Saturday, August 22, 2009

Goodbye, Blogger

Dear Blogger,
Thank you for being relatively user-friendly when I was new to blogging. Thanks for never giving me any humongous problems. But after 2 years of using this site, I am switching to Xanga. It has many more options and I don't like having to search my brain for my old username on here each time I try to log in. So if you'd like to visit me and read my posts still, my new site is HERE.
Love you all,
Awesomepossum

Saturday, May 30, 2009

End of the Year Post

The most important thing I learned this year was about Martin Luther. It is interesting to see how the life of a man who lived hundreds of years ago is similar to our own lives.

The final event that began the Protestant Reformation occurred on October 31, 1517, when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses on the Wittenberg church door. He protested Johann Tetzil’s selling of indulgences, and accused the church of heresy after heresy. However, the Roman Catholic Church was stubborn and condemned him as a heretic. This caused a huge outrage in Europe, and thus started the Protestant Reformation.

Luther’s life is comparable to some Christians’ lives today. Luther stuck up for what was right, telling the church that it was wrong and that its teachings did not correspond with the Bible. They rejected Martin and called him “heretic.”

Today, true Christians stick up for what is right, telling the culture that it is wrong and that its teachings do not correspond with reality. The culture condemns such Christians as “religious.” The difference is that the culture today is subtler; so many Christians don’t notice what is happening.

What can we do to solve this problem? Luther’s example shows that we need to reveal the truth to the public. He wrote out what the Bible said and nailed it in full view of everyone. Copies were made, and the word spread from there.

Luther was not afraid of being judged; when he was taken to court he would not recant what he said, even if it meant sparing his own life. Luther wanted everyone to know the truth, and would not tolerate the deception of the church. The solution to our problem today can be found in his life. As Gandhi would say, “Be the change you want to see in the world” and spread the word while you’re at it.

Saturday, April 25, 2009

The English Bill of Rights

“In 1688-89 the English people drove King James II from the throne in the ‘Glorious Revolution.’ This peaceable (and apparently bloodless) revolution brought an end to the old theory of the divine right of kings and clearly established the supremacy of Parliament. To that end, in 1689, Parliament enacted the English Bill of Rights.” (source)

Mary II was then offered the crown because she was the daughter of James II. However, her husband (and cousin), William III, found it too humiliating to rule under his wife. He and Mary were accordingly offered the choice of ruling together. This was decided upon, and the new king and queen jointly ruled England. (source)

The English Bill of Rights told the king that passing, suspending, dispensing of, or executing laws, charging people for religious purposes, taxing people for personal purposes, or having an army in times of peace was illegal unless approved by Parliament. It also said that the subjects were free to petition the king, Protestants were allowed to keep arms for defense, elections for members of Parliament should be free and that the goings-on in Parliament would be free, and that parliament meetings should be held frequently. What's more, the bill attempted to make the courts fairer by stating that cruel punishments, high fines and/or a great fine for bail should not be given, and it tried to make the judging fairer. (source)

The English Bill of Rights in 1689 was an inspiration for the American Bill of Rights in 1791. There are many similarities. For example, the eighth American amendment says, “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” The English Bill of Rights reads, “Excessive bail ought not to be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” (source) (source, Amar 3, Applewood 1)

The English Bill of Rights decreased the power of the king and heightened the power of Parliament. A monarchy was still in place, and the foundations had not been set for a democracy. However, the separation of powers in England was slowly beginning to take place.

Works Cited

Amar, Akhil Reed. The Bill of Rights: Creation and Reconstruction. Connecticut, U.S.A: Yale University. 1998.

Applewood Books, The Bill of Rights: With Writings That Formed Its Foundation. Ingram Pub Services. 2006.

Friday, April 10, 2009

The Thirty Years' War

Though the Thirty Year’s War started out as a religious war, it was inevitable that it would end in a mess of politics.

“In 1618, a local Bohemian conflict on the use of churches in rural regions culminated in the Defenestration of Prague. Two Catholic aristocrats were thrown out of a window of the (Protestant) Bohemian chancellery.” (source) This act on May 23, 1618 “launched the Thirty Years’ War.” (Bonney 13)

The Thirty Years’ War is sometimes known as the “last of the religious wars” even though it would not be the end of these struggles. It was a Protestant rebellion against the authority of the Hapsburg Holy Roman Emperors, who were Catholic. Soon, politics became involved as well and it wasn’t just a battle for faith anymore. (source, Wedgwood 1)

“This ‘30 Years’ War’ is considered one of the most devastating wars of all time. One third of the people of Europe died during those 3 decades, either from the use of weapons, famine or epidemics. One third of Europe was devastated and remained so for another generation.” (source) Most of the war was fought on German soil, and therefore much of the country was destroyed. (source)

All attempts at making peace had failed, but finally the Peace of Westphalia was successful and settled on October 24, 1648. It said that all German states could determine their own religions. “The chief participants in the negotiations were the allies Sweden and France; their opponents, Spain and the Holy Roman Empire; and the various parts of the empire (which had been riven by the war) together with the newly independent Netherlands.” (source) “It marked the end of the Holy Roman Empire as an effective institution and inaugurated the modern European state system.” (source)

“The chief results of the Thirty Years’ War were: the foundation and recognition of a unified Austria under the rule of the German Habsburgs; the revival, in a certain doubtful sense though, of the Holy Roman Empire; the establishment of Sweden on German soil; the permanent weakening of Denmark; the renunciation by Holland of all efforts to drive Spain out of southern Netherlands; [and] an enormous increase of the power of France.” (source)


Works Cited

Bonney, Richard. The Thirty Years' War 1618-1648. Great Britain: Osprey Publishing. 2002.

Wedgwood, C.V. & Grafton, Anthony. The Thirty Years War. Broadway, New York: The New York Review of Books. 2005.

Friday, December 5, 2008

Events leading to the Protestant Reformation

The Protestant Reformation could never have happened if not for three key factors that paved its way. These three events were the main set-ups for the Reformation, and if any one of them had not occurred, there’s a good chance that the Reformation would never have occurred either.

The first event was the Renaissance; an important key to setting up the Reformation. “The term ‘Renaissance’ literally means ‘rebirth’ and is the period in European civilization immediately following the Middle Ages, conventionally held to have been characterized by a surge of interest in classical learning and values. The Renaissance also witnessed the discovery and exploration of new continents, the substitution of the Copernican for the Ptolemaic system of astronomy, the decline of the feudal system and the growth of commerce, and the invention or application of such potentially powerful innovations as paper, printing, the mariner's compass, and gunpowder. To the scholars and thinkers of the day, however, it was primarily a time of the revival of classical learning and wisdom after a long period of cultural decline and stagnation.” (source) “The Renaissance was the time in history when people began thinking, reading, and reasoning for themselves-apart from the Roman Catholic Church.” (Jim 62)

Another important factor leading to the Reformation was the decline of the papacy. “After the reign of Pope Innocent III (1198-1216,) the papacy lost much of its power and prestige, and starting at the beginning of the fourteenth century, it took a nose dive. …The papacy was weighted down with corruption, immorality, materialism, and secularism, so much so that at the close of the fifteenth century, it appeared there was little chance for reformation from within.” (Jim 59) The lower church leaders also became corrupted. The church was not the same, and many European believers thought that the church and Europe both were under God’s judgment. (source, Jim 59)

Peter Waldo, John Wycliffe, Jan Hus, Johann Gutenberg, and Girolamo Savonarola all paved the way for Martin Luther’s teachings in the 1500s. Peter Waldo’s followers were excommunicated, persecuted, and burned as heretics. John Wycliffe attempted to translate the Bible into English, creating the Wycliffe Bible. Jan Hus was burned at the stake, the fire being fueled by his own books. Johann Gutenberg developed movable type, so the Reformer’s teachings could be spread. It is estimated that he printed about 180 copies of the Bible. Girolamo Savonarola sent kids to collect all the worldly items that were distracting people from living in a godly manner. The pile of junk was 15 stories high! (source)

The final event that began the Protestant Reformation occurred on October 31, 1517, when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses on the Wittenberg church door. He protested Johann Tetzil’s selling of indulgences, and accused the church of heresy after heresy. However, the Roman Catholic Church was stubborn and condemned him as a heretic. This caused a huge outrage in Europe, and thus started the Protestant Reformation. (source, source, Jackson 69, 74)

Works Cited

Jackson, Dave & Neta. Hero Tales. Minneapolis, Minnesota: Bethany House Publishers. 1996.

Jim Bell, James. Complete Idiot's Guide to the Reformation & Protestantism, The. Indianapolis, Indiana: Alpha Books. 2002.

Saturday, November 22, 2008

Louis XIV (The Sun King of France)

King Louis XIV was born on September 5, 1638. “He ascended to the throne a few months before his fifth birthday, but did not assume actual personal control of the government until the death of his prime minister (Premier ministre), the Italian Jules Cardinal Mazarin, in 1661.” (source)

“Among many names, Louis the XIVth was also popularly known as The Sun King (in French le Roi Soleil) because of the idea that, just as the planets revolve around the Sun, so too should France and the court revolve around him. As a result, he was commonly associated with Apollo Helios, the Greco-Roman god of the Sun.” (source)

In 1660, the king married Maria Theresa. He was kind to her, but very unfaithful. He pursued his sister-in-law, then her maid-of-honor, then that maid’s friend, then the governess that friend hired for her children. The governess was Madame de Maintenon, and strangely enough, she became friends with the queen. In 1683, the queen died in her arms, and Madame de Maintenon secretly married Louis XIV. However, she could not become the queen. (source)

“In 1667 Louis XIV decided to move the royal household and government from Paris to Versailles. The center of his new palace was the hunting lodge his father had built in 1624. Built in a Boroque style, the Palace of Versailles was enlarged by architects Le Brun and Le Vau. King Louis XIV, the Sun King, had an enormous influence on the art and architecture of the time. Boroque architecture was fairly geometric which was ‘in keeping with the French political system—absolute monarchy personified by King Louis XIV.’ Because he is referred to as the Sun King, the architects gave the palace a room with ‘solar illusions.’ This Hall of Mirrors added to the elegant and majestic quality of the Boroque palace. Many years later in 1919, Germany ended the war by signing the Treaty of Versailles in the Hall of Mirrors. Another characteristic element of the Boroque time period was the elaborate gardens. To enhance his Palace of Versailles, King Louis XIV hired landscape architect Andre Le Notre to design the Boroque gardens surrounding the large estate. Pools and fountains, which also bedeck the vast landscape, are other features relevant to Boroque style. In sum, the king’s influence on architecture of the time is extremely evident in the Palace of Versailles.” (source)


There was also quite a bit of war during the reign of Louis XIV. The Thirty Years War ended in 1648, and from 1648-1653, there was civil war and unrest. In 1658, England helped France defeat Spain. In 1667, there was the War of Devolution with Spain, from 1688-1697, the Nine Years War, and in 1701-1714, the War of the Spanish Succession. (source, Lewis 76)

Between 1701-1712, four of the king’s loved-ones died. He filled his final years with persecution of the Protestants, and on September 1, 1715, King Louis XIV died from gangrene. (McConville 20)

Works Cited

Lewis, W. H. The Splendid Century: Life in the France of Louis XIV. Prospect Heights, Illinois: Waveland Press. 1953.

McConville, Brendan. The King’s Three Faces: The Rise and Fall of Royal America, 1688-1776. Chapel Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina Press. 2006.

Friday, November 14, 2008

The Early Development of Paris and London

Early Paris

Paris, originally a small fishing island, was founded over 2,000 years ago by the Gauls of the Parisii tribe. However, Rome had its eye on it. “The Roman conquest became final in 52 B.C., when Vercingetorix, who had succeeded in uniting the Gauls, was defeated [at] Alesia.” (Mokhtefi 4) “Julius Caesar's army took over the city in 52 B.C. and the Roman influence lingered well into the fifth century A.D. when the Frankish king Clovis I once again united his kingdom, and made Paris its capital. In 987 A.D. when Hugh Capet, Count of Paris, became the King of France, Paris' position as the hub of French government was secured.” (source) (source)

Also around 2,000 years ago, the small city of Londinium was founded by the Romans. The aggressive woman warrior Boadicea conquered the city in 61 A.D. but it was taken back some years later. (source, source)

When “William Duke of Normandy defeated the English king…it brought French control, language and culture to England, profoundly changing the language [and] making the English language what it is today. The Tudor Dynasty was established with the conquest of Henry over the French in 1485.” (source)

“In 1123 St. Bartholomew's Priory was founded in the city, and other monastic houses quickly followed…In 1176 the first stone London Bridge was built, mere yards from the original Roman bridge across the Thames.” (source) In France, “work on Notre Dame Cathedral was started in the 12th century (and finished 200 years later.)” (source)

“London, long the largest British town-did not replace Paris as the largest city in western Europe until the seventeenth century.” (Palliser 2)

Early Paris and early London had a lot in common. Though physical distance separated these two places, they both went through similar situations at the same times, though under different rulers and conditions.

Works Cited

Mokhtefi, Elaine. Paris: An Illustrated History. New York: Hippocrene Books. 2002.

Palliser, David M. Towns and Local Communities in Medieval and Early Modern England. Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing Company. 2006.



St. Bartholomew's Priory and Notre Dame Cathedral