Although the Reformation is marked with Martin Luther nailing his ninety-five theses to the door of the Wittenberg Church in 1517, we must realize that this one action is not the single event of the Reformation. The causes of the Reformation are complex and multiple. It is a movement that recovered the purity of the New Testament Church, yet, the preparation for the Reformation was over a long period of time and came into full development when the conditions were right for reform. The stage for the Reformation was set long before the time of Luther.

As Reformed Christians, we rightly acknowledge the primary religious significance of the Reformation with the impact that it has on our religious and church life. We see the foundation that the Reformers laid with the biblical view of justification by faith alone, through grace alone, because of Christ alone. We acknowledge that the Bible alone is our final authority and not the Bible and authority of the pope. However, we should realize that there were many factors that contributed to the impact which the Reformation had on all of society from the sixteenth century onward. It is my purpose to consider some of the factors that helped to develop the background of the Reformation, including geography, politics, economics, morality, etc. This view is supported by Latourette in his book A History of Christianity, in which he argues "in the sixteenth century the situation which confronted Christianity was compounded of several elements, some of them with parallels in the past, but others of them quite new."¹

Geographically⤒🔗

During the fifty years prior to the time of Luther nailing his ninety-five theses to the door of the Wittenberg Church, much exploration was taking place in the world. Magellan had traveled around the world. Christopher Columbus had sailed the ocean blue in 1492 and with his discoveries, found a new culture, waiting to be tapped. Christopher Columbus' motivation for exploration was his desire to spread the gospel to a new land. He recorded that it was his faith in God which enabled him to persevere on his first trip across the Atlantic when his men would have turned back.²

Politically←⤒🔗

During the time of the middle ages, the Roman Catholic Church had great influence among the nations of Europe. This influence caused a universal state, the Holy Roman Empire, and a universal religious ruler, the Pope.

Many of the nations were burdened economically, militarily, etc., by the demands of the Holy Roman Empire, so they began seeking ways in which they might free themselves from the control of the papacy. They opposed the actions and claims of the pope, as well as the concept of a universal church that claimed jurisdiction over the nation-state and its ruler. ³All of these factors moved government officials to focus on the concept of a territorial, nation-state, that is, an independent country with a sovereign ruler, a strong army, and a good civil service. Consequently, some of these nation-states were eager to support the Reformation in order that churches in their domain might be directly under their control.⁴ Although this action did not take place in every country influenced by the papacy, enough of an impact was made that the administrative function of the papacy was greatly undermined.

Economically←⤒🔗

The primary source of income during the Middle Ages was agriculture. Thus, the more land one owned, the more prominent one's social status. One of the biggest land owners of Western Europe during this time was the Roman Catholic Church, who extracted great fees from those who occupied their territory. These fees, coupled with inflation and an increased cost of living, created widespread poverty among the people.

Agricultural work, though important during the Middle Ages, was on the decline by the sixteenth century. This was due to the discovery of new lands in the Western Hemisphere. With these new lands came a new source for raw materials, as well as spices, foods, and many other valuable commodities. The products from the new lands ushered in an age of commerce that produced new pressures to see new means for financial gain, as well as a new class of merchant that replaced the medieval feudal noble as a leader in society. ⁵

Socially←⤒🔗

In medieval times, there were typically three classes of people: the nobles or landowners, who fought to defend society and govern it; the clergy, who prayed for society and were employed by their religious work for the people; and the peasants, who performed the rural and agricultural work. By the turn of the sixteenth century, many new towns were arising throughout Europe. This opened up new trade markets and produced financial stability that had not been experienced previously. This economic change in society worked to produce a new social structure. Now there was a new class of people, a class whose wealth was greater than the peasants, yet less than the nobles. They were the middle class.

With the rise of the middle class, people's social standings were rapidly changing. One was no longer forced to remain in the class in which he was born, but rather could rise from a lower class to a higher class. For example, if one was born the son of a peasant, there was now opportunity for him to buy land and become a noble. With the rise of new towns and a prosperous middle class within these towns, there was a new spirit of individualism. This new economy freed the people from their dependence on the soil for their livelihood. The social changes taking place also brought about the people's disillusionment with the Roman Catholic Church.

Social discontent and the demand for reform was a definite social factor in the coming of the Reformation.⁶

Intellectually←⤒🔗

Many intellectual changes that occurred during the Renaissance were beneficial to the Reformation. In fact, these changes provided a foundation of learning for some of the Reformers. One of these changes was the emphasis of studying a book or text in the original language in which it was written, and not relying only on a translation. This compelled men to study Greek and Hebrew. With this improvement in learning, many of the Reformers immersed themselves in the original languages of the Scriptures, as well as the works of the early church fathers. Although the Renaissance was helpful to the Reformation in some aspects of learning, it only sent men back to the source, and thus focused on the power of the eloquent word, whereas the Reformation went back to the Scripture and emphasized the power of the preached Word.

With the Bible as their final authority, and the work of the Spirit in the power of preaching, many of the Reformers were returning (as were all true believers) to the purity of Christianity.

The Reformers were anxious to develop a theology that was in complete accord with the NT and believed that this could never be a reality as long as the church, instead of the Bible, was made the final authority. ⁷

Philosophically←⤒🔗

Another factor contributing to the preparation of the Reformation was set in the philosophical and theological distinction between the writings of Thomas Aquinas and Augustine.

Aquinas taught that man's will was not totally corrupted by the Fall. He believed that fallen man could exercise his own faith and also use the sacraments to impart grace to himself, and thus achieve salvation. In other words, man's salvation is based on his faith and works. Augustine, however, believed that man's will was so corrupt that man could not perform any work nor do anything that would earn or contribute to his salvation. It is the work of God alone in salvation that enables man to believe.

The Reformers followed after the writings of Augustine because they believed that he had rightly interpreted the Scriptures. They used the Scriptures as their final authority to counter the claim of Thomistic theology that salvation was a matter of grace received through the sacraments dispensed by the hierarchy.

Morally←⤒🔗

The corruption and wickedness in the members and leaders of the Roman Catholic Church, led to the dissatisfaction of many with the papacy. The church leaders focused on their own sinful pleasure, and they often lived openly in sin. Many bought and sold their offices freely. In fact, some in the Roman Church enjoyed positions in which they received salaries without performing the work for which they were paid.

With the rampant abuse of power, the papacy was no longer seen as an effective leadership. (A clear example of this is the time when the Roman Church had three popes who were all ordained as head over the church.) The Roman Church became too focused on money, and great corruption and evil spread throughout the church. The bishops often failed to engage in the episcopal visitation necessary to supervise the clergy under them. Many clergy neglected their flocks by not engaging the congregation in proper preaching and visitation but were content merely to say the Mass which they stated was a "Magic Rite" that could confer grace on the receiver.⁸

Another way in which the papacy demonstrated their moral ineptitude was the continued practice of the indulgence. The indulgence was a document that could be purchased that would free one from the temporal penalty of sin. It was believed that Christ and the saints had achieved so much merit during their earthly lives that the excess merit was laid up in a heavenly treasury of merit on which the pope could draw on behalf of the living faithful. ⁹

The Shot Heard Round the World←⤒🔗

The refusal of the Roman Catholic Church to accept reform and their unwillingness to change, opened the way for the coming of a leader who would see the inconsistencies of the papacy and would be used by God to bring reform.

Enter Martin Luther←⤒🔗

The direct cause for Luther's involvement in the beginnings of the Reformation in Germany was the unbiblical use and abuse of the sale of indulgences. Archbishop Albert, a prince in the House of Hohenzollern, had control of two provinces in the Roman Catholic Church, and was desirous of the vacant archbishopric of Mainz in 1514. Canon law forbids a man to hold more than one office in the Roman Church, so Albert needed a special dispensation from Pope Leo X to fill both offices. At this time Pope Leo X needed funding for his building project on St. Peter's Cathedral, so for a large fee (in addition to the regular sum for the archbishopric of Mainz), Albert was permitted to hold both offices. In order to pay the debt that this transaction incurred, Albert hired John Tetzel to sell indulgences in Saxony. Tetzel used high pressure sales methods to sell indulgences, which promised the remission of temporal punishment for sin. This promise was important, because according to the sacrament of penance, a person would need to make satisfaction for his sin after he had repented of it and confessed it to a priest. An indulgence allowed the sinner to receive forgiveness of sins without having to perform the requirements of penance. ¹⁰

It was Luther's protest, in his ninety-five theses, concerning indulgences that precipitated the events that started Reformation in Germany and that spread throughout Northern and Western Europe.

The Outcome of the Reformation←⤒🔗

The Reformed churches that emerged from this upheaval differed in the extent to which they departed from the medieval church, but all of them accepted the Scriptures as the only rule for faith and life. They cast off vain tradition as their authority, and acknowledging the authority of the Bible alone, they worked to translate it into the language of the people. They believed that there is only one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5), which meant that believers could pray directly to God, without depending on a priest for mediation. These believers are not a hierarchy of officials, but a living organism, a community of believers in which each member is a part of the Body of Christ.

Lord willing, as October 31st arrives this autumn, and we once again contemplate Luther's stand against Rome, we will realize that the same sovereign providence that caused the realization that the just shall live by faith, also prepared the hearts of men, so that in the fullness of time, God's church would be reformed and His people would once again worship as He had commanded.