Prior to the time of the Protestant Reformation, the General feeling towards the
Catholic church was one of repugnance. This was because of the highly bureaucratic Vatican
and the Renaissance Popes who spent a ridiculous amount of money on the redecoration
of the catholic churches. Severe alteration was required, thus the Reformation began.
Though they were two considerably different men with considerably different beliefs and
practices, John Calvin and Martin Luther shared certain view points and most importantly
the same objective; to reform the church. it is fair to say that they both played equally
important roles in the Protestant Reformation. John Calvin, an educated French man of law,
converted to Protestantism and devoted his life to the reform of the church.
Also, Martin
Luther, who On the thirty first of October in the year 1517 inadvertently created an
opportunity for change by nailing his ninety-five theses to a church door in what is now
Wittenberg, Germany. Both Calvin and Luther believed in: the unimportance of the Pope,
Christian dogma, and liberty of priests. On the other hand, their beliefs conflicted in the
areas of: salvation and government. The two had many similar practices including: the
translation of the Bible into vernacularism, the use of propaganda, the non-celibacy of the
clergy, the denouncing of female priests, iconoclast activities, and the stale environment of
the churches. However, they shared differences in practices as well, for example: the target
group for worship, the consensus of vices i. e.
drinking, partying, etc… Together, these two
men made an extraordinary impact on history
As far as similar beliefs go, John Calvin and Martin Luther shared a few of the same
view points. Neither Calvin or Luther believed that the Pope was any greater a person
than any other Christian. They believed that no man had the power to excommunicate
another from the church. Also, the Clergy was there to help, but was no more significant
than the rest of the worshipers. Secondly, Both Calvinism and Lutheran were Christian
denominations.
Therefore, they both believed in basic Christian dogma. They believed
that there was a heaven, a hell, and a God. Also they believed in original sin. More over,
both Calvin and Luther believed that the priest was nothing more than an intermediary
between the follower and god. He was equal to everyone else, thus he shared everyone
else’s rights. For example, a Calvinist or Lutheran priest could marry freely.
Though they shared some similar view points, Calvin and Luther also strongly
disagreed in a few places. Calvin was a strong believer of predestination. Whereas Luther
believed in God’s good grace and justification by faith. Calvin stated in the Weber Theses,
there was nothing one could do to gain admission to heaven.
Luther said that one was
responsible for knowing God’s will, believing in God, and carrying out a personal dialogue
with him. However, Calvin believed that Christ already had everyone picked out, and
knew weather or not each person would gain entry to heaven. Luther believed that one
had to know exactly what it was that one believed in, and one was responsible for living
that faith everyday. Calvin said that the way one knew if one was going to be granted
salvation was if you were rich.
If you were rich, than that means that God gave you
something to do. Luther believed that no one could ever work hard enough to be good
enough for God, and it was an insult to go about all those mechanical procedures in interest
of earning salvation. Another main difference in beliefs for the two was the area of
government. Calvin believed in a theocracy, or making church and state one. Whereas
Luther believed just the opposite. He thought that church and state had to be separate.
Luther and Calvin shared quite a few similar practices. Both Calvin and Luther
translated the Bible into Vernacularism. Luther translated it from Latin to German, and Calvin
translated it from Latin to French. Calvin and Luther both used propaganda.
Though their
methods were very different, they both used the same tool. The Lutheran religion
appealed more to illiterate peasants, therefore Luther had to use pictures in his
propaganda. On the other hand, Calvinism appealed to the middle class, most of whom
were literate. This enabled Calvin to be able to use pictures and words. Next, neither
religions forced their Clergy to remain celibate. The clergy was not viewed as superior,
they were supposed to be equal to the rest of the followers.
Hence they had the same
freedoms that the rest of the people had. Calvin and Luther both strongly believed that
women could not be priests. Also Calvinists and Lutherans both participated in iconoclast
activities. They both helped to strip and destroy all the magnificent baroque art in the
Catholic churches. Calvin and Luther believed that the church should be a plain place, a
place where all energy should be focused on god.
Calvin and Luther shared some important differences in their practices which must
also be noted.
Firstly, the target group of the two was different. Calvinism appealed
mainly to middle class people, while Lutheran appealed mainly to peasants. Secondly, the
thinking on vices was quite different. Calvin would not tolerate any kind of lethargic
behavior. If one wasn’t worshiping god or working, than one was wasting time. Calvin
despised drinking, gambling, sex for pleasure, singing, dancing, etc…
Luther on the other
hand saw no problem with drinking or having fun, he had a more secular attitude.
John Calvin and Martin Luther were two very different people. They both played
large roles in the Protestant reformation. Calvin and Luther shared some similar and some
different practices and beliefs. The two of them together played an unmistakably crucial role
in this time in history.