Religion In The Elizabethan Era Research Paper

Religion in Europe in the Elizabethan Era

The elizabethan era was one of the most intriguing and controversial religious time periods ever. New religions were created, there were religious wars, new monarchs, and huge long lasting effects on multiple countries. The Catholics and Protestants were the two religions to stand above the rest at the end of the religious struggle called the Reformation were religions was completely revolutionized. This quarrel lasted for almost all of the fifteenth century. Violence took over the Reformation and changed the religious world forever, making the Church one of the most powerful organizations.

Perhaps the most vital the of the religions in the Elizabethan Era was Catholicism and how it ruled over Europe.

“There are more Roman Catholics than all other Christians combined and more Roman Catholics than all Buddhists or Hindus,” (Oakley). Catholicism is the practice, faith, and following of the Roman Catholic Church. During the 1500s it had the largest following and was the most dominant religion. However, it lost a lot of praise during the Reformation when the religion Protestantism was created. All bibles and masses were one hundred percent in Latin as it was a strong tradition of the catholic church. The ministers who operated the church were also held by very strict laws. The Pope and every single one of the priests were forbid by the church to get married because they had to dedicate their lives to God. Surprising as it may be, this rule is still in place in the catholic church. Since these priests and the Pope were so dedicated, they believed that they were the only connection the people had to God. They also proclaimed that they had been granted the ability from God to forgive sins. Another strong distinction of the catholic church was that their churches had to be adorned with elegant statues and shrines to honor God. The Roman Catholic Church’s regulations both attracted and pushed away worshipers but still remained extremely powerful.
Catholicism was the most powerful religion in Europe, but the reformation, and Protestantism, challenged that.

Many people switched religions, due to the untrust of the Catholic church, which led to most of them converting to protestantism. Although Catholicism and Protestantism are branches of Christianity, they had many differences as well. The bibles were re-written to the language of its followers, so the ordinary people could read them, and be fully involved during church. Also, protestant followers believed that they could find god without meeting with a priest, unlike Catholic believers. And, they believed that god, and god only, could forgive them of their sins. The churches were created very blandly and were often quite plain compared to that of the Catholic church, which were always decorated with beautiful colors, shrines, and statues. One of the most notable marks of the reformation was how religious followers of both the Catholic and Protestant churches were persecuted. Protestants were persecuted more often and were slaughtered ruthlessly by being hung, drawn, quartered, beheaded and burned alive. ¨The convictions and beliefs in these different religions were so strong that they led to the executions of many adherents to both of these Elizabethan religions.¨ (Michael Stots, 24) Protestantism gained thousands of followers in the Reformation and gained power, even while thousands of followers were killed just for religious

beliefs.
Religion in the Elizabethan Era had an extreme monumental effect on England. The Reformation shook up all of Europe, but perchance the citizens of England the most. Both the catholics and protestants had extremely strong followers who constantly clashed with one another throughout the era. Which shockingly, at times, lead to the death of innocents. This dilemma was heightened because every time a new monarch was put into power, they would change the national religion. For example, in 1553 Queen Mary I was crowned queen and made the official religion catholic. In only six years, the throne shifted to Queen Elizabeth I who flipped the official religion to Protestantism. In addition, this made times hard and confusing for the young kids who went to school too. By law, they had to be taught about and follow the current official religion which continually was being altered. The fight between catholicism and protestantism grew so intense that the monarchs were ordering for non-followers of the present religion to be murdered. In 1553, Queen Mary I who was an extreme catholic ordered for over 300 protestants to be executed. Even more astonishing, a member of the royal family was executed. When a group of catholics plotted to have Queen Elizabeth I removed because she was protestant and replaced by her relative Queen Mary of Scots, Queen Elizabeth had Queen Mary assassinated. From the complications of the education system to the persecution of religious beliefs, England was ravaged by the effects of religious differences.
While the reformation changed the millions of people and the national governments in europe, the reformation had little to no impact on Italy.

While protestantism was gaining power throughout Europe and catholicism was losing power, the Catholic church actually gained power in Italy. Protestants were persecuted not only by the Catholic church, but by Italy´s leaders as well. Protestantism was considered a foreign religion, so it was not supported by the people, the government, or the church. The inquisition happened where thousands of people were killed just for being protestant, which was considered heresy at the time. Throughout the history of the world, governments and people always have a scapegoat to blame things on. In Italy, Protestants were the scapegoat for Italy. For example, a battle between Italy and France happened. Italy won, but the soldiers weren´t paid. This angered the soldiers, so they stormed Rome, caused destruction of buildings while terrorizing the population, and humiliating Pope Clement VII. This is known as the Sack of Rome, and the government blamed this on the Protestants, which fueled the hatred of Protestants throughout Italy. With everything stacked against them, the Protestants were wiped instantly. Protestantism and its followers were so persecuted that by 1600, it was near impossible to find a single Protestant

follower.
Throughout the 1500s there were many century defining events that changed how religion is practiced. In the early years of the century, a man named Martin Luther started the religious war called the Reformation. Luther did this by creating a list of everything wrong with the catholic church and sticking it to the front door of a catholic church. One of the issues on the list was that all the masses and bibles were in Latin making it less accessible for the public. Martin Luther then created a religion named Protestantism that fixed all the problems with catholicism, which quickly gained a large following. All of this commotion started in the year 1517. Just seventeen years later in 1534, King Henry VIII in England founded the Church of England. King Henry initiated this church because he wanted a divorce from his wife but the Pope would not let him since it is against the catholic church. In retaliation King Henry make Church of England the official church and divorced his wife. A little over a decade later in 1545, latin masses become available in English which puts to rest a huge concern about the catholic church. Soon after that in the year 1549 the first ever Book of Common Prayer is publicized. The next gigantic occurrence was the crowning of Queen Mary I in 1553. Queen Mary was a very strict catholic who did not tolerate anyone who refused to worship catholicism. Later that year she had over 300 protestants executed. The next year, Queen Mary repealed the Act of Supremacy. The Act of Supremacy was a law that made the monarch of England the head of the Church of England. During early 1559 Queen Elizabeth I is officially crowned queen, symbolizing the start of the Elizabethan Era. “With Queen Elizabeth on the throne, the pendulum swung back toward Protestantism,” (Hartford Stage). That same year, Queen Elizabeth brought back the Elizabethan Prayer Book, and restored the Act of Supremacy making her the leader of the Church of England. Nonetheless, just eleven years after her crowning in 1570 Queen Elizabethan was excommunicated by the church. These particular events were the most influential of the 1500s and the religious society.
The reformation led to major changes throughout Europe and the Elizabethan Era. Catholicism and the Roman Catholic church were challenged, which led to many of the population converting to Protestantism. The religious diversity led to thousands of people being killed just because of their beliefs. The reformation affected people, governments, and even the Catholic and Protestant churches.