4/29/2013
The
Nattes in the grape vine
The age was an age of ancient authors and academic
pursuits and they thought about things
that have come before and will come again. Martin Luther and John Calvin had
their spotlight not just in the renaissance times but have been famous onward
up to this day. However, there was a time that came before, The Greco-Roman
times. The beauty of the Greco-Roman times, with all its wealth of reason and
logic, were married to the Christian scriptures. However, the reformers used logic
and Reason to support scripture and did not use doctrine and tradition, the
result was something that was not to be mistaken for Scholasticism.
Luther, a German, was 25 years older than John Calvin and
so he came before Calvin in wanting to fix the corruptions in the Church. Luther’s
own ideas are not all his, he was inspired by many other writers and
philosophers but his own doctrine was still mostly in line with catholic
teaching. Though the differences between Martin and the church lay much in the
political aspects and in the way they understood salvation.
Luther despised scholasticism and Aristotle’s role in
Christianity. The medieval Christianity had politics under authority to the
divine teachings of spirituality. Aquinas thought that politics as not a pure
evil and has some good, that all have some good. While Luther taught politics
could only serve good for the non- believers, he wished to change little of the
current structure. He might have wished the German princes on his side too.
Luther pushed equality in God’s eyes and he desired hat there be no more hierarchy
like the pope had, but instead wanted to have no pope.
Luther, in rebelling against indulgences, claimed people
are saved by not faith alone. Luther’s beliefs also had these ideas of
the community being in charge of the church. He also pinpoints where in the bible
it explaining how the Holy Spirit guides individual reading to interpret the
text themselves. With his new correct interpretation of scripture he laeds the
country side into individualism. These are the upcoming of individualism,
re-burst in reason and Democracy. Luther was excommunicated from the church.
Frenchmen
John Calvin, however, went a separate way. He believed that God had just about
complete control of everything. From reasoning form scripture, that no man has
the intelligence to interpret meaning of scripture. In addition, had
predestination belief, in which you are predetermined for your place in
eternity before, as opposed to after, death. John Calvin also claimed the
physical world has no spiritual value (this being written against the
Eucharist) and the external practices are far from necessary.
Mr.
Calvin’s idea of society was controlled by his code. The government was like an
extreme monarchy with some democratic elements that uses fear factors to keep
the population’s fear for God. He might have experimented with this in Geneva,
which was a complete shambles when he found it.
Both
Men respected one another and both men denied current church structure and the pope’s
authority. Both had an attitude like, ‘don’t trust me, and see for yourself in
scripture.’ Both had mastered Latin but would never exclusively use it over
their native language to other people. Both led to pre-parliament and
individualism ideas. Through studies, it may be evident that Martin Luther and
John Calvin were humans, and perhaps not sinless or perfect representers of the
“Reform”.
