Monsters of Münster

An Unbelievably Bizarre Anabaptist Rebellion

  (German city painted by Sebastian Münster (1488-1552), [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

During the 1530s, a strange occurrence blandly labeled the Münster Rebellion broke out in the city of Münster, within the region of Westphalia (modern northwest Germany). For the multiple-year rebellion, Münster was basically turned into a theocracy ruled by a group of over-zealous Anabaptists—a Protestant Christian sect disliked at the time by both Catholics and other Protestants. In the case of the Münster Rebellion, however, religious debate turned into religious oppression, and a battle of theology devolved into bloodshed and war.

Reformation-Era Augsburg: The Tense Stage of Christian Conflict

Strained Coexistence, Theocracy and Religious Politics

A Time of Church and State

The Protestant Reformations occurred in a time when there was very little separation between church and state. The Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, and his predecessors, were seen as the defenders of Christendom. Henry VIII of England placed himself at the head of the Anglican Church. Evangelist reformers, such as Ulrich Zwingli, Martin Bucer and John Calvin, imposed a quasi-theocracy upon their cities of Zurich, Strasbourg, and Geneva. Martin Luther also supported a closely-tied church and state, suggesting that the nobles lead the pace of reformation in their domains. The German city of Augsburg, like most other places in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, followed this trend of a closely-allied church and state.

(Perlach, Augsburg marketplace in 1550,Heinrich Vogtherr II (1513-1568)[Public domain], via Creative Commons)

The Strange Era of the Protestant Reformation—The Reformer

Martin Luther

The World Luther Faced

During the 14^th-16^th centuries, the Papal States struggled with corruption and questionable activities. As a result, on Halloween day, in 1517, Martin Luther publicly questioned the actions of the church in his hometown of Wittenburg, leading to the Protestant Reformation. His Ninety-five Theses or Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences initiated a European dialogue which brought into question the legitimacy of Papal authority and the long accepted customs of the Roman Catholic Church. Luther’s theses grasped the attention of European citizens and monarchs alike. Pope Leo X and papal supporters denounced Luther, and criticized his interpretation of scriptures. Thomas More and Desiderius Erasmus were in the ranks of Luther’s critics.  (Read more information about events leading to the Protestant Reformation in the first part of this series, The Catholic Low-Point).

Desiderius Erasmus was born in 1466. He lived during the reigns of several corrupt popes (Popes Alexander VI and Julius II) and experienced the reformations of Martin Luther. Thomas More was another humanist who lived in the time of the Protestant Reformations. They both criticized aspects about the Catholic Church, but when a divide between Protestant and Catholic occurred, both Erasmus and More defended the Roman Catholic Church against Martin Luther and his followers. (Read more about Erasmus and More in the second part of the series, The Defenders of Catholicism).

Martin Luther

(Portrait of Martin Luther as an Augustinian Monk, from the Workshop of Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472-1553) [Public domain], via Creative Commons)

The Strange Era of the Protestant Reformation—The Defenders of Catholicism

Desiderius Erasmus and Thomas More

Read “The Strange Era of the Protestant Reformation-Catholic Low Point,” here.

The State of the 16^th Century Church

During the 14^th-16^th centuries, the Papal States struggled with corruption and questionable activities. As a result, on Halloween day, in 1517, Martin Luther publicly questioned the actions of the church in his hometown of Wittenburg, leading to the Protestant Reformation. His Ninety-five Theses or Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences initiated a European dialogue which brought into question the legitimacy of Papal authority and the long accepted customs of the Roman Catholic Church. Luther’s theses grasped the attention of European citizens and monarchs alike. Pope Leo X and papal supporters denounced Luther, and criticized his interpretation of scriptures. Thomas More and Desiderius Erasmus were in the ranks of Luther’s critics.  (Read more information about events leading to the Protestant Reformation in the first part of this series, The Catholic Low-Point).

Martin Luther’s Theology

Martin Luther was a devout monk who became a Sworn Doctor of the Holy Scripture. He found assurance in his belief that God’s righteousness and grace was something freely given by God. He was forever tormented, however, because he never knew if he was behaving perfectly enough to find salvation.

He refused to separate the aspects of the flesh and the spirit. Luther believed the flesh and the spirit were one and represented man’s relationship to God. To him, man who accepts God’s grace would contain equal flesh and spirit, but would rely on the spirit.

In response to Protestant skepticism and questioning, the supporters of the Catholic Church launched what is known today as the Counter Revolution. The Catholic theologians and clergy gathered to revitalize and repair their church—the most notable meeting was the Council of Trent, which met three times from 1545 to 1563, solving or defending through scripture many of the problems the Protestants condemned.

(17th century painting of the Council of Trent in Santa Maria Maggiore church, Museo Diocesano Tridentino, Trento (Italy), [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)

The Strange Era of the Protestant Reformation—The Catholic Low-Point

Babylonian Captivity, Corrupt Popes and Papal Controversies

On Halloween day, in 1517, Martin Luther initiated a European dialogue which brought into question the legitimacy of Papal authority and the long accepted customs of the Roman Catholic Church.  This occurred when he made public his Ninety-five Theses or Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences. Luther’s theses grasped the attention of European citizens and monarchs alike. Pope Leo X and papal supporters denounced Luther, and criticized his interpretation of scriptures. Thomas More and Desiderius Erasmus were in the ranks of Luther’s critics. Other men, such as Frederick “The Wise” of Saxony, sheltered Luther and allowed him to proselytize in their domain. Martin Luther’s writings embraced a popular uncertainty of personal salvation, and launched a wave of suspicion and mistrust of the Papacy and a questioning of the Vatican’s authority.

("Der Anschlag von Luthers 95 Thesen" c 1878, by Julius Hübner (1806-1882) [Public domain], via Creative Commons)