Amidst the rediscovery of language and rhetoric, a religious
Renaissance was rediscovering God. This was the era of John Calvin and Martin
Luther, the official rise of Protestantism and the secession of the Church of
England from the Catholic. Up to its elbows in religion, politics and business
alike, the Catholic Church held two major monopolies: access to the Bible and
other sacred documents, and the authority of its leaders to rescue mankind. If
a person wanted to get into heaven, there was a gate, and the key belonged to
the Catholic.
At least, it was until the king of England decided to divorce
his wife, and in the process divorced the Church. And though the Church of
England published the Six Articles in 1539 that would pull the masses back to
their Catholic heritage, many others had already turned away from notions of
redemption by the Pope and of intercession by the Saints. Such was the case of Martin
Luther in Germany, predating the cessation by almost a decade, and Hugh
Latimer, who abandoned his catholic traditions shortly after graduating from
university (Beeching).
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| Hugh Latimer. |
Some reformists, like Tyndale, sought to give common men access
to the Bible. Others, like Latimer, taught “so that the servants and handmaids
shall carry away as much as the gentler sort” (Beeching). But it wasn’t just
recovering literary sources and clarity: the new teachings of these reformists
emphasized man’s own inutility and God’s unitary role in salvation. They were
turning back to the source of religion itself: an understanding of deity and
our relationship to it.
A similar movement is in progress now. Many Christians are
de-emphasizing the role of organized religion in our relationship to God, and
stressing instead personal feelings and experience. New forms of worship
include contemporary music sessions, a movement to be non-denominational and
bible study groups operating outside of Sunday worship groups. And there are
new translations of the Bible, some adopting contemporary language, some
preserving the Hebrew and Greek vocabulary to maintain accuracy.
We may not experience the drama of separating ourselves from a
state religion, and our lives may not be at stake. But religion is undergoing
similar changes now to what Europe experienced in the Renaissance, changing not
only our definition of God, but our definition of ourselves.
Works Cited
Beeching, Henry Charles. “Sermons by Hugh Latimer:
Introduction.” Anglican History.
Project
Canterbury. N.d. Web. 4
September 2015. http://anglicanhistory.org/reformation/latimer/sermons/intro.html
I find the mission to make the bible accessible fascinating. The early translators you mentioned translated the bible into modern english so those who couldn't speak latin could still read it. I was looking up 'modern' translations of the bible and came across The Message (http://www.biblestudytools.com/msg/). The creator saw that people in his congregation were still being kept from the bible because of language so he made this to help bridge the gap. It is an interesting parallel. What do you think? Is it a similar move? Are their motivations similar?
ReplyDeleteSomething like that, yes. I think. In my conversations with other people, and the poking around I've done, I've noticed a dual trend: one group making the Bible more contemporary, like going from Latin to English; the other group eschewing newer translations for "imperfections," and reverting as close to the original as they can because English isn't sufficient. There's a lot of change happening within the Christian denominations right now and I think it's fascinating.
DeleteCrazy how it works as a pendulum effect of sorts, huh? I wonder if the pendulum will swing the other way at some point in the future, what do you think?
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if it will ever swing back per say. Its hard for me to see the world ever returning to the pre renaissance religious mindset, but I think it will continue to change. I too am curios, though, if society will ever change to take greater interest in religions.
ReplyDelete