of the sacrament of communion, and the transformation of bread into the body of the Lord.
Jan Hus demanded that the church abandon accumulated wealth, sell posts, advocated depriving the clergy of various privileges, including the rite of communion with wine. For his ideas, he was declared a heretic and burned at the stake in 1415. However, his ideas were picked up by the Hussite followers, who continued his struggle and achieved some rights.
Key teachings and figures
The founder of Protestantism, which first worked in Germany and Switzerland, was Martin Luther (1483-1546). There were other leaders: T. Münzer, J. Calvin, W. Zwingli. The most pious Catholic believers, observing for many years the luxury and debauchery occurring among the higher clergy, began to protest, criticizing them for their formal attitude to the norms of religious life.
According to the founders of Protestantism, the most striking expression of the church’s desire for enrichment was indulgences, which were sold for money to ordinary believers. The main slogan of the Protestants was the restoration of the traditions of the early Christian church and the increase in the authority of the Holy Scriptures (Bibles), the institution of church authority and the existence of priests and the Pope himself as a mediator between the flock and God were rejected. So the first direction of Protestantism appeared - Lutheranism, proclaimed by Martin Luther.
Definition and basic tenets
Protestantism is a term derived from the Latin protestatio (proclamation, assurance, disagreement), which refers to the totality of Christianity religions that appeared as a result of the Reformation. The doctrine is based on attempts to understand the Bible and Christ, different from classical Christian.
Protestantism is a complex religious formation and includes many areas, the main of which are Lutheranism, Calvinism, and Anglicanism, named after scientists who proclaimed new ideas.
The classical teaching of Protestantism contains 5 basic tenets:
- The Bible is the only source of religious teaching that every believer can interpret in his own way.
- All actions are justified only by faith, whether good or not.
- Salvation is a good gift from God to man, so the believer himself cannot save himself.
- Protestants deny the influence of the Virgin and saints in salvation and see it only through a single faith in Christ. The clergy cannot mediate between God and the flock.
- Man honors and glorifies only God.
The various branches of Protestantism have differences in the denials of Catholic dogma and the basic tenets of their religion, the recognition of certain sacraments, etc.
Lutheran (Evangelical) Church
The beginning of this direction of Protestantism was laid by the teachings of M. Luther and his translation of the Bible from Latin into German, so that every believer could get acquainted with the text and have their own opinion and interpretation of it. The new religious teaching put forward the idea of subordinating the church to the state, which aroused interest and popularity among the German kings. They supported the reforms, feeling dissatisfied with the large payments to the pope and his attempts to interfere in the politics of European states.
Lutherans in their faith recognize 6 books written by M. Luther, “Augsburg Religion,” “Book of Consent,” etc., which set forth the basic dogmas and ideas about sin and its justification, about God, the Church and the sacraments.
It became widespread in Germany, Austria, the countries of Scandinavia, and later in the USA. Its main principle is “justification by faith,” of religious sacraments only baptism and communion are recognized. The only indicator of the correctness of faith is the Bible. Priests are pastors who preach the Christian faith, but do not rise above the rest of the parishioners. Lutherans also practice the rites of confirmation, weddings, funeral services and ordinations.
Now in the world of adherents of the Church of England there are about 80 million people and 200 active churches.
Calvinism
Germany was and remains the cradle of the reform movement, but later another trend appeared in Switzerland, which was divided into independent groups under the general name of the churches of the Reformation.
One of the movements of Protestantism - Calvinism, which includes the Reformed and Presbyterian churches, differs from Lutheranism in the greater rigidity of views and gloomy consistency that were characteristic of the religious Middle Ages.
Differences from other Protestant trends:
- Scripture is recognized as the only source; any church councils are considered unnecessary;
- monasticism is denied, because God created women and men with the goal of forming a family and having children;
- the institute of rites is liquidated, including music, candles, icons and murals in the church;
- the concept of predestination is put forward, the sovereignty of God and his authority over the lives of people and the world, the possibility of his condemnation or salvation.
To date, reformatory churches are located in England, many countries of Europe and the United States. In 1875, the “World Alliance of Reformed Churches” was created, which brought together 40 million believers.
Jean Calvin and his books
Scientists attribute Calvinism to a radical trend in Protestantism. All reformist ideas were set forth in the teachings of its founder, who also proved to be a public figure. By proclaiming his principles, he became practically the ruler of the city of Geneva, introducing his life transformations that were in line with Calvinism. His influence in Europe is evidenced by the fact that he has earned himself the name of "Geneva Pope."
The teachings of J. Calvin were set forth in his books “Instructions in the Christian Faith,” “Gallican Confession,” “Geneva Catechism,” “Heidelberg Catechism,” and others. The reformation of the church in accordance with Calvin has a rational direction, which is manifested by distrust of mystical miracles .
The introduction of Protestantism in England
The ideologist of the Reformation movement in the British Isles was Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury. The formation of Anglicanism took place in the 2nd half of the 16th century and was very different from the birth of Protestantism in Germany and Switzerland.
The Reformation movement in England began at the direction of King Henry VIII, whom the Pope refused to divorce from his wife. During this period, England was preparing to start a war with France and Spain, which served as the political reason for the debunking of Catholicism.
The king of England declared the church national and decided to lead it, subjugating the clergy. In 1534, parliament announced the independence of the church from the pope. All monasteries were closed in the country, their property was transferred to state power, to replenish the treasury. However, the Catholic rites were preserved.
Basics of Anglican dogma
There are few books that are a symbol of Protestant worship in England. All of them were compiled in the era of the confrontation of the two religions in search of a compromise between Rome and reformism in Europe.
The basis of Anglican Protestantism is the work of Augsbrug Confession, edited by T. Cranmer, entitled “39 Articles” (1571), as well as the “Book of Prayers,” which describes the procedure for worship. Its latest edition was approved in 1661 and remains a symbol of the unity of the adherents of this faith. The "Anglican Catechism" adopted the final version only by 1604.
Anglicanism, in comparison with other areas of Protestantism, turned out to be closest to Catholic traditions. The Bible is also considered the basis of the doctrine in it, services are held in English, the need for mediators between God and man, which can only be saved by his religious conviction, is rejected.
Zinglianism
One of the leaders of the Reformation in Switzerland was Ulrich Zwingli. Having received a master's degree in art, from 1518 he served as a priest in Zurich, and then the city council. After meeting with E. Rotterdam and his writings, Zwingli came to the decision to start his own reform work. His idea was to proclaim the independence of the flock from the authority of the bishops and the pope, especially putting forward the demand for the abolition of the vow of celibacy among Catholic priests.
His work “67 Theses” was published in 1523, after which the Zurich City Council appointed him the preacher of the new Protestant religion and introduced it in Zurich by his authority.
The teaching of Zwingli (1484-1531) has much in common with Lutheran concepts of Protestantism, recognizing the truth only that which is confirmed by the Holy Scriptures. Everything that distracts the believer from self-deepening, and everything sensual must necessarily be removed from the temple. Because of this, music and painting, the Catholic Mass were banned in city churches of the city , instead of this, biblical sermons were introduced. Hospitals and schools were established in the monasteries closed during the Reformation. At the end of the 16th – beginning of the 17th centuries, this movement combined with Calvinism.
Baptism
Another direction of Protestantism, which arose in the 17th century in England, was called “Baptism”. The Bible is also considered the basis of the doctrine; salvation of believers can come only if there is atoning faith in Jesus Christ. In Baptism, great importance is attached to the "spiritual rebirth" that occurs when the Holy Spirit influences a person.
Adherents of this current of Protestantism practice the sacrament of baptism and communion: they are considered symbolic rites that help unite spiritually with Christ. The difference from other religious teachings is the rite of passage of catechism, which is held by everyone who wants to enter the community during a probationary period of 1 year, followed by baptism. All religious achievements are modest enough. The building of the house of worship does not at all look like a religious building; it also lacks all religious symbols and objects.
Baptism is widespread in the world and in Russia, with 72 million believers.
Adventism
This trend stood out from the Baptists in the 30s of the XIX century. The main feature of Adventism is the expectation of the coming of Jesus Christ, which is due to happen soon. The doctrine contains an eschatological concept of the imminent destruction of the world, after which the kingdom of Christ for 1000 years will be established on the new earth. Moreover, all people will die, and only Adventists will be resurrected.
The destination has gained popularity under the new name “Seventh-day Adventists,” which proclaims the feast on Saturdays and the “sanitary reform” necessary for the body of the believer for the subsequent resurrection. Some products have been banned: pork, coffee, alcohol, tobacco, etc.
In modern Protestantism, the process of merging and the birth of new directions continues, some of which acquire church status (Pentecostals, Methodists, Quakers, etc.). This religious movement became widespread not only in Europe, but also in the USA, where the centers of many Protestant denominations settled (Baptists, Adventists, etc.).