A
Arial
Guest
Let me make clear that this is not RCC bashing. It is simply a brief history of what led up to the reformation. We must always remember when we see abuses within the church of God, and they will always be there, that we do not condemn all for the failures and frailties of some. There is at the root of our fallen nature two ugly enemies. Greed and the lust for power. It is the very thing that got Satan thrown out of heaven, the very thing he tempted Eve with in a subtle and beautifully dressed way. When men are put in a position of power, and add to it, easy access to the gaining of riches at the expense of those they rule over, it is a recipe for the entrance of that old serpent to rear his head. And his primary target always has been and always will be the destruction of God's people, an attempt to stop the unstoppable purpose and plan of God. This penchant of man to buckle to these temptations is the reason the founding fathers of the the US insisted on separating the functions of church and state. They had seen what can happen when the two become one. I find the history of the pre-reformation and reformation a vivid picture of the hand of God upon His church, to preserve and protect it.
In the tweilth century canon law governed the people. This canon law was a set of complicated rules that laid out religious rights, duties and laws. The Roman church had control over every aspect of the individuals life. It was taught that the church and the sacraments were the only access to heaven. The pope had authority over all. The Bible was kept out of the hands of the people, never translated into the language of the people, and for anyone to do this, they faced severe punishment, even death. One of the religious rules forbade people to preach the gospel unless they received approval from the Roman church. Enter the Waldensians (1175); the Lollards (1375); and the Hussites (1400).
Peter Waldo went to Rome to get permission to preach the gospel and was denied. That did not stop him, but rather fueled his mission. He persuaded a sympathetic priest to translate large sections of the NT into the regional language, and he memorized them, and began preaching the message of Christ throughout Lyon, France. He, and his band of followers, devoted themselves to God's word, and therein found their authority to preach and discovered how the Bible contradicted the papacy in many aspects, including their authority. Eventually he was excommunicated, and kicked out of Lyons, inadvertently spreading the gospel. The Inquisition made public preaching impossible. They went underground, meeting at night from house to house, in barns and remote buildings, secretly and in small groups. They revived the apostolic church of the NT. They memorized the Bible and spread the word. One "unlearned rustic" was said to have memorized the entire book of Job word for word. They taught one another. Everyone was allowed to participate. They broke bread together, prayed together, old and young, men and women.
In 1211 more than eighty were burned as heretics at Strasbourg. Centuries of severe persecution followed. They proclaimed the bIble as the sole rule of life and faith. They rejected papal authority, indulgences, purgatory and transubstantiation. J.A Wylie wrote a book on the Waldensians. In it he writes, "The church of the Reformation was in the loins of the Waldensian Church ages before the birth of Luther"
So as to not have too long a post, I will cover the Lollards and Hussites in separate posts. I do hope that at least some will find this interesting and vital information that stirs in us anew, our great heritage as God's people, and a newfound appreciation of all the sacrifice and singleness of purpose of those who have gone before us and paved our way, beneath the hand of our merciful God.
In the tweilth century canon law governed the people. This canon law was a set of complicated rules that laid out religious rights, duties and laws. The Roman church had control over every aspect of the individuals life. It was taught that the church and the sacraments were the only access to heaven. The pope had authority over all. The Bible was kept out of the hands of the people, never translated into the language of the people, and for anyone to do this, they faced severe punishment, even death. One of the religious rules forbade people to preach the gospel unless they received approval from the Roman church. Enter the Waldensians (1175); the Lollards (1375); and the Hussites (1400).
Peter Waldo went to Rome to get permission to preach the gospel and was denied. That did not stop him, but rather fueled his mission. He persuaded a sympathetic priest to translate large sections of the NT into the regional language, and he memorized them, and began preaching the message of Christ throughout Lyon, France. He, and his band of followers, devoted themselves to God's word, and therein found their authority to preach and discovered how the Bible contradicted the papacy in many aspects, including their authority. Eventually he was excommunicated, and kicked out of Lyons, inadvertently spreading the gospel. The Inquisition made public preaching impossible. They went underground, meeting at night from house to house, in barns and remote buildings, secretly and in small groups. They revived the apostolic church of the NT. They memorized the Bible and spread the word. One "unlearned rustic" was said to have memorized the entire book of Job word for word. They taught one another. Everyone was allowed to participate. They broke bread together, prayed together, old and young, men and women.
In 1211 more than eighty were burned as heretics at Strasbourg. Centuries of severe persecution followed. They proclaimed the bIble as the sole rule of life and faith. They rejected papal authority, indulgences, purgatory and transubstantiation. J.A Wylie wrote a book on the Waldensians. In it he writes, "The church of the Reformation was in the loins of the Waldensian Church ages before the birth of Luther"
So as to not have too long a post, I will cover the Lollards and Hussites in separate posts. I do hope that at least some will find this interesting and vital information that stirs in us anew, our great heritage as God's people, and a newfound appreciation of all the sacrifice and singleness of purpose of those who have gone before us and paved our way, beneath the hand of our merciful God.
