Pope Paul III and the Council of Trent
Pope Paul III became the symbol of the reform-minded Catholic Church. Ironically, Paul himself was the product of the corrupt Church: he was made a cardinal at the age of 25, before he was even ordained a priest, and he fathered at least four children. Yet he knew he must initiate reform if the Catholic Church was to survive. His first action was to promote reform-minded men to the Curia. This College of Cardinals, which acted as the legislative body of the Church, was a source of much of the Church's abuses. Paul appointed a committee of cardinals to catalogue all the abuses of the Church. Their findings prompted Paul to convene a council of Church leaders at Trent, in northern Italy, who would address the state of the Church and the spread of Protestantism.
The Council of Trent, which met periodically from 1545 to 1563, reaffirmed Catholic beliefs and repudiated Protestant ideas. The council restated that humans could interpret the Bible, that both faith and good works were necessary for salvation, that rituals and tradition would remain an integral part of Catholic worship, and that the pope was the head of the Church on earth. These assertions directly countered the new Protestant beliefs. The Council also enacted reforms that cleansed the Church of its many weaknesses. The selling of indulgences and simony were outlawed, seminaries were opened for the proper training of prospective priests, and monasteries and convents were reformed. Paul attempted to enact controls over the Church's finances so that monetary abuses could be eradicated.
The Council of Trent also reinstituted the Inquisition, which was designed to stamp out heresies by interrogating all people suspected of unorthodox views. In Spain, the Inquisition had been active since 1480, when King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella used it as a tool to create homogeneity throughout their newly formed nation. The Spanish Inquisition was infamous for its methods of torture. When a confession had been extracted, the condemned heretic was publicly executed in an act called the auto-de-fe, or act of faith. Paul III had actually reinstituted the Inquisition in 1542, but after the Council of Trent it found new energy as devout Catholics strove to eradicate Protestant views from their communities. Under Paul and his successor Paul IV, the Inquisition was less brutal than its Spanish cousin, but many people were imprisoned, exiled, or even executed for their unorthodox views. In 1559 the Council established the Index of Forbidden Books, a list of banned books Catholics were not allowed to read, buy, or sell. This censorship applied to religious books, such as Protestant Bibles, as well as secular works, like the scientific treatises written by Copernicus and Galileo. In the face of attacks, some members of the Church resorted to harsh methods to defend their faith and stop the spread of Protestantism.
The Council of Trent, which met periodically from 1545 to 1563, reaffirmed Catholic beliefs and repudiated Protestant ideas. The council restated that humans could interpret the Bible, that both faith and good works were necessary for salvation, that rituals and tradition would remain an integral part of Catholic worship, and that the pope was the head of the Church on earth. These assertions directly countered the new Protestant beliefs. The Council also enacted reforms that cleansed the Church of its many weaknesses. The selling of indulgences and simony were outlawed, seminaries were opened for the proper training of prospective priests, and monasteries and convents were reformed. Paul attempted to enact controls over the Church's finances so that monetary abuses could be eradicated.
The Council of Trent also reinstituted the Inquisition, which was designed to stamp out heresies by interrogating all people suspected of unorthodox views. In Spain, the Inquisition had been active since 1480, when King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella used it as a tool to create homogeneity throughout their newly formed nation. The Spanish Inquisition was infamous for its methods of torture. When a confession had been extracted, the condemned heretic was publicly executed in an act called the auto-de-fe, or act of faith. Paul III had actually reinstituted the Inquisition in 1542, but after the Council of Trent it found new energy as devout Catholics strove to eradicate Protestant views from their communities. Under Paul and his successor Paul IV, the Inquisition was less brutal than its Spanish cousin, but many people were imprisoned, exiled, or even executed for their unorthodox views. In 1559 the Council established the Index of Forbidden Books, a list of banned books Catholics were not allowed to read, buy, or sell. This censorship applied to religious books, such as Protestant Bibles, as well as secular works, like the scientific treatises written by Copernicus and Galileo. In the face of attacks, some members of the Church resorted to harsh methods to defend their faith and stop the spread of Protestantism.