Council of Trent summary

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Council of Trent, (1545–63) 19th ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church, which made sweeping reforms and laid down dogma clarifying nearly all doctrines contested by the Protestants. Convened by Pope Paul III at Trento in northern Italy, it served to revitalize Roman Catholicism in many parts of Europe and was a key part of the Catholic Counter-Reformation. In its first period (1545–47) it accepted the Nicene Creed as the basis of Catholic faith, fixed the canon of the Old and New Testaments, set the number of sacraments at seven, and defined the nature and consequences of original sin; it also ruled against Martin Luther’s doctrine of justification by faith alone. In its second period (1551–52) it confirmed the doctrine of transubstantiation and issued decrees on episcopal jurisdiction and clerical discipline. In the final period (1562–63) it defined the mass as a true sacrifice and issued statements on several other doctrinal issues. By the end of the 16th century many of the abuses that had motivated the Protestant Reformation had disappeared, and the Catholic church had reclaimed many of its European followers.

Counter-Reformation Summary

Counter-Reformation, in the history of Christianity, the Roman Catholic efforts directed in the 16th and early 17th centuries both against the Protestant Reformation and toward internal renewal. The Roman Catholic Church responded to the Protestant challenge by purging itself of the abuses and

Italy Summary

Italy, country of south-central Europe, occupying a peninsula that juts deep into the Mediterranean Sea. Italy comprises some of the most varied and scenic landscapes on Earth and is often described as a country shaped like a boot. At its broad top stand the Alps, which are among the world’s most

Roman Catholicism Summary

Roman Catholicism, Christian church that has been the decisive spiritual force in the history of Western civilization. Along with Eastern Orthodoxy and Protestantism, it is one of the three major branches of Christianity. It is led by the pope, as the bishop of Rome, and the Holy See forms the

Sarpi, detail of a portrait (the black spot on his face covers the scar from an unsuccessful attempt on his life in 1607); in the Bodleian Library, Oxford, Eng.

Paolo Sarpi Summary

Paolo Sarpi was an Italian patriot, scholar, and state theologian during Venice’s struggle with Pope Paul V. Between 1610 and 1618 he wrote his History of the Council of Trent, an important work decrying papal absolutism. Among Italians, he was an early advocate of the separation of church and