Question: How did Renaissance ideas cause Europeans to view their lives?

Answer: By the early 1500s Renaissance ideas had caused many Europeans to view their lives with a more critical eye.

Question: What are did some people think needed improvement?

Answer: One area that some people thought needed improvement was religion.

Question: What happened by the late Renaissance?

Answer: By the late Renaissance some people had begun to complain about problems in the Catholic Church. They called on its leaders to end corruption and focus on religion.

Question: Define the Protestant Reformation.

Answer: Their calls led to the Reformation , a reform movement against the Roman Catholic Church.

Question: What 3 Complaints did reformers have against the Catholic Church?

Answer: Those who wanted to reform the church had many complaints. Some thought that priests and bishops weren’t religious anymore. Others felt that the pope was too involved in politics, neglecting his religious duties. Many thought the church had grown too rich.

Question: How was the Roman Catholic Church one of the richest institutions in Europe?

Answer: The Roman Catholic Church had become one of the richest institutions in Europe because it didn’t have to pay taxes. They charged taxes.

Question: What is an indulgence?

Answer: An indulgence was a document given by the pope that excused a person from penalties for the sins that he or she had committed.

Question: Explain the Catholic concept of purgatory.

Answer: In Catholic teachings, purgatory was a place where souls went to make up for their sins before they went to heaven.

Question: Why did some people think that it was wrong to sell indulgences?

Answer: Many Christians thought that by selling indulgences, the church was letting people buy their way into heaven. The Catholic church made a lot of money from the selling of indulgences.

Question: What happened October 31st, 1517?

Answer: On October 31, 1517, a priest named Martin Luther added his voice to the call for reform. He nailed a list of complaints about the church to the door of a church in Wittenberg in the Germany.