How Did The Reformation Affect The Europeans

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The Reformation brought dramatic changes to the lives and views of Europeans. The
Reformation split Europe into different Christian factions; however, the vast majority of
Europeans remained Christian and identified more closely with other Europeans than other groups from around the world as a result. While the Reformation changed many people’s religious outlook, their political and ethnic perspectives remained unchanged. The europeans remained distrusting of the Muslims of North Africa and the Middle East, while viewing the natives of the Americas and sub-Saharan Africa as almost sub-human.
In the wake of the Reformation, the political status of most of Europe remained unchanged. Monarchs and nobles continued to dominate politics and even, at times, dominated
religious
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Luther’s ideas about
“Justification by Faith” removed the compulsion to do good works from the forefront of the actions of many people. Calvin’s doctrine of predestination removed from the lives of the faithful the precept of having to earn a place in Heaven. The role of the papacy as an institution worthy of loyalty and subservience was undercut by the positions of Luther, Calvin, Henry VIII and others. The replacement of the Pope with various other religious or political leaders throughout different regions of Europe was a dramatic shift in the religious and political outlook of millions of Europeans. Radical reformers, such as the Anabaptists, caused dramatic turmoil with their dismissal of many of the cornerstone beliefs of Christianity and society.
The intolerance of religious diversity seen in the wake of the Reformation paralleled the persecutions of heretics, Jews, and Muslims which had been common throughout the Middle
Ages. The rise of religious divisions within Europe accompanied the rise of stronger states and monarchies throughout the continent, as religion was frequently used as a pretext by states to
justify