To prevent the behavior of Catholic priests from causing discontent among parishioners, the Council of Trent issued a decree regulating the duties of the clergy: for concerted resistance to reforms, congresses of the clergy should be held in the diocese once a year, and in the province once every three years; Seminaries were to be organized in each church district to train new cadres of clergy; It was strictly forbidden to sell church positions, take bribes and combine several positions.
The decisions of the Council of Trent became the ideological basis of the Counter-Reformation. In 1563, the council adopted several resolutions: on papal authority, according to which the Pope continued to have precedence over church councils; decree on canonical books, which declared the works of popes /
equivalent to the books of the Old and New Testaments. Protestant teaching was recognized as heretical, and censorship was introduced to eradicate it.
One of the results of the activities of the Council of Trent was the appearance of the first “Index of Prohibited Books”. The long-awaited abolition of indulgences, approved by the council, was generally approved.
In 1564, by decision of Pope Pius IV, all decrees of the council came into force, provided that the pope would have the right to interpret them at his own discretion.
Contrary to the expectations of the Protestants, the Catholics did not move closer to them. At the Council of Trent, the main directions of the Counter-Reformation were finally formed. The resolutions of the council became the program of opponents of reforms.
... One of the Western European authors, W. Topper, wrote:
“How did the Christianization of Europe take place? We don't know this. At least not as the church texts convey it, either in terms of the time frame or the nature of the operation. The actual events in the legends are distorted beyond recognition, everything is turned upside down.”
Next, we will look at how events developed that ultimately led to the birth of the Latin modification of Christianity and the violent spread of this “Christianity” throughout what is now Europe and Russia.
Order of the Knights Templar
On Friday the 13th October 1307, all French Templars, by order of King Philip IV, were arrested and their property confiscated.
Charges:
The order retreated from Christianity long ago (it was not Christian - author). Members of the order, when joining it, spat on the cross and loudly renounced the power of the church over themselves.
Tax evasion, financial fraud with real estate, usury and much more.
The bulk of the evidence was collected by royal judges using torture, common at that time in legal proceedings.
Who became the owner of the order's property and funds? Apparently the one who further carried out the transformation of society and the unification of Europe.
Avignon Captivity of the Popes
The next significant event is the Avignon capture of the popes (1309-1377)
According to the official version, the Avignon captivity of the popes began with financial disagreements between Pope Boniface VIII and the French king Philip IV. Note that again we meet with Philip IV.
Many sources note that Philip IV was not an independent figure; his associates played a large role in Philip’s politics. There was a certain team that carried out “perestroika” in Europe, destroying the established foundations.
As encyclopedias write, the Avignon captivity lasted 68 years. By this time, the papacy had lost its former role in the political life of Europe (and it never existed - author).
At that time, the centralization of states began in Western European countries. In centralized states, the entire population was subordinate to the monarch, including the clergy, and this led to the fragmentation of Europe. The Global Command Center has set itself the task of uniting Europe. For this purpose they began to create the institution of the papacy.
Wilhelm Kammeier in his book “The Universal Falsification of History” (1926) writes:
“The existence of Catholic popes before the so-called Captivity of Avignon was completely fictitious.”
W. Topper believes that the papacy arose “... in Avignon and moved at the end of the 14th century to Rome in Italy.”
The Avignon period in the history of the papacy bore little resemblance to real captivity; rather, it was the collaboration of the popes with the “powers of this world.”
Apparently, they gathered all the church leaders (popes) with the goal of uniting them under a single leadership.
Popes were given unlimited power in the church. Wikipedia:
“But a year after the end of the Avignon Captivity, the Great Western Schism began (1378-1417), when both Avignon and Rome had competing popes who divided the entire Catholic world among themselves (or maybe not the Catholic world, but the religious one, since Didn’t there exist Catholicism yet? - author).”
Apparently, not everyone agreed with the decisions taken in Avignon. After all, at that time there were other faiths in the territory of what is now Europe.
Constance Cathedral(1414-1418) began during the schism with the goal of unification Roman Catholic Church and the end of the Great Western Schism, which by this time had already led to tripapacy.
The Council of Constance restored the unity of the Catholic Church.
As a result of new elections, Martin V was elected pope.
The council adopted two documents that stated:
The Council has the highest authority given to it by Christ, and everyone, not excepting the Pope, must submit to this authority;
The Council will meet regularly, after a certain number of years.
Both of these documents were an expression of the thesis about the supremacy of the power of the council over the papacy and therefore were not confirmed by the pope. It is believed that the Council stopped the schism, but could not carry out a reform of the church.
At the same time, the council decided to punish the heretic Jan Hus. He was burned along with his works. The execution of Hus sparked the Hussite Wars (1419-1434).
We can say that at the Council of Constance 1414-1418. The unification of the Roman Catholic churches into a single organization took place.
Although the council did not solve all the problems, in particular, the pope had not yet received unlimited power, but this united church organization already showed what would happen to those who did not obey its decisions.
It was with such a sin before God that the Latin United Church began its activities, which would later be given the name “Catholic,” apparently from the word "cat": in Czech "cat" meaning "executioner"(see Vasmer's dictionary).
Not the whole truth is known about Jan Hus, much less what creed he defended.
But some of the doctrines that he preached are known:
You cannot blindly obey the church, but you need to think for yourself.
Power that violates the commandments of God cannot be recognized by Him.
Every person is directly connected with God without any intermediaries, therefore, the church as an intermediate link between man and God is not needed.
Confession is violence against conscience and therefore it is enough to be content with a person’s internal repentance before God.
It is necessary to translate the Bible from traditional Latin into national languages.
So what kind of Christianity did Jan Hus preach?
The following fact tells us this indirectly. A detachment arrived to help the Hussites, who were defending themselves from the crusaders of the Pope. from among Orthodox subjects The Grand Duchy of Lithuania, who fought against the Catholicization of their country. For eight years, together with the Taborites, they fought against Polish, German and Hungarian troops."
Apparently, the Orthodox helped the Orthodox in the fight against the Latins.
Note that the Czech Republic is currently the most atheistic state in Europe.
The Ferraro-Florence Council took place in 1438-1445.
After the war with the Czechs, they decided to try to impose the Latin version of Christianity through political methods. The official goal of the Florence Council was to overcome dogmatic differences between the Western and Eastern churches and conclude a union between them.
Representatives of all Christian churches gathered - about 700 people. Kyiv Metropolitan Isidore also took part. In the form of an ultimatum, they were offered to all enter into an alliance with the Latin Church under the leadership of the Pope. At the same time, they demanded to accept new Christian dogmas of the Latin Church: the primacy of the Pope in the Universal Church, the filioque (addition to the Creed) and the doctrine of purgatory.
The union consisted in recognizing the innovations of the Roman Church, but with the caveat that the Eastern Churches will not introduce Latin liturgical and church rites.
Representatives of the Orthodox churches did not sign the documents of their own free will. During the council, most of the representatives of the Byzantine delegation did not receive money for food for 5 months, promised as a condition for the presence of the delegation at the council back in Constantinople.
Among those who did not sign the union was Metropolitan Mark of Ephesus. Mark of Ephesus made no concessions in favor of Latin teaching, called the Latins heretics.
Why did Mark of Ephesus call the Latins heretics?
He said that the Latins changed the Gospels, attributing to Christ what he did not say: “Why... do we preach the Gospel differently!” .
However, the union turned out to be fragile and in fact did not last long. Within a few years, many bishops and metropolitans present at the Council began to openly deny their agreement with the Council or claim that the decisions of the Council were caused by bribery and threats from the Latin clergy.
Thus, it was not possible to come to an amicable agreement, but the Latins did not rest on this: already in 1453, the Ottomans took Constantinople with the help of the Latins and Jews.
How did people in Russia react to the decisions of the Ferrara-Florence Council?
Kiev Metropolitan Isidore signed a union with the Roman Catholic Church, but Grand Duke of Moscow Vasily Ivanovich (Vasily III, 1479-1533) on the third day after Isidore’s arrival sent him to prison, deprived him of his rank and broke the union with the Roman Church.
Council of Trent took place in 1545-1563 (lasted 18 years).
One of the most important cathedrals in the history of the Catholic Church .
It solved problems on 300 years ahead. The next Vatican Council took place only in 1869, and even then it was interrupted.
“Most likely, before the Council of Trent, Catholicism did not exist asunified organized structure" .
The Council of Trent established the supremacy of the popes. In fact, Roman Catholicism was created as a monolithic transnational supranational monarchical organization with a single center of control - the Pope, whose judgments on issues of faith and morality are infallible.
Formed an ideological basis in the form of the Bible.
From this moment on, the Vulgate, i.e. the Latin translation of the Bible, is the official Bible of the Catholic Church.
The Decree on the Creed (Credo - in Latin) was adopted;
The Jesuit Order was officially approved.
A decree on the Index of Prohibited Books was adopted.
The Gospel of Christ was first published, then the writings of his apostles.
For the first time, our “Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God” is spoken of.
He forbade the interpretation of Scripture by the laity. Only the Holy Mother Church has the right to interpret the true meaning of Holy Scripture. « Those who act contrary will be exposed by the clergy and punished according to the law.”
He approved the basic tenets of Catholicism.
Forced all clergy and professors of Catholic universities to swear allegiance to the Trentine Confession of Faith.
In fact, at the Council of Trent, a religious-ideological-political organization was created, with a globalist orientation of activity, and not just a religious (doctrinal) one, like other churches were.
The unity of the church, based on the primacy of the pope, is the strength of the Roman church, allowing it to solve many problems that were beyond the power of other churches. The power of the popes was unlimited.
The Jesuit Order, legalized at the cathedral, was created by announcement to teach the Latin faith to the peoples of other countries. By default, it was a military monastic order, which played a huge role in the establishment of many rulers of medieval Europe. The Jesuits have always been famous for their ability to achieve results at any cost.
With its connections, the order entangled all civilized countries of the world. Intrigue and blackmail, bribery and murder - on the one hand, protecting the interests of the church and Catholicism - on the other. In fact, if we use the terminology of our days, the Jesuit Order is one of the weapons of the papacy and its masters in waging a “hybrid war” for undivided world domination.
The Council set a goal: to cleanse the Church of heresy, eradicate abuses and vices, strengthen internal church discipline and free the Roman Church from control by secular monarchs.
The Index of Forbidden Books and the Inquisition were relied upon to eradicate heresy.
Note that all monastic orders were created for the Catholicization of non-Catholic peoples by any methods and means.
Formally, the pope's powers after the Council of Triden were limited to the appointment of bishops in any Catholic country, but in fact the pope appointed kings and emperors. In Catholicism, there is a concept of the supremacy of church power over secular power.
Confirmation of this is the proposal of the Jesuit Possevino to Ivan the Terrible to accept Catholicism as the only correct religion, and for this they promised to appoint him as the Eastern Emperor.
1. Remove heretics, witches and sorcerers who prevented the spread of Catholicism within Europe.
2. Expand Catholic influence, i.e. expand to other countries, including Russia.
After the Council of Triden in the second half of the 15th century and in the 16th century, religious wars and the fight against heresies began in Europe.
130 years between 1559 and 1689 became a period of anarchy, civil wars and uprisings for Europe. Official history names the Protestant-Catholic religious struggle as the main reason, but is this true? Protestants also participated in the Council of Triden and accepted the Latin version of the Holy Scriptures.
Luther was an Augustinian monk, and Calvin was a Catholic and theologian. Both were involved in Bible translation. They could carry out a special mission - to lead those who were dissatisfied with Catholicism, but not to allow these dissatisfied people to abandon the creed created by the Latins and the fight against heretics.
It is customary to blame only Catholics for the Inquisition. But that's not true. Protestants also burned witches and sorcerers, and even more sophisticatedly than Catholics. Here is an excerpt from the book “Christianity and Ergot”:
“...in the Protestant areas of Germany, witch hunters went even more crazy than in the lands that remained Catholic. ...Every city, every town, every prelacy, every noble estate in Germany lit bonfires. ...across Germany, smoke from fires rises from everywhere, obscuring the light.
If we mark on the map with a dot every established case of witch burning, then... continuous spots of dots would form in Switzerland and from the Rhine to Amsterdam, as well as in the south of France, splashing England, Scotland and the Scandinavian countries. It should be noted that the areas of greatest concentration of pointswere the centers of Protestantism…..it was the most prominent figures of Protestantism (Luther, Calvin, Baxter) who were fanatical persecutors of witches.”
It seems that there was a division of labor: Catholics fought against heretics, and Protestants against witches and sorcerers.
Let's pose the questions:
Why did the Inquisition begin to operate only in the Middle Ages, despite the fact that Christianity had existed for almost one and a half thousand years, as official history tells us? Has Christianity really not gained stability over such a long period of time?
Where did the hordes of heretics come from?
As the already mentioned Johnson showed, the “hordes” of heretics appeared only on paper.
From our point of view, heretics were invented in order to hide the fact of the existence in an earlier time of a single creed throughout Europe and to instill in everyone the idea that there were only scattered and unconnected sects with which Catholicism was forced to fight.
Why exactly were heretics tortured and burned? There is a description of torture and execution, there are statistics, literature on the Inquisition has about 2 thousand titles, but it is difficult to understand what the specific guilt of the heretics is.
It is known that anyone who does not accept the dogmas of the Catholic Church is considered a heretic, but which dogmas were decisive for execution is not clear.
The beginning of the Council of Trent (1545–1563) was extremely unsuccessful. At the time of the proposed opening of the council, only 10 bishops had arrived in Triento (now Trento, Italy), and only 30 bishops were present at the first meetings. There were reasons for this. Emperor Charles V wanted the council to take place on the territory of the Holy Roman Empire, while the French king insisted on a council in Avignon; the pope, for his part, wanted to hold a council in one of the Italian cities in order to avoid control by secular authorities. As a result, Triente was chosen, a city that was within the borders of the empire, but located near France and Italy. The pope wanted the council to make decisions on controversial dogmas, but the emperor insisted on considering only disciplinary issues. In addition, within Catholic circles themselves there was no unanimity as to who held supreme power in the church - the pope or the council, and many bishops suspected that the pope wanted to consolidate the slipping power. And finally, there was opposition to the council from the secular sovereigns of Catholic countries.
The latter circumstance, however, turned out to be in favor of the pope, since it gave him the opportunity to gather his supporters. The council was presided over by three papal legates, who had the exclusive right to put forward issues for discussion. Papal delegates took control of the organization of the council, replacing voting according to the principle of national representation (adopted at the Council of Constance, which ended the great Western schism) with individual voting, thereby reducing the possibility of influence on the results of the vote on the part of the emperor and European monarchs through the national factions of the council participants obedient to them . Each issue put on the agenda by the papal legates was considered by a group of theologians and canon law specialists, and the results of this consideration were brought to the attention of the bishops, who made the final decision. Then a resolution was adopted at the general meeting. In the period from 1545 to 1563, the cathedral resumed its activities three times; During this time, a total of 25 plenary sessions were held.
As a result, the official Catholic teaching on original sin, justification, the Mass and the sacraments was developed. In addition, the council adopted disciplinary decrees on the minimum age for entering the monastery, on the certification and improvement of priesthood training, on ecclesiastical vestments and episcopal control over parish priests. However, behind all the issues discussed at the Council of Trent, there were two main problems related to the position of the papacy. The first of these was the problem of participation of Protestant theologians in the council. The papal legates invited them to appear at the council and present their arguments, but denied them the right to vote until they returned to the bosom of the Roman Catholic Church (which implied submission to the authority of the pope and the decisions of the council). It also remained unclear whether bishops received their rank directly from God or indirectly through the pope. In the first case, the bishops found themselves practically independent of the pope, and the pan-church council became the only supreme authority in the church. The papal legates avoided directly raising this question, but essentially advocated the primacy of the pope. The Roman Church was recognized as the mother and mistress of all other churches. All who are ordained to this or that dignity must take a vow of obedience to the pope. The Pope is in charge of the entire Church and has the prerogative to convene ecumenical councils. Finally, all decisions of the council must be approved by the pope.
This latter requirement posed a serious problem, as Curia officials were trying to get a relaxation of certain regulations that were reducing the number of cases requiring an appeal to Rome, and thereby the income of the office. However, Pius IV (1559–1565) decisively approved these decrees and prohibited the publication of “commentaries, glosses, annotations and scholia on the above-mentioned decrees” without the consent of the pope. In addition, he created a cardinal congregation to interpret the decrees of the Council of Trent.
A number of issues were not resolved at the council, in particular the publication of a new Index of Prohibited Books. In addition, the issue of drawing up a new Catholic catechism was left to the discretion of the pope. To compile the catechism in Rome, a commission of theologians was appointed, the result of which was the so-called. Catechism of the Council of Trent, published under Pius V (1566–1572).
In addition, the council left unfinished the reform of the Missal and Breviary and the question of correcting the text of the Vulgate. The completion of this work also fell on the shoulders of the popes. The reformed Missal and Breviary were published by Pius V, but the Vatican edition of the Vulgate was not carried out until 1612.
Site materials used http://www.krugosvet.ru/enc/istoriya/PAPSTVO.html
Popes (by century in chronological order): | I-IV | V-IX | X-XIV | XV-XIX | XIX-XXI |
History of the Papacy(chronological table).
| Vocabulary: Tombigbee - Trula Cathedral. Source: vol. XXXIIIa (1901): Tombigbee - Trull Cathedral, p. 816-818 ( · index) |
Tridentine(Trientsky) Cathedral. - T. the council, which Catholics usually call ecumenical, despite the fact that representatives of other Christian denominations did not take part in its meetings, played a very prominent role in the revival of the Catholic Church, or in the so-called Catholic reaction. During the second half of the 15th century. are heard from all sides Western. Europe demands the convening of an ecumenical council due to the turmoil in the Catholic Church. The Lateran Council (1512-1517), convened by Pope Julius II as a counterweight to the Pisa Council, did not lead to any serious changes, so in the 16th century. demands for the convening of a new council continue to be repeated. When the reform movement began to develop rapidly in Germany, Emperor Charles V himself began to persistently seek the convening of a council. The Lutherans initially hoped that they would be able to achieve reconciliation between their teaching and the Catholic one through joint discussion of religious issues by theologians of both confessions. The popes, however, were very wary of the projects for convening an ecumenical council. Memories of the Council of Basel made them fear that, given the mood of society in the 16th century, their authority might suffer greater damage than what they almost suffered in the 15th century. Pope Clement VII (1523-1534), despite the promises given to Charles V to convene an ecumenical council to reform the Catholic Church and eliminate the schism in it, died without convening the council. The new Pope Pavel III (1534-49) received the tiara under the condition of convening a council. Indeed, by a bull of June 12, 1536, he convened it for the month of May next year in Mantua. The war between Charles V and Francis I prevented the council from taking place. After the meeting of the emperor with the pope in Lucca in 1541, Paul III convened a council for November 1542, but this time it did not meet, since the fourth war began between the emperor and France. After further triumphs of Charles V in this war, which ended in peace at Crespi (September 18, 1544), the pope convened a council (by bull of November 19, 1544) at Trident (Trient: a city in South Tyrol, see) for March 1545 The clergy gathered at the cathedral extremely slowly, so that its grand opening could only take place on December 13. 1545, and then in the presence of a small number of people. Protestants refused to come to the council. The Roman party took care not to let go of the conduct of affairs and to prevent the principle that the authority of the council was superior to that of the popes from being proclaimed, as happened at Basel. To ensure an advantage for herself, she achieved a resolution that voting should take place not by nation, but by head to head (the number of Italian bishops who arrived in Trent significantly exceeded the number from other countries) and that the decisive vote would be given only to bishops. The presidency of the council belonged to three cardinals (Del Monte, Cervino and Reginad Paul), who constantly received detailed instructions from Rome. The right to raise and raise questions belonged exclusively to them. Consideration of each question posed took place earlier in private commissions or congregations, where they were discussed by learned theologians. Thus prepared for decision, questions were submitted to general congregations or commissions consisting of bishops. When the latter came to a final agreement on a given subject, their decision was made and approved in a solemn public meeting of the entire council. The Pope wanted dogmatic issues to be addressed first. This did not correspond to the views of the emperor and the party, who were aware of the need to urgently eradicate abuses in the church. The majority of the council decided on January 22, 1546 that some congregations would deal with dogmatic issues, while others would deal with the matter of internal reform of the church. Meanwhile, the political influence of the emperor, which increased after the defeat of the German Protestants (1546), began to cause strong concerns among the pope. He was afraid that Charles V would put strong pressure on the council in order to carry out all his demands and belittle the authority of the pope. Therefore, Paul III considered it safer for himself that the meetings of the council take place closer to Rome, in some Italian city, and under the pretext that a plague had broken out in Trent, he transferred it at the beginning of 1547 to Bologna. Only 18 bishops refused to leave Trent. In Bologna the cathedral existed only in name, and on September 17, 1549 the pope dissolved it. Julius III (1550-1555), yielding to the demands of the emperor, again convened a council in Trent on May 1, 1551. This time even secular ambassadors from some Protestant princes came here, as well as Württemberg theologians who brought their confession of faith, and Saxon, for which Melanchthon compiled the “Confessio doctrinae Saxonicae” for this occasion. However, Protestant theologians did not remain in Trent for long, as they soon became convinced that their visit there was completely fruitless. Less than a year later, the council had to cease its meetings again (April 28, 1552), due to the danger from the troops of Moritz of Saxony, who moved to Tyrol against the emperor. Dispersing, the council decided to meet in two years; but its meetings were opened for the third time only 10 years later (January 18, 1562) under completely changed political conditions, when, after the Augsburg religious peace in Germany, there could be no question of a compromise between Lutheranism and Catholicism. Emperor Ferdinand I, the French and the Spanish demanded that the council make fundamental reforms in the church and make concessions on some dogmatic issues in the Protestant spirit. Pope Pius IV avoided fulfilling these demands by sending Cardinal Morone to the emperor, who persuaded him not to insist on implementing the reform program he presented. Pius IV won over the French ambassador of Lorraine, as well as Philip II of Spain; Moreover, the French quarreled with the Spaniards in Trent, so they acted in disharmony. The council continued its activities in the same direction as before. His work moved forward quickly, and the cathedral on December 4. 1563 was already closed. With the bull Benedictus Deus (Jan. 26, 1564), Pius IV approved his decrees. The resolutions of the T. cathedral are divided into Decreta and Canones. The Decreta sets forth the tenets of the Catholic faith and regulations concerning ecclesiastical discipline; The Canones briefly listed the provisions of the Protestant doctrine, with the caveat that they were anathematized. At Trent it was reaffirmed that the authority of popes was superior to that of councils. All dogmas of the Catholic religion were left intact, in the form in which they were developed in the Middle Ages. Raising papal authority, the T. Council significantly increased the power of bishops in their dioceses, giving them broader rights of supervision over the clergy, both white and black. It was strictly confirmed that bishops should remain permanently in their dioceses. Attention was also paid to better delivery of sermons in churches and to the training of good priests. For this purpose, it was recommended that bishops establish special educational institutions - seminaries. The radical reforms in capite et in membris, which were so eagerly awaited in the Catholic Church, were not carried out. The entire significance of the T. cathedral boiled down mainly to the fact that it unshakably established the dogmas of the Catholic religion. Before him, even clerics who occupied high positions in the Catholic hierarchy tended to look at some issues - for example, justification by faith - from a Protestant point of view. Now there could no longer be any talk of any concessions to Protestant views; all doubts and hesitations about what to consider heresy were finally put to an end. In 1564, the so-called “Professio fidei Tridentina” was drawn up, and all clergy and university professors had to swear that they fully followed it. The resolutions of the T. cathedral were immediately signed by representatives of Emperor Ferdinand I, but at the Diet of Augsburg in 1566. it was stated that Germany could not accept them without some restrictions. They were immediately accepted only by Portugal, Savoy and Venice. Philip II of Spain allowed the publication of the decrees of the T. council in his possessions, but with reservations that did not allow the king’s rights to appoint clergy to be constrained and his influence on spiritual jurisdiction to be limited. In Poland, the resolutions of the T. cathedral were adopted in 1577 at the Synod of Petrokov. In France they were not officially adopted; only the clergy, at their general assembly in 1615, declared themselves subject to them.
Literature. The official publication of “Canones et Décréta Sacrosancti Concilii Tridentini” followed in Rome in 1564 (critical editions: Le Plat, Antver., 1779; Eichte, Lpc., 1853 and others). Op. Sarpi: “Istoria del Concilie Tridentino” (Lond., 1619, 2nd ed. - best, Geneva, 1629) was written in a spirit of opposition to the papacy. Against Sarpi, the Jesuit Sforza Pallavicini wrote “Istoria del Concilio di Trento” (Rome, 1656). See also Le Plat, “Monumentorum ad historiam concilii Tridentini spectantium amplissima collectio” (Louvain, 1781-1787); (Theiner), “Die Geschäftsordnung des Concils von Trient” (Vienna, 1871); Sickel, "Zur Geschichte des Concils von Trient" (Vienna, 1872); Theiner, “Acta genuina Oecumenici Concilii Tridentini” (Zagreb, 1874); Druffel, “Monumenta Tridentina” (Munich, 1884-1897; from the 4th edition published by Karl Brandi); Döllinger, “Berichte und Tagebücher zur Geschichte des Concils von Trident” (Nerdlingen, 1876); Maynier. " Etude historique sur le concile de Trente"(Par., 1874); Philippson, " La Contre-Révolution religieuse au XVI siècle"(1884); Philippson, “Westeuropa im Zeitalter, von Philipp II, Elisabeth und Heinrich IV” (Berl., 1882); Dejob, " De l'influence du concile de Trente sur la littérature et les beaux arts chez les peuples catholiques"(Par., 1884).
The XIX Ecumenical Council of Trent of 1545-1563 became one of the most important milestones in Catholicism. Most of the accepted dogmas remain relevant after half a millennium. The High Assembly of the spiritual leaders of the Catholic Church met at the height of the Reformation, when the inhabitants of northern Europe, dissatisfied with the abuses and luxurious life of the clergy, refused to recognize the authority of the Pope. The Council of Trent and the most important results of its work became a decisive “offensive” against the reformers, marking a milestone in the Counter-Reformation of the 16th century.
By the end of the 15th century, the Catholic Church concentrated many lands in its hands and accumulated great wealth. In Europe, church tithes were common - the collection of a tenth of the profit from the harvest or cash income. The church lived magnificently at a time when a significant part of the believers was poor. This circumstance undermined the foundations of faith and the authority of the church. In addition, the trade in indulgences - special letters “for the remission of sins” - was widely launched. For a certain amount of indulgence, a person, regardless of the severity of the offenses, was freed from any sin. This sale caused discontent among believers. The center of the Reformation was Germany, which was then fragmented and resembled a “patchwork quilt.” Against such an unfavorable background, it was decided to convene the Council of Trent.
Humanism caused significant damage to its authority. Its leader was In the pamphlet “In Praise of Stupidity,” the humanist sharply condemned the shortcomings and ignorance of the clergy. Another figure of German humanism was Ulrich von Hutten, who considered papal Rome an enemy. It should be added that the believers were also irritated by the fact that the language of worship was Latin, which ordinary parishioners did not understand.
The Reformation became a global challenge to the foundations of the Catholic Church. For the most part, the decisions of the Council of Trent were directed against the Reformation. The original idea was to hold a joint meeting of the Council under the chairmanship of the Pope and the leaders of the Reformation. However, a dialogue, rather a scholastic dispute, did not work out.
On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther nailed the “95 Theses” to the door of his church in Wittenberg, sharply condemning the trade in indulgences. In a short time, tens of thousands of people became supporters of Luther's ideas. In 1520 the Pope issued a bull excommunicating the monk from the church. Luther burned it publicly, which meant a final break with Rome. Martin Luther didn't object to the church, he wanted it to be simpler. The postulates of the reformers were clear to everyone:
The emperor decided to intervene in the matter. In 1521 Luther arrived at the Reichstag in the city of Worms. There he was asked to renounce his views, but Luther refused. Indignant, the emperor left the meeting. On his way home, Luther was attacked, but the Elector of Saxony, Frederick the Wise, saved him by hiding him in his castle. The absence of Martin Luther did not stop the Reformation.
In 1529, Emperor Charles V demanded that the apostates observe exclusively the Catholic religion in the territory (essentially Germany). But 5 principalities, with the support of 14 cities, expressed their protest. From that moment on, Catholics began to call supporters of the Reformation Protestants.
Throughout its long history, the Catholic Church has never known such a deep shock as the Reformation. With the support of the rulers of Catholic countries, Papal Rome began an active fight against the “Protestant heresy.” The system of measures aimed at stopping and eradicating reform ideas and movements was called Counter-Reformation. The trigger for these events was the Council of Trent in 1545.
The beginning of the offensive against the Reformation was marked by the revival of the medieval Inquisition, in the centers of which hundreds of “Protestant heretics” died. The inquisitors took control of book publishing. Without their permission, not a single work could be published, and “harmful” literature was included in a special “index of prohibited books” and was subject to burning.
The Reformation split the Catholic world in half, but in the mid-16th century, Europeans hoped that the situation could still be corrected. It is only necessary that in search of reconciliation both sides take a step towards each other. Not only ordinary believers, but also some cardinals and bishops thought so. From their midst, the voices of those calling on the Holy See to carry out church reform sounded more and more insistently.
The popes hesitated for a long time before agreeing to the transformation. Finally, in 1545, Pope Paul III convened an Ecumenical Council. The location of the Council of Trent corresponds to the city of Trento (Italy). It took place intermittently until 1563, that is, for 18 years.
From the very beginning, the participants of the council split into two groups - supporters of Catholic reform and its opponents. In the heated discussions, the latter won. Under their pressure, the main decisions of the Council of Trent were adopted, cementing the position of the Catholic faith for centuries.
The papacy had to cancel the sale of indulgences, and to ensure the future of the Catholic Church, create a network of theological seminaries. Within their walls they must train a new type, whose education was not inferior to Protestant preachers.
The Council was the response of Catholicism to Protestantism. It was convened by Pope Paul III in 1542, but due to the Franco-German War, the first meeting took place only in 1945. The council was held by three popes. There were 25 meetings in total, but only at 13 sessions were fateful decisions made that related to faith, customs or disciplinary rules.
The Council of Trent is one of the most significant in the history of the Catholic Church. The dogmas adopted at the meetings concern many fundamental issues. For example, the sources of faith were identified and the canon of books of Holy Scripture was approved. The Council discussed certain dogmas that the Protestants rejected. Based on the discussions, the attitude towards indulgences was revised.
The issues of the sacrament of baptism and confirmation, the Eurahist and repentance, communion, the sacrifice of St. Liturgy, marriage. This dogmatic series was completed by the decision on purgatory, the veneration of saints, etc.
Pope Pius IX approved the conciliar decrees of 1564. After his death, Pope St. Pius V published a catechism confirmed by the Council, an updated breviary and an updated missal.
The Council of Trent laid the foundation for the renewal of Catholicism and the strengthening of church discipline. He showed that the break with Protestantism was final.
The Council of Trent (1545-1563) dealt with the issue of the Eucharist throughout its entire existence. He adopted three important decrees
The Council of Trent defends, first of all, the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist and the way in which this presence appears under the images of wine and bread during consecration - “transubstantiatio”. Of course, this was a general clarification of the method, because there was controversy among theologians about a detailed explanation of how exactly this “transubstantiatio” occurs.
Previously, it was assumed that Christ was present in the Eucharist after the Liturgy if the consecrated Body and Blood remained. Trentsky confirmed. The essential identity between the sacrifice of the Holy Office and the sacrifice of Christ on the cross was also confirmed.
After the Council of Trent, theologians again concentrated on a narrow vision of the Eucharist: on the presence of Christ and on the sacrificial character of the Mass. This approach convinced Protestants that they were right. Particularly much was said about the sacrifice of mass, and although it was never denied that this was the only sacrifice of Jesus Christ, excessive emphasis on the sacrifice of the Service in itself could give the impression that this sacrifice was divorced from that historical one. Moreover, the overemphasis on the priest being a “second Christ” during the celebration of the Eucharist has greatly diminished the role of the loyal people during the liturgy.
The dogmas approved by the Council of Trent, for the most part, have survived unchanged to this day. The Catholic Church lives according to laws adopted 500 years ago. That is why the Council of Trent is considered by many to be the most important since the division of the united church into Catholic and Protestant.
