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Home , Anointing of the Sick

The in the 16th Century

Marshall High School Western Civilization II Mr. Cline Unit Two MA * The

• The in the 16th Century

• Meet Jean. Jean is a French peasant who owns a small plot of land, a cow, and a few chickens.

• Jean is married and has an 8-year old daughter, Clare, a 6-year old son, Louis, and a newborn, Henri.

• Jean's mother also lives with him.

• Jean wants to go to Heaven.

• In the year 1500, that means Jean has to go through the Roman Catholic Church.

• The Roman Catholic Church was a very powerful institution in the West that was involved in every aspect of people's lives from birth to death.

• The Church had this power primarily because believed it alone held the keys to salvation. * The Reformation

• The Catholic Church in the 16th Century

• The Church taught that only those who did good works and received the could go to heaven.

• Sacraments are the that bring people closer to God and give them grace.

• There are seven sacraments of the Roman Catholic Church: , , the , Reconciliation, Matrimony, of the Sick, and .

• To see these sacraments in action, let us follow Jean and his family through their lives.

• The sacraments of the Roman Catholic Church

• Jean's family is celebrating the new year and the turn of the century.

• Jean and his neighbors are attending church to thank God for their blessings and to pray for forgiveness. * The Reformation

• The sacraments of the Roman Catholic Church

• You see, Jean constantly worries about his salvation and his children's salvation, too. So every Sunday, Jean dutifully attends church, receives the Eucharist, and gives money to the poor.

• Jean believes that salvation can only come through the Church, so he always does what the Church tells him to do.

• Sacraments of Initiation

• The next week, Jean is back at the church to baptize his son Henri.

• Baptism is the first of the seven sacraments a Christian needs to be saved.

• Henri's baptism cleanses him of , and he is now an official member of the Church.

• Jean's family celebrates, and Jean sleeps well that night comforted by the fact that his son is now on the path to salvation. * The Reformation

• Sacraments of Initiation

• In the spring, the villagers anxiously await the 's arrival.

• The bishop is the head of the , which is made up of many parishes.

• Someday, the bishop hopes to become archbishop of Avignon and govern an urban area, but today he is just visiting Jean's village to confer the of Confirmation onto the youth who have not yet received it.

• On a beautiful Sunday morning, Jean's other son, Louis, receives the bishop's blessing.

• As the descends on Louis, his baptism is perfected, and he is given the grace to live a full Christian life.

• This is confirmation.

• Jean stands by as the proud papa and is the first to congratulate his son. * The Reformation

• Sacraments of Initiation

• Jean's blessings continue, and a couple months later, his daughter, Clare, receives the sacrament of the Eucharist for the first time in her life.

• Clare is excited but a little scared too, because she knows that when the says of the bread, 'This is my body,' and of the wine, 'This is my blood,' that the bread and the wine will be transformed into the body and blood of .

• This belief is called transubstantiation.

• Clare bows her head in prayer, asking God to make her worthy to receive His body and blood before receiving the Eucharist from the priest.

• Jean proudly stands by as he watches Clare and thanks God and the Church for giving his daughter the sacrament that unites her with Christ and fills her with grace * The Reformation

• Sacraments of Initiation

• From now on, Clare will receive the Eucharist at least once a week, which will help her maintain her faith and save her from the fires of Hell.

• Sacraments of Healing

• For the rest of the year, Jean makes sure his family attends church every Sunday and every Holy Day, too.

• At least once a month, Jean goes to to ask for forgiveness of his sins.

• His priest encourages the villagers to receive the sacrament of Reconciliation frequently, and since Jean wants to go to Heaven someday, he confesses his sins to the priest who grants him , or forgiveness.

• After receiving the sacrament of reconciliation, Jean is filled with grace and believes he is in a better position to resist the evil temptations that will surely come around. * The Reformation

• Sacraments of Healing

• Unfortunately, Jean's good fortune runs out at the end of the year.

• On a cold, wet December morning, his mother falls ill and will not wake to see another sunrise.

• Sensing this, Jean's priest blesses the ailing woman by bestowing the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick.

• Jean's mother receives the Eucharist one final time, and after making her last confession, the priest absolves her of all her sins.

• Believing she will soon be in Heaven with her husband, Jean's mother smiles and takes her final breath.

• Although Jean's mother had led a righteous life and would surely enter the Kingdom of Heaven someday, Jean fears her soul is trapped in Purgatory.

• Purgatory is not Heaven or Hell but a state in which the soul must be fully purified before it enters Heaven. * The Reformation

• Sacraments of Healing

• But how long would Jean's mother have to spend in Purgatory? Five weeks? Five months? Five years? Maybe five hundred years?! Jean is not sure, and so he prays for her every day, and he asks the to pray for her, too.

• Sacraments at the Service of Communions

• The next year, Jean and his wife celebrate their tenth wedding anniversary.

• Jean loves his wife very much and fondly remembers the day when they were married and received the sacrament of Matrimony.

• He was poor and had little to offer his new bride, but miraculously, she agreed to marry him.

• Before their friends and family, they made a vow to each other and to God to remain husband and wife for the rest of their lives.

• Although they have faced many challenges over the years, their bond is sealed by God and cannot be broken. * The Reformation

• Sacraments at the Service of Communions

• As the years pass, Jean remains a faithful parishioner and makes sure all of his children receive all of the sacraments.

• He tries hard to be a role model by regularly attending church, receiving the Eucharist, and going to confession.

• He also helps his neighbors and often gives food to Anton, the village beggar.

• After all, Jean's salvation depends upon these things!

• Now an older man, Jean feels blessed yet again on the day his son Henri receives the sacrament of Holy Orders and is ordained a priest.

• The sacrament changes Henri spiritually; he promises obedience to his bishop and to devote his life to serving God, the Church, and its people. * The Reformation

• Sacraments at the Service of Communions

• As a Roman Catholic priest, Henri is forbidden to marry, and so he will not have children to carry on the family name, but this does not bother Jean since he already has two grandsons through his other children.

• Rather, Jean thanks God for a lifetime of happiness and continues to pray that someday all of his good works and obedience to the Church will open Heaven's gates to him.

• Religious Tolerance Then and Now

• The Catholic Church allowed no other form of worship in Western Europe.

• When you ask a Christian, 'What is your religion?' their answer probably will not be 'I'm a Christian.' They are much more likely to say 'I'm a Baptist' or 'I'm a Presbyterian' or 'I'm a Unitarian.'

• In general, most Christians identify themselves with a certain denomination, or sect of their religion. * The Reformation

• Religious Tolerance Then and Now

• This variety is not unique to . There are several denominations of Islam, , Buddhism, and all of the other religions out there.

• However, none can match Christianity for sheer numbers.

• There are approximately 41,000 different denominations of Christianity.

• Some of these denominations differ on fundamental notions - the does not try to convert non- believers, whereas Evangelicals do little else.

• Others denominations differ in terms of practice - compare the staid ceremony of Anglicans to the tongue-speaking spectacle of Charismatics.

• Others are so similar, only initiates can discern one from the other. * The Reformation

• Religious Tolerance Then and Now

• For example, the only real difference between the 'Christian Church' and the 'Church of Christ' is that the former uses musical instruments in their worship, while the latter prefers to sing a capella.

• And yet, with all of these differences, these denominations coexist peacefully.

• Churches of various denominations can be found within walking distance of one another.

• With all of these varieties living together in peace, it is easy to forget that about a thousand years ago, there was only one sort of Christianity allowed in Western Europe, and that was the Roman Catholic Church.

• Following the Great East-West Schism of 1050, which divided the Orthodox East from the Catholic West, the Roman Catholic Church held unchallenged sway over the hearts and minds of Western Europe. * The Reformation

• Religious Tolerance Then and Now

• Oh, they might have spats from time to time. Another country might elect its own pope, but by naming a pope, even those usurpers were still operating within the constraints of the Roman Catholic faith. They were just fighting over who would be at its head.

• No one who challenged the supremacy of the Roman Catholic Church was allowed to draw breath for long.

• Anyone who tried to start their own church, or come up with their own take on Christianity, was labeled a heretic. Their property was seized, and they and their followers died in the most horrible manner available at the time.