The Anabaptist Story Chapter Summary

Ferreira, a priest and highly respected teacher, opens the story by talking about how being forced into apostasy “was not simply the failure of one individual but a humiliating defeat for the faith itself and for the whole of Europe” (Endo 6). It is thought that the tougher one holds up against an opposing force, true to his/her beliefs, that they will be rewarded for their bravery and courage. The book does a good job of exploring inner dilemmas- using emotions like guilt, fear and anger to explore and amplify these

The Protestant reformation took place during a time of conflict between the new nation-states of Europe, which was caused by conformity within their areas. As Switzerland’s cantons, or subdivisions began dividing, civil wars began erupting. They were caused by the conflicts between the Catholic and Protestant churches.

Religious Tolerance/Intolerance during the Age of Enlightenment Based On the Views of Voltaire and Diderot

As a preface, those who had stood by the side of the Roman Catholic Church had enough with this institution that sought nothing, but power. Church officials took the people’s pure desire for salvation and scammed them into buying it instead. Ignorance is regularly the cause of such manipulation. The Protestant Reformation was effective in promoting the progress of mankind when it came to faith. Although it proved to be troublesome, particularly because of the splitting of the church, it was beneficial for those in the future.

The Protestant Reformation had a huge impact in all Europe in the sixteen century, but which ones were the factors that lead to it? It is very important to highlight that the European Christianity was falling into a noticeable corruption of its popes and some other high position members. Robbery, and even warriors were among of some factors that took the Cristian Church to a declining path. One of these examples was the Pope Julius II, which one won the nickname “the warrior pope” because he led armies against people. Furthermore, the church was not the only factor promoting this reformation, some other social changes were occurring with the masses in Europe; many of the peasants were being free especially in the western Europe. Also, due to

The sixteenth century America is primarily dominated by the Puritan idealism, but slowly through the year’s things are changing both in the religion and culture. In human nature the constant need for change is captivating, a change towards something new and different than the current. The events of the growing and changing eighteenth century America reflect just that. Ideas of the Enlightenment take deep root in the transformation of ideas about human’s relationship to God and to nature. Therefore, a deeply religious society starts transforming into a more secular culture, but religion still has quite a large influence. There is a big emphasis placed on education, which is now readily available compared to previously when manly rich landowner’s children had the means to attend school and get education. In this newly emerging curious society effected by the Enlightenment dramatic political and literary changes start taking place, among other fluctuations.

The Protestant Reformation began with a movement made by a monk simply to criticize and challenge the actions of the Church. From the disapproval of selling indulgence to the demand of equality, multiple forces have sparked the inception of the Protestant Revolution. Martin Luther’s decision to take public stand against the Church was revolutionary to the society. A movement for religious reforms, known as the Protestant Reformation, was born. Luther’s beliefs were soon adopted by and appealed to every levels of society. The opposition Luther took against the Church soon had an instant impact on peasants. Individuals began to form opinions on both political and religious fields, but they had failed to interpret the beliefs of Luther correctly.

In 1944, Harold S. Bender wrote the “The Anabaptist Vision”, which was to reassure the Anabaptists faith, especially during the era of war and poverty in World War II. Violence, hardship, and suffering was felt by the entire world and many people felt lost and restless. Bender encouraged people, particularly the Anabaptists and Mennonites, by retelling the history of the Anabaptist faith which was also full of hardships and suffering. Consequently, it was to explain the origin and reason behind the Anabaptist faith and to possibly remind the people of why they had chosen to become Anabaptists. Bender mentioned the following three distinct points to prove his argument: new conception of the essence of Christianity as discipleship, a new conception of the church as a brotherhood, and a new ethic of love and non-resistance (14).

A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah was published by Sarah Crichton Books in New York on February 13th, 2007. In the memoir, Beah describes his terrifying experiences as a child soldier in Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa, during the Sierra Leone Civil War that took place during the 1990s and early 2000s. Despite a confusing, unclear end to the story, the main idea of the account on how war can damage and alter an individual and country in ways never thought possible before is effectively revealed through Beah’s strong, detailed descriptions of war in Sierra Leone, along with genuine and unforgettable words that make you wonder how you could ever complain about your childhood again.

During the mid-fourteenth century, a plague hit Europe. Initially spreading through rats and subsequently fleas, it killed at least one-third of the population of Europe and continued intermittently until the 18th century. There was no known cure at the time, and the bacteria spread very quickly and would kill an infected person within two days, which led to structural public policies, religious, and medical changes in Europe. The plague had an enormous social effect, killing much of the population and encouraging new health reforms, it also had religious effects by attracting the attention of the Catholic Church, and lastly, it affected the trade around Europe, limiting the transportation of goods. As a response to the plague that took place

It is noteworthy that this story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden is the foundation of the religion with the largest number of followers worldwide. Why does it continue to resonate with so many people even today? The reason is that this utopia contains archetypes that reflect the collective unconscious that is found across all cultures. This is the result of universal themes in this story about humanity’s needs and desires that we still see occurring in our society today. The story of Genesis contains three archetypal characteristics that illustrate these patterns that still demonstrate humanity’s needs.

Bart D. Ehrman. The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings. New York: Oxford University Press, Fifth edition, 2012

John Calvin was born on July 10, 1509, in Noyon, Picardy, France; he was known for being the most important figure while leading the second generation of the Protestant Reformation. He was born into a middle-class family, his father worked as a lay Administrator under the Bishop. While under the service of the Bishop they sent him to the University of Paris in 1523 to become educated on becoming a priest, but decided to become a lawyer in 1528, therefore, Calvin studied in Orleans and Bourges law schools. During these years of his life he was greatly exposed to Renaissance humanism, which was enforced by Jacques Lefèvre d’Étaples and Erasmus; This constituted to the profound youth movement of the time. Calvin influenced Protestantism all around Europe and in North America by the

The word "Inquisition" refers to the tribunal court system used by the Catholic Church to suppress and punish the heretics. All people who were considered against catholic teachings were called heretics.

The novel Foreign Gods, Inc., by Okey Ndibe tells a story of a man, Ike, who harbors many idealistic aspirations for his life, but faces the obstacles of reality that force him to lead a life different than his expectations; however, he falls into the trap of chasing increasingly unrealistic dreams, which leaves him worse off than ever before. The first example of how reality differs from Ike’s dreams is when the author explains how Ike is forced to work as a cab drive for many years, instead of pursuing his true aspirations with his outstanding college degree, “He’d worked as a driver for thirteen years, ever since graduating from Amherst College, cum laude, in economics” (Ndibe 13). As can be seen, Ike is oddly employed in a job for which he is greatly overqualified. The reader eventually finds out that Ike is forced to resort to this line of work because of his accent, as can be