RELG 330 - History of Christianity
Course Notes
Chapter 28
Page 393 map - The colors are rather difficult to distinguish.
- The Anglican Church was in England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.
- Calvinist churches were in the the Netherlands, the Swiss Confederation, and in parts of the German Empire.
- The Eastern Orthodox Churches were in Russia, and also, as a surviving minority, in the Ottoman Empire.
- The darker green area to the north of Russia is Finland (not marked on the map), where the population was sparse. Finland had been evangelized by Sweden, Russia, and England around the twelfth century, and had an independent Church in 1220. Lutheranism came to Finland in 1523, and the New Testament was translated into Finnish in 1548.
- The Lutheran Churches dominated Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and parts of northern Germany.
- The Roman Catholic Church dominated Spain and Portugal, France, Italy, most of Ireland, and parts of eastern Europe.
- The Muslims dominated north Africa (bottom left on the map) and the Ottoman Empire (lower right quarter on the map).
Page 397 - the Capuchins were an off-shoot of the Franciscans. The Order was founded by Matteo di Bassi in 1529, in an attempt to return to the original simplicity of the Order. Capuchins get their name from the pointed cowl (capuche) which they wear.
Page 397 - the Company of the Blessed Sacrament was founded in 1630 at the convent of the Capuchin friars in Paris. It was a semi-secret society (the members would not say who other members were) dedicated to good works. The members included many of the aristocracy and officials in the royal court, and it was favored by Louis XIII. St. Vincent de Paul was a member. The members met weekly, and worked to correct abuses among the clergy and monasteries, to establish a seminary for Foreign Missions. They also undertook work for the poor, for hospitals, established public legal services for prisoners, and maintained a storehouse of food, clothing and agricultural implements for poor peasants. It is estimated that they spent the equivalent of about 3 million dollars in charity each year.
In 1660 the French parlement prohibited all illicit assemblies and confraternities, and the Company stopped holding regular meetings. Its activities had ceased entirely by about 1665. The Seminary of Foreign Missions, and the General Hospital continued to function even after the end of the Company.
Page 397 - the Lazarists was a popular term for the 'Congregation of the Mission', a congregation of secular (non-monastic) priests founded by St. Vincent de Paul in 1625. Their headquarters was the priory of St. Lazare in Paris. They were active in France itself, and in Tunis, Algiers, and Madagascar.
Page 307 - Chang-ti (the Chinese term for sovereign lord) is often written Shang Di
Page 398 - The Rites Controversy was finally resolved in 1939, when Pope Pius XII ordered that previous decrees be relaxed somewhat. Confucianism was recognized as a philosophy rather than a religion, and gestures of respect for Confucius and one's ancestors were allowed.
Page 405 - Philipp Spener (1635-1705) - see page 420. Spener was a Lutheran pastor in Germany who was dismayed by the complacency and lack of spiritual life in the churches. He wrote books to encourage pastors and lay people to take their religion seriously. Because of his call for lay people to take an active part in church life he antagonized some of the clergy and religious academics, but was befriended by the Prince Elector of Brandenburg (who became King Frederick I of Prussia in 1701). Spener helped to found the University of Halle, and brought reform to the Lutheran Church in Germany. His calls for reform, his devotional meetings, his zeal for holy living and the inner religious life of the individual, and his publication of Pia Desideria started the movement known as Pietism.
In 1675 Spener published his Pia Desideria (Holy Desires), which listed six 'simple proposals'
- an intensified study of the Bible, with the aim of arousing greater personal devotion
- a full exercise of their 'spiritual priesthood' by the laity
- an emphasis on the practical side of Christianity, driven by love, as opposed to the merely intellectual knowledge "about" Christianity.
- charity in religious controversy, to gain the heart by presenting the truth in the spirit of love rather than to win a controversial victory
- reorganization of theological studies, and higher standards of life among professors and students at universities
- reform and revival of preaching with the aim of edification
Page 407 - Bartholomäus Ziegenbalg (1682-1719) & Heinrich Plütshau (1676-1752) were the first Protestant missionaries to India (1706). They were Lutherans who were sent by Frederick IV of Denmark. In India they met resistance from Hindus and from Roman Catholic missions, but continued in their work. Ziegenbalg translated the New Testament into Tamil (starting 1708, completing it in 1711, printed in 1714); he was working on the translation of the Old Testament when he died (1719). Plütschau returned to Europe in 1711, and in 1714 became pastor of a church in Germany.
Page 407 - Christian Freidrich Schwartz (1726-1798) was a German missionary who learned Tamil so that he could work on translating the Bible into that language. He went to India in 1750, and settled first in Tranquebar, then in Tiruchipalli, finally in Thanjavar, where he died in 1798. He made many converts, and was also esteemed by Muslims and Hindus.
Copyright © 2005 Shirley J. Rollinson, all Rights Reserved
