CHRISTIAN CHURCHES. 



In consequence of the secular spirit predomin- 

 ating in the high ecclesiastical circles at the com- 

 mencement of the 1 6th century, the sale of indul- 

 gences, and the abuses connected with it, and, in 

 general, the prevalence of corruption, a powerful 

 reaction in favour of primitive faith and purity of 

 manners took place over a considerable part of 

 Europe, which found able and zealous exponents 

 in Luther in Germany, Zwingli in Switzerland, 

 Calvin and Farel in France, Cranmer and Lati- 

 mer in England, and John Knox in Scotland. 

 Political circumstances combined with religious 

 aspirations in bringing about the establishment of 

 churches, independent of the Roman hierarchy, 

 in Germany, part of Switzerland, England, Scot- 

 land, Denmark, Sweden, and, after a fierce 

 struggle, in the Netherlands. The new doctrines 

 had made a powerful impression in France as 

 well as in Italy and Spain ; but the turn of 

 events, and the policy of the government, became 

 ultimately unfavourable to them in France ; while 

 in Italy and Spain, they were extinguished by the 

 vigilance and terrors of the Inquisition. 



The Confessions of the churches of the Reforma- 

 tion, drawn up soon after secession from Rome, 

 exhibit, amid some diversities, a remarkable 

 amount of agreement on the whole in the essential 

 elements of Christian faith and practice. Em- 

 bracing the substance of the Apostolic Creed and 

 of the doctrinal decisions of the first four general 

 councils, they agree, in the main, on the one 

 hand, regarding the Godhead, the incarnation, the 

 atonement, justification, holiness, a general judg- 

 ment, and eternal life ; and, on the other, in 

 renouncing transubstantiation, the propitiatory 

 sacrifice of the Mass, purgatory, Mariolatry, the 

 invocation of saints, the worship of images, and 

 the government and claims of the Roman pontiff. 

 These Confessions are, indeed, more at one than 

 the churches of whose faith they are the received 

 symbols. 



Soon after separation from the Church of Rome, 

 a dispute arose between Luther and Zwingli 

 regarding the Lord's Supper the former main- 

 taining the real presence, but rejecting transub- 

 stantiation ; the latter holding, that the elements of 

 bread and wine in the sacrament are simply signs 

 of spiritual blessings. Luther's tenacity in hold- 

 ing to his doctrine on this subject, which is called 

 Consubstantiation, led to a division in the Refor- 

 mation ranks : those agreeing with him being 

 called Lutherans ; and the other sections being 

 termed the Reformed Churches, usually known 

 on the continent of Europe as the Calvinistic 

 Churches, from the predominating influence of 

 Calvin. 



The Lutheran Church which prevails in a great 

 part of Germany, is the national religion of Den- 

 mark, Sweden, and Norway, and exists in Holland, 

 France, Poland, &c. has passed through several 

 phases since the days of Luther. Extremely 

 sacramentarian after his death, it strove subse- 

 quently against pietism and rationalism. When, 

 in Prussia, by the influence of the government, a 

 union was formed, in 1817, between the Lutheran 

 and Reformed Churches, under the name of the I 

 United Evangelical Church, a strenuous opposition ' 

 was made by the party who were then first known 

 as Old Lutherans, who have come to be distin- 

 guished by an excessive attachment to things at 

 first left in the church as indifferent, such as images 



and pictures in places of worship, clerical vest- 

 ments, the form of exorcism in baptism, &c. While 

 Luther himself held by the Augustinian doctrines 

 of grace, many of the churches called by his name 

 have adopted Arminianism, as, for instance, those 

 of Norway and Sweden, where, however, a reaction 

 has lately appeared. Two movements of supreme 

 interest and importance have obtained special 

 development within the Lutheran Church the 

 rationalistic, which regards the Scriptures not as 

 being, but as containing the ' Word of God,' which, 

 in further stages, eliminates the supernatural 

 element out of the Scriptures, looks upon the 

 books of both Testaments simply as historical 

 products, reduces Christianity itself to a develop- 

 ment of the religious in human nature, and ends 

 occasionally in substantial pantheism or mate- 

 rialism ; and the critical, which consists in the 

 application of literary and scientific methods to 

 the interpretation of the sacred records, and 

 which has been found very frequently to ally itself 

 to rationalism. Of late, the tide is believed to 

 have somewhat turned in favour of the doctrines 

 of Luther himself, which are distinctively termed 

 evangelical, as opposed to rationalistic sentiments, 

 on the one hand, and to Romanistic views, on the 

 other. 



In its constitution, the Lutheran Church is 

 generally unepiscopal. In countries in which 

 bishops exist, as in Denmark and Sweden, their 

 powers are so limited as to give no hierarchical 

 supremacy. Where Lutheranism is the national 

 religion, the sovereign is recognised as the su- 

 preme bishop, and the church is governed by con- 

 sistories appointed by him, and composed both of 

 clergymen and laymen. The members of congre- 

 gations possess almost no rights. 



The United Evangelical Church of Prussia and 

 the German States has about 14 millions of 

 adherents ; the whole number of Lutherans is 

 more than 30 millions. 



As Germany is the seat of Lutheranism, so 

 Great Britain, the United States of America, and 

 the British colonies are to be regarded as the 

 headquarters of the Reformed religion, which, as 

 a still more severely scriptural system, took shape 

 at Geneva, and through the constant intercourse 

 between the Reformers of Switzerland, France, and 

 England, was adopted by the framers of the arti- 

 cles of the Church of England. It was introduced 

 into Scotland under the auspices of John Knox, 

 the companion and friend of Calvin. Among 

 the Reformed Churches, besides those of Eng- 

 land and Scotland, are the Protestant Church of 

 France, that of Holland and Belgium, many 

 German Churches, the once flourishing Protestant 

 Church of Poland, &c. with those in America and 

 elsewhere which have sprung from them. The 

 most important controversy in the Reformed 

 Churches is that which relates to Arminianism, 

 so called from Arminius, its author (1560-1609), 

 which was condemned by the General Synod of 

 Dort (1618-1619). This controversy is similar to, 

 although it travels somewhat beyond, that which 

 was waged between Pelagius and Augustine in 

 the beginning of the 5th century. Arminians and 

 Calvinists differ concerning the doctrines of human 

 nature, the atonement, efficacious grace, and the 

 divine decree ; Arminians giving prominence to 

 the human element, and the Calvinists to the 

 divine, in the way of salvation. The Scottish 



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