Europe in the Age of Reformation

3 units

How should people act towards each other, towards political authorities and towards their God? Who decided what was the right faith: the individual? the family? the state? Could a community survive religious division? What should states do about individuals or communities who refused to conform in matters of religion? With Martin Luther's challenge to the Roman Catholic Church, the debates over these questions transformed European theology, society, and politics. In this class we will examine the development of Protestant and Radical theology, the Reformers relations' with established political authorities, the response of the Catholic Church, the development of new social and cultural expectations, the control of marginalized religious groups such as Jews, Muslims, and Anabaptists, and the experiment of the New World.