 The difference between the Renaissance and the Reformation lay
in a change of perception about man, and his image of God.Dutch scholar, Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (picture) (1466-1536), despite achieving his work in editing five editions of the Greek New Testament, was described as “a humanist with Christian overtones”. During the Reformation, he attacked scholasticism (previously developed by the Church), as well as Luther’s claim which stated “the human will was enslaved and unable, apart from grace, to love and serve God”. Erasmus claimed that this particular concept of grace removed man from his moral responsibility.  Much of Erasmus’s writings adopted a new carnal type of faith
which campaigned “law and order toward the pursuit of mans
happiness, and the maximising of the human mind”. As a result, much Church doctrine was challenged and to an extent forsaken, being replaced with the new concept stemming from “the need to live well to the standard of light and moral behavior one understood”. This new perception which largely eluded the biblical concept of ‘righteousness in Christ by faith’ became the seed of the Enlightenment. The fundamental idea that man has the ability to understand truth by the use of his senses and reason gave rise to the label ‘The Age of Reason’. The philosophy of Reason developed on the heels of secular achievements of discovery (e.g. Christopher Columbus) and the ongoing brutality of religious wars. Wars like the English civil war (where Protestants were blamed for the murder of King Charles I); the persecution of the Huguenots in France, and the 30-year war which saw Germany exhausted after loosing one third of its population. All of this contributed to Europe searching for new answers. For 1200 years Augustine's doctrines had ruled Christendom, including the biblical doctrine that man was a sinner in need of grace. However, 17thC intellectuals and philosophers were arguing that “man was not a sinner, but a reasonable creature that needs reason, more than grace. Albeit, modernists as they were called, did not set out to destroy the Church; they believed in God (in the sense of a Supreme Being), but now began to reject those who had previously represented Him ie. Lutherism, Calvinism and the Pope. By mid seventeenth century, this momentum caused further reaction against the traditional Church. Opposition rose against the fanatical clerics, and a thirst for tolerance and truth (common to all men) was sought, and people looked outside of the Church to find it. Even within the Church leadership itself, toleration was desired, which culminated with the Act of Toleration in 1689 toward nonconformists (particularly non-Catholics), followed by the formation of the English Bill of Rights later that year in December. The French Bill of Rights, passed into law in 1789, typified the mood of the populace in reaction to the feudal society which at that time consisted of the Catholic Church, wealthy aristocrats, and powerless commoners. The Bill was called “Declaration of the Rights of man and of the Citizen” and signified a rising of the people as a political force. This was demonstrated in the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789 when a group of people stormed an inhumane prison. The age-old society, where noble birth and holy callings were everything, was to be challenged and eventually replaced by ‘achievement and wealth’ as the recognized benchmark of status. Hatred toward religious fanatical groups and bigotry gained momentum, particularly in France. Rationality challenged faith and refuted any claim of an emotional relationship with a living and present God. A belief called Deism developed which viewed God like an ‘absentee landlord’, a type of watchmaker which wound his clock then left the events of humanity to unwind without any interference. Deism became the foundation of modern theological liberalism, rejecting any direct revelation of God beyond Jesus’ last words, and questioned on a rational basis the relevance of scripture. This view of the ‘absentee architect’ created the rise of the Freemasons. The dichotomy of Heaven and Hell, the doctrine of Original Sin, and the existence of demons were all rejected. The invention of the telescope, and its subsequent use by Galileo engendered confidence in the Sciences, which further eroded traditional belief. The scientific theories formulated previously by the Catholic Church concerning a flat earth and the sol  ar system etc were being proven wrong. Previously, when
Copernicus claimed the earth was round, the Church persecuted
him.In 1687, Isaac Newton published his theories on gravitation in his work ‘Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy’, which all but nailed the coffin on the traditional Medieval world-view. Alexander Pope’s quote typified the attitude of the day; “Nature and nature’s law lay hid in night; God said let Newton be - and all was light”. Newton’s discovery of universal gravitation had significant impact upon the intellectuals of the day. One such person was Voltaire 1694-1778, (picture) French philosopher and opponent of Christianity. Although Voltaire received his education at the hands of the Jesuits, he developed hatred toward what he called Christian superstition and fanaticism. During his lifetime he wrote 20,000 letters to important people. (Thirty-nine of his works were placed on the Catholic forbidden-books index). Voltaire’s aim was not religious destruction, although he and the critics of the day were fully aware they were fomenting a revolution in the fundamental belief of the European people. He once said: “If God did not exist, it would be altogether necessary to invent one”. His most persistent attack was upon Christianity’s intolerance. Judged by Voltaire’s view of good and evil, the Church’s intolerance was deemed evil. By the end of his influence in the 1770’s, philosophers were receiving government pensions and taking control of universities. Many European monarchs promoted the works of like philosophers, and some tried to establish ‘enlightened welfare states’ holding to rational laws and institutions. In American colonies, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin promoted concepts supporting enlightenment. The war of Independence (1760’s) was welcomed as a step toward its realization. The Declaration of Independence in 1776, embodied many of its enlightened libertarian ideals. The rise of the encyclopaedists during his time constituted a symbol of achievement and affirmation of the new philosophies, and expounded the merits of Deism (a belief in God based on reason and a tenet that God does not interfere with mans affairs). The Enlightenment affected every sphere of culture; e.g. Mozart’s The Magic Flute, was a tribute to Freemasonry and German unity. It was the era of Beethoven, Shakespearean theatre, and Michaelangelo. It was during this time that saw the extension of Theatre and the Renaissance’s glorification of the human body with the sculpting of naked bodies. Orthodox arguments, drawn from traditional premise, were simply rejected as being ‘unreasonable’ However the Enlightenment view did not go unchallenged. Joseph Butler (1692-1752) wrote against Deism with his The Analogy of Religion, where he stated ... “reason provides no complete system of knowledge, and in life it can only provide us with probabilities, as life is filled with obscurities and the unexplained”. And then there were the Revivals. New Moves of God The Age of Reason was not entirely without God’s witness. A spiritual renewal termed “The Evangelical Awakening” was dawning. Three countries were significantly influenced to the extent neither experienced any revolution, as was the case with other European nations. They were the British Isles, through the Methodists influence, Germany through Puritanism, and the American Colonies through the Great Awakening. ‘Pietism’ through the influence of people like Zinzendorf, (1700-1760) restored the necessity of a meeting with God in the soul. It taught that an individual experience, and an inner witness was necessary in the ‘born again’ relationship with God. His influence in Germany birthed the Moravian church, which became the first large scale Protestant missionary force in history. Its work is recognized today as “the founding restoration of Pentecostalism”. It was during Voltaire's time of the 1740’s, which saw the rise of outdoor evangelical crusades and revivals in the British Isles under George Whitfield and John Wesley, (much to the displeasure and opposition of the Anglican clergy). America was meanwhile experiencing a move of the Spirit known as ‘The Great Awakening’. In the early stages, Pietism was influential during early evangelical revivals. It helped to restore pastoral visitation, and greatly enriched Christian music. Albeit, many stoic clergy resisted and attempted to deaden its “emotionalism”. The very first signs of Pietism were attacked. For example, Archbishop of Canterbury, John Tillotson vigorously denounced “religious emotionalism” (this included any emotional expression by preachers), saying that “men should reform their conduct; they should be generous, humane and tolerant, and avoid bigotry and fanaticism”. Despite all of this, God began to revive the Church after a time of spiritual famine experienced since the 1600’s. John Wesley  At the age of six, John Wesley (picture) 1703-1791, was rescued
from a burning rectory. His escape made a deep impression on his
mind; and thereafter spoke of himself as a "brand plucked from
the burning," and “a child of providence”.Being a son of an Anglican minister, the fifteenth of nineteen children and standing at only 5’3”, Wesley was to join a group of other students at Oxford University who were committed to outworking a form of holiness similar to what they saw illustrated in the lives of Paul and the Apostles. Within the group’s small membership was his brother Charles (who was later renown for his 9000 hymns) and George Whitfield. Together they established a religious form of “methods to achieve personal holiness”. The groups’ name termed “The Methodists” soon stuck. Wesley was once quoted as saying “my chief motive is the hope of saving my own soul. I hope to learn the true sense of the Gospel of Christ by preaching it to the heathen.” So in January 1736, Wesley boarded a ship bound for Georgia America. During the coarse of the journey, the lives of all on board were threatened by a storm. In his company were Moravian Christians from Germany who continued to sing and praise God with a calmness that challenged Wesley as to whether he actually new Christ personally at the heart level. When he enquired as to why they were not frightened, they stated that neither they nor their woman and children were afraid to die. Wesley’s introduction to this “heart level” witness was in time going to turn the Church in England upside-down. Upon arriving in America Wesley settled in Georgia (a relatively new colony) to minister to the English settlers and help evangelise the local native tribes. His Georgia ministry was unfruitful. He saw it as “an utter failure”, and later wrote “I went to America to convert the Indians, but oh who shall convert me?” Not only did he dislike the natives but he fell in love with a woman (the chief magistrates daughter) whom he later decided not to marry for the sake of his ministry. However, when she married someone else Wesley rebuked her publicly and refused her communion citing various sins. Her new husband took Wesley to court over his allegations along with other people who were also filing complaints against him. Under pressure, Wesley in December 1737 fled back to England.  George WhitfieldWesley’s return almost crossed George Whitfield's 1739 arrival to America. Landing in Delaware then travelling up to Massachusetts before heading south to Wesley’s Georgia. Whitfield (picture) 1714-1770, in some respects took up where Wesley left off but added a new dimension to his preaching; that of “Spiritual rebirth”. The need to be born again, irrespective of church membership, was preached pre-eminently during the Great Awakening. Whitfield preached “Ye must be born again” on horseback throughout much of America at open field gatherings and at any church that would have him. One can not overstate the importance of the Great Awakening on America’s history. It served as a godly foundation toward the spiritual and political developments of the 18th and 19th centuries and also helped to unite the then religiously diverse colonies. The Awakening promoted religious pluralism and nourished the idea that all denominations were equally legitimate, and that not one denomination had a monopoly on the truth. Understandably, this was disturbing, even abominable to the upper class and traditional clergy, who were used to a system in which they were considered superior, and where they enjoyed certain rights and privileges. Whitfield returned to England for a time, and again preached powerfully in open-air campaigns attracting large audiences. Many of the Churches, however, denounced him and closed their doors to his rhetoric. Nevertheless, many ears were awakened amongst the poorer, more common folk and committed their lives to Christ, and for the first time without needing prior approval from the clergy. English Revival When a revival broke out in Bristol, Whitfield asked Wesley to take over the preaching. When the local churches closed their pulpits, Wesley built his own church, the first Methodist Chapel. Feeling that “the Church had failed in its duty to call sinners to repentance, and that many of the clergymen were corrupt while souls were perishing in their sins”, Wesley regarded himself as commissioned by God to bring about revival in the Church. He said “no opposition, or persecution, or obstacles could prevail against the divine urgency and authority of this commission”. Wesley was known to add the concept of Gods love to the born again message. He said “if people loved God, in return they would be saved from their sin and made holy”. He was sending the message to the ordinary person that all classes of people were equal, a novel idea to many at the time, and unpopular to many in the established church. After scores of new conversions Wesley employed his
leadership skills to organise follow-up groups, bible studies
and the like. For decades to come the Methodists movement
continued to grow within the Church in England. Additionally,
the Great Awakening in America created a huge need for
leadership (which Wesley was also determined to meet). |
The Church of Rome, in the meantime, still typified the old
order, and soon became the target of ‘enlightened rage’. 
In 1854, Pope Pius IX (picture), and possibly in reaction to
this threat and the worshiping of the goddess of Reason,
declared ex cathedra (from the chair, and without council), the
extra-biblical doctrine of Mary’s Immaculate Conception.