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109-439: The Swiss Mennonites are the oldest and were possibly the most influential body of Anabaptists at some time. The earliest recorded Anabaptist movement during Reformation times originated in the village of Zollikon near Zürich in 1525. Conrad Grebel (ca. 1496–1526) and Felix Manz (ca. 1496–1527), followers of Huldrych Zwingli , divided from Zwingli on the issue of infant baptism versus believers baptism . They organized in

218-464: A Melchizedek priesthood holder is generally the province of the leadership of a stake . In such a disciplinary council, the stake presidency and, sometimes in more difficult cases, the stake high council attend. It is possible to appeal a decision of a stake membership council to the church's First Presidency . For females and for male members not initiated into the Melchizedek priesthood,

327-562: A two-volume printed version of the Vulgata in the early 1450s. High and Low German , Italian, Dutch, Spanish, Czech and Catalan translations of the Bible were published between 1466 and 1492; in France, the Bible's abridged French versions gained popularity. Laypeople who read the Bible could challenge their priests' sermons, as it happened already in 1515. Completed by Jerome (d. 420),

436-512: A vote must be taken at Sunday services; some congregations require that this vote be unanimous. In the Church of Sweden and the Church of Denmark , excommunicated individuals are turned out from their parish in front of their congregation. They are not forbidden, however, to attend church and participate in other acts of devotion, although they are to sit in a place appointed by the priest (which

545-675: A ward membership council is held. In such cases, a bishop determines whether withdrawal of membership or a lesser sanction is warranted. He does this in consultation with his two counselors, with the bishop making the final determination after prayer. The decision of a ward membership council can be appealed to the stake president. The following list of variables serves as a general set of guidelines for when membership withdrawal or lesser action may be warranted, beginning with those more likely to result in severe sanction: Notices of withdrawal of membership may be made public, especially in cases of apostasy, where members could be misled. However,

654-514: A "rhetoric of reform". Medieval examples include the Cluniac Reform in the 10th–11th centuries , and the 11th-century Gregorian Reform , both striving against lay influence over church affairs. When demanding a church reform, medieval authors mainly adopted a conservative and utopian approach, expressing their admiration for a previous "golden age" or "apostolic age" when the Church had allegedly been perfect and free of abuses. Both

763-634: A Hussite church hierarchy enabled the Czech aristocrats and urban magistrates to assume control of the Hussite clergy from the 1470s. The radical Hussites set up their own Church known as the Union of Bohemian Brethren . They rejected the separation of clergy and laity, and condemned all forms of violence and oath taking. Marshall writes that the Lollards, Hussites and conciliarist theologians "collectively give

872-399: A better mind, and recover them to the fellowship and unity of the Church." At least one modern Reformed theologian argues that excommunication is not the final step in the disciplinary process. Jay E. Adams argues that in excommunication, the offender is still seen as a brother, but in the final step they become "as the heathen and tax collector" ( Matthew 18:17). Adams writes, "Nowhere in

981-406: A clear distinction between the supernatural and the human, Renaissance artists depicted God and the saints in a more human way. The institutional church was the reliable religious authority, through its bishops and priests, transmitting without error both apostolic tradition and the Bible, as interpreted by the decisions of ecumenical councils and by papal authority , through the mechanism of

1090-572: A community of believers whose religious ideal—constantly aspired to if seldom attained—was peace and mutual love." The Catholic Church taught that entry into heaven required dying in a state of grace . Based on Christ's parable on the Last Judgement , the Church considered the performance of good works by the faithful, such as feeding the hungry and visiting the sick, as an important condition of salvation. Villagers and urban laypeople were frequently members of confraternities (such as

1199-698: A constitution and the name Conference of the Mennonites in Switzerland was adopted. The Swiss Mennonite Conference is a member of the Federation of Free Churches in Switzerland and the Mennonite World Conference . In 2003 the conference had 2500 members in 14 congregations. The congregations range in size from 40 to 500. Each church is autonomous and there is much diversity within the conference. A congregation formed in 1991

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1308-453: A degree of associating ourselves with (excommunicants), as there is in making them our guests at our tables, or in being their guests at their tables; as is manifest in the text, where we are commanded to have no company with them, no not to eat [...] That this respects not eating with them at the Lord's supper, but a common eating, is evident by the words, that the eating here forbidden, is one of

1417-399: A genuine revelation could not challenge traditional religious principles. Apostolic tradition verified religious practices that some Protestant groups say had no explicit Biblical foundations, such as infant baptism . Latin was the language of public worship in most dioceses of Catholic Europe although few laypeople understood Latin. The Eucharist, the central element of liturgy ,

1526-559: A gift of faith independently of their acts. He first denounced the idea of justification through human efforts in his Disputatio contra scholasticam theologiam ('Disputation against Scholastic Theology') in September 1517. Excommunicated Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to deprive, suspend, or limit membership in a religious community or to restrict certain rights within it, in particular those of being in communion with other members of

1635-476: A loss of church membership. Once formal membership restrictions are in place, persons may not take the sacrament or enter church temples , nor may they offer public prayers or sermons. Such persons may continue to attend most church functions and are allowed to wear temple garments , pay tithes and offerings, and participate in church classes if their conduct is orderly. Formal membership restrictions typically lasts for one year, after which one may be reinstated as

1744-714: A major schism within Western Christianity. It is considered one of the events that signified the end of the Middle Ages and the beginning of the early modern period in Europe. When the Reformation era ended is disputed among modern scholars. Prior to Martin Luther and other Protestant Reformers , there were earlier reform movements within Western Christianity. The Protestant Reformation, however,

1853-439: A member can be excommunicated, although it has a canon according to which ecclesiastical burial may be refused to someone "declared excommunicate for some grievous and notorious crime and no man to testify to his repentance". The punishment of imprisonment for being excommunicated from the Church of England was removed from English law in 1963. Historian Christopher Hill found that, in pre-revolutionary England, excommunication

1962-596: A member in good standing. In the more grievous or recalcitrant cases, withdrawal of membership becomes a disciplinary option. Such an action is generally reserved for what are seen as the most serious sins , including committing serious crimes such as murder, child abuse , and incest; committing adultery ; involvement in or teaching of polygamy ; involvement in homosexual conduct; apostasy ; participation in an abortion ; teaching false doctrine; or openly criticizing church leaders. The General Handbook states that formally joining another church constitutes apostasy and

2071-454: A moral renewal in Florence . He was arrested and executed for heresy , but his meditations remained a popular reading. Historian John Bossy (as summarized by Eamon Duffy) emphasized that "medieval Christianity had been fundamentally concerned with the creation and maintenance of peace in a violent world. “Christianity” in medieval Europe denoted neither an ideology nor an institution, but

2180-733: A penitential period. It is generally done with the goal of restoring the member to full communion. Before an excommunication of significant duration is imposed, the bishop is usually consulted. The Eastern Orthodox do have a means of expulsion, by pronouncing anathema , but this is reserved only for acts of serious and unrepentant heresy. As an example of this, the Second Council of Constantinople in 553, in its eleventh capitula, declared: "If anyone does not anathematize Arius , Eunomius , Macedonius , Apollinaris , Nestorius , Eutyches and Origen , as well as their impious writings, as also all other heretics already condemned and anathematized by

2289-505: A protest (or dissent) against the edict of the Diet of Speyer (1529) , were the first individuals to be called Protestants. The edict reversed concessions made to the Lutherans with the approval of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V three years earlier . Europe experienced a period of dreadful calamities from the early 14th century . These culminated in a devastating pandemic known as

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2398-525: A special emphasis on the education of laypeople. A leader of the movement the Dutch Wessel Gansfort (d. 1489) attacked abuses of indulgences. As the manufacturing of paper from rags and the printing machine with movable type were spreading in Europe, books could be bought at a reasonable price from the 15th century . Demand for religious literature was especially high. The German inventor Johannes Gutenberg (d. 1468) first published

2507-610: A theology professor at the University of Wittenberg in Saxony. Born into a middle-class family, Luther entered an Augustinian monastery after a heavy thunderstorm dreadfully reminded him the risk of sudden death and eternal damnation, but his anxiety about his sinfulness did not abate. His studies on the works of the Late Roman theologian Augustine of Hippo (d. 430) convinced him that those whom God chose as his elect received

2616-586: A way of life. The Amish schism of the Mennonites originated with Jacob Amman in Switzerland. Many Amish Mennonites in America can be traced to the areas of Thun and Schwarzenburg in Canton Bern. Records of the conferences of the Swiss Mennonites have been consistently recorded since 1889, but various records indicate that an annual conference was an "old custom" in the 18th century. In 1898

2725-469: Is a contagious disease. The Bahá'í writings forbid association with Covenant-breakers and Bahá'ís are urged to avoid their literature, thus providing an exception to the Bahá'í principle of independent investigation of truth . Most Bahá'ís are unaware of the small Bahá'í divisions that exist. The purpose of excommunication is to exclude from the church those members who have behaviors or teachings contrary to

2834-486: Is accused of neglect of the means of grace or other duties required by the Word of God, the indulgence of sinful tempers, words or actions, the sowing of dissension, or any other violation of the order and discipline of the church, may, after proper labor and admonition, be censured, placed on probation, or expelled by the official board of the circuit of which he is a member. If he request a trial, however, within thirty dates of

2943-673: Is laid out in the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod 's 1986 explanation to the Small Catechism , defined beginning at Questions No. 277–284, in "The Office of Keys". Many Lutheran denominations operate under the premise that the entire congregation (as opposed to the pastor alone) must take appropriate steps for excommunication, and there are not always precise rules, to the point where individual congregations often set out rules for excommunicating laymen (as opposed to clergy). For example, churches may sometimes require that

3052-478: Is the most recent addition to the body. Though the Swiss conference is currently a relatively small body, the Swiss Mennonites have contributed greatly to the spread of Anabaptism across the world. Protestant Reformation Electors of Saxony Holy Roman Emperors Building Literature Theater Liturgies Hymnals Monuments Calendrical commemoration The Reformation , also known as

3161-581: Is usually considered to have started on 31 October 1517 with the publication of the Ninety-five Theses , authored by Martin Luther. Over three years later, on 3 January 1521, Luther was excommunicated by Pope Leo X . On 25 May 1521, at the Diet of Worms , Luther was condemned by the Holy Roman Empire , which officially banned citizens from defending or propagating Luther's ideas. Luther survived after being declared an outlaw due to

3270-414: Is worthy of membership withdrawal; however, merely attending another church does not constitute apostasy. A withdrawal of membership can occur only after a formal church membership council . Formerly called a "disciplinary council" or a "church court", the councils were renamed to avoid focusing on guilt and instead to emphasize the availability of repentance. The decision to withdraw the membership of

3379-505: The Age of Exploration , Pope Alexander VI claimed the right to distribute the newly discovered lands between Spain and Portugal, and his decision was confirmed in the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494. The Spanish and Portuguese conquests and developing trade networks contributed to the global expansion of Catholicism. The popes were generous patrons of art and architecture. Julius II ordered

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3488-621: The Archconfraternity of the Gonfalone ,) mutual-support guilds associated with a saint, or religious fraternities (such as the Third Order of Saint Francis .) The faithful made pilgrimages to saints' shrines , but the proliferation in the saints' number undermined their reputation. Church buildings were richly decorated with paintings, sculptures, and stained glass windows. While Romanesque and Gothic art made

3597-477: The Black Death which hit Europe, killing about one third of the population. Around 1500, the population of Europe was about 60–85 million people—no more than 75 percent of the mid-14th-century demographic maximum. Due to a shortage of workforce, the landlords began to restrict the rights of their tenants which led to rural revolts that often ended with a compromise. The constant fear of unexpected death

3706-533: The Catholic Church , excommunication is normally resolved by a declaration of repentance , profession of the Creed (if the offense involved heresy) and an Act of Faith, or renewal of obedience (if that was a relevant part of the offending act, i.e., an act of schism ) by the excommunicated person and the lifting of the censure ( absolution ) by a priest or bishop empowered to do this. "The absolution can be in

3815-616: The College of Cardinals developed into the Western Schism (1378-1417) when his opponents declared his election invalid and proclaimed the French Clement VII ( r.  1378–1394 ) pope. Clement returned to Avignon, establishing a rival line of popes who were considered as antipopes by their opponents. When taking sides between the two popes, church leaders mainly accepted the local ruler's decision, which weakened

3924-582: The Eucharist and can also be excluded from participating in the Divine Liturgy . They can even be excluded from entering a church when divine worship is being celebrated there. The decree of excommunication must indicate the precise effect of the excommunication and, if required, its duration. Those under major excommunication are in addition forbidden to receive not only the Eucharist but also

4033-506: The Eucharist , and priestly ordination as the seven sacraments of the Catholic Church . Women were not ordained priests but could live as nuns in convents after taking the three monastic vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience . The authority of the papacy was based on a well-organised system of communication and bureaucracy. The popes claimed the power of binding and loosing that Christ had reportedly granted to Peter

4142-559: The General Handbook . The LDS Church also practices the lesser sanctions of private counsel and caution and informal and formal membership restrictions. (Informal membership restrictions was formerly known as "probation"; formal membership restrictions was formerly known as "disfellowshipment".) Formal membership restrictions are used for serious sins that do not rise to the level of membership withdrawal. Formal membership restriction denies some privileges but does not include

4251-470: The Nicene Creed in 325. Its Western text contained a unilateral addition which contributed to the schism between Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy . The Creed contained the dogma of Trinity about one God uniting three equal persons: Father , Son , and Holy Spirit . Church authorities acknowledged that an individual might exceptionally receive direct revelations from God but maintained that

4360-606: The Papal States in Italy, the popes were deeply involved in the power struggles of the peninsula. In this respect, the Renaissance popes were not dissimilar to secular rulers. Pope Alexander VI ( r.  1492–1503 ) appointed his relatives , among them his own illegitimate sons to high offices. Pope Julius II ( r.  1503–1513 ) took up arms to recover papal territories lost during his predecessors' reign. In

4469-631: The Protestant Reformation and the European Reformation , was a major theological movement or period or series of events in Western Christianity in 16th-century Northwestern Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and the authority of the Catholic Church . Towards the end of the Renaissance , the Reformation marked the beginning of Protestantism and in turn resulted in

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4578-576: The Radical Reformation , and the Catholic Reformation . Historian John Bossy criticized the term Reformation for "wrongly implying that bad religion was giving way to good," but also because it has "little application to actual social behaviour and little or no sensitivity to thought, feeling or culture." Some historians have also suggested a persisting Erasmian Reformation . Anglican theologian Alister McGrath explains

4687-561: The Smalcald Articles Luther differentiates between the "great" and "small" excommunication. The "small" excommunication is simply barring an individual from the Lord's Supper and "other fellowship in the church". While the "great" excommunication excluded a person from both the church and political communities which he considered to be outside the authority of the church and only for civil leaders. A modern Lutheran practice

4796-501: The rediscovery of the Ancient Greek philosopher Plato ( 347/348 BC ). Plato's ideas about an ultimate reality lying beyond visible reality posed a serious challenge to scholastic theologians' rigorous definitions. Textual criticism called into question the reliability of some of the fundamental texts of papal privilege: humanist scholars, like Nicholas of Cusa (d. 1464) proved that one of the basic documents of papal authority,

4905-593: The sacraments and liturgy . Western and Eastern Christians believed that the sacramental bread and wine of the Eucharist changed into the Body and Blood of Christ , though not in outward appearance. This belief, formulated as " transubstantiation ", was declared a Catholic dogma in 1215. From the 12th and 13th centuries, laypeople only received the bread during the Eucharist . The ecumenical councils' decisions were binding to all Catholics. The crucial elements of mainstream Christianity had been first summarised in

5014-469: The Apostle (d. c. 66), and offered indulgence —the reduction of the penance in both this world and the purgatory—to sinners from an allegedly inexhaustible treasury of merit . The popes also granted dispensations to institutions or individuals, exempting them from certain provisions of canon law (or ecclesiastic law). In 1302, Pope Boniface VIII ( r.  1294–1303 ) declared obedience to

5123-505: The Bible is excommunication (removal from the fellowship of the Lord's Table, according to Adams) equated with what happens in step 5; rather, step 5 is called 'removing from the midst, handing over to Satan,' and the like." Former Princeton president and theologian, Jonathan Edwards , addresses the notion of excommunication as "removal from the fellowship of the Lord's Table" in his treatise entitled "The Nature and End of Excommunication". Edwards argues: "Particularly, we are forbidden such

5232-690: The Church . The Westminster Confession of Faith sees it as the third step after "admonition" and "suspension from the sacrament of the Lord's Supper for a season." Yet, John Calvin argues in his Institutes of the Christian Religion that church censures do not "consign those who are excommunicated to perpetual ruin and damnation", but are designed to induce repentance, reconciliation and restoration to communion. Calvin notes, "though ecclesiastical discipline does not allow us to be on familiar and intimate terms with excommunicated persons, still we ought to strive by all possible means to bring them to

5341-577: The Church and the Fathers , contained all knowledge necessary for salvation. The Reformation in Germanic countries was instigated by Martin Luther, however historians note that many of his ideas were pre-dated by Wycliff, Huss, Erasmus , Zwingli and others, both heretic and orthodox. Pope Leo X ( r.  1513–1521 ) decided to complete the construction of the new St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. As

5450-515: The Church, as if, said the pope, excommunication were not a spiritual penalty binding in heaven and affecting souls. The excommunicated person, being excluded from the society of the Church, still bears the indelible mark of Baptism and is subject to the jurisdiction of the Church. They are excluded from engaging in certain activities. These activities are listed in Canon 1331 §1, and prohibit the individual from any ministerial participation in celebrating

5559-583: The Eucharist was to be administered sub utraque specie ('in both kinds') to the laity. The most radical Hussites, called Taborites after their new town of Tábor , held their property in common. Their millenarianism shocked the Utraquists who destroyed them in the Battle of Lipany in 1434. By this time, the remaining Catholic communities in Bohemia were almost exclusively German-speaking. The lack of

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5668-469: The Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church, and by the aforesaid four Holy Synods and [if anyone does not equally anathematize] all those who have held and hold or who in their impiety persist in holding to the end the same opinion as those heretics just mentioned: let him be anathema." Although Lutheranism technically has an excommunication process, some denominations and congregations do not use it. In

5777-553: The Reformation started when the Swiss priest Huldrych Zwingli (d. 1531) first preached against abuses in the Church in 1516. The end date of the Reformation is even more disputed, with 25 September 1555 (when the Peace of Augsburg was accepted), 23 May 1618, and 24 October 1648 (when the Thirty Years' War began and ended, respectively) being the most commonly mentioned terminuses. The Reformation has always been presented as one of

5886-803: The Vulgate contained the Septuagint version of the Old Testament . The systematic study of Biblical manuscripts revealed that Jerome had sometimes misinterpreted his sources of translation. A series of Latin-Greek editions of the New Testament was completed by the Dutch humanist Erasmus (d. 1536). These new Latin translations challenged the scriptural proof texts for some Catholic dogmas. After Arianism —a Christological doctrine condemned as heresy at ecumenical councils—disappeared in

5995-431: The absent priests' deputies were often poorly educated and underpaid. The clergy consisted of two major groups, the regular clergy and the secular clergy . Regular clerics lived under a monastic rule within the framework of a religious order ; secular clerics were responsible for pastoral care. The Church was a hierarchical organisation. The pope was elected by high-ranking clergymen, the cardinals , and assisted by

6104-489: The allegedly 4th-century Donation of Constantine was a medieval forgery. New religious movements promoted the deeper involvement of laity in religious practices. The Brethren of the Common Life dissuaded their members' priestly ordination and often placed their houses under the protection of urban authorities. They were closely associated with the devotio moderna , a new method of Catholic spirituality with

6213-524: The apostle doth not mean eating at the Lord's table; for so, they might not keep company with the heathens, any more than with an excommunicated person". In the Methodist Episcopal Church , individuals were able to be excommunicated following "trial before a jury of his peers, and after having had the privilege of an appeal to a higher court". Nevertheless, an excommunication could be lifted after sufficient penance . John Wesley ,

6322-497: The beliefs of a Christian community ( heresy ). It aims to protect members of the church from abuses and allow the offender to recognize their error and repent. Within the Catholic Church, there are differences between the discipline of the majority Latin Church regarding excommunication and that of the Eastern Catholic Churches . Excommunication can be either latae sententiae (automatic, incurred at

6431-644: The campaign, applied unusually aggressive marketing methods. A slogan attributed to him famously claimed that "As soon as the coin into the box rings, a soul from purgatory to heaven springs". Frederick the Wise , Prince-elector of Saxony ( r.  1486–1525 ) forbade the campaign because the Sacrosanctis suspended the sale of previous indulgences, depriving him of revenues that he had spent on his collection of relics . The campaign's vulgarity shocked many serious-minded believers, among them Martin Luther,

6540-662: The center for Anabaptism in Switzerland. The movement spread, both by evangelistic zeal and persecution, from Switzerland into Germany, Moravia, Poland, Russia, the Netherlands, and eventually to North and South America. Around 1671, because of persecution by the government and the state church, a large group of Anabaptists (Mennonites) left Switzerland for the Palatinate in Germany. For many Mennonites, persecution helped institutionalize separation, non-conformity and farming as

6649-491: The church leadership General Handbook , the purposes of withdrawing membership or imposing membership restrictions are, (1) to help protect others; (2) to help a person access the redeeming power of Jesus Christ through repentance; and (3) to protect the integrity of the Church. The origins of LDS disciplinary procedures and excommunications are traced to a revelation Joseph Smith dictated on 9 February 1831, later canonized as Doctrine and Covenants , section 42 and codified in

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6758-404: The church, a practice known as shunning. Jehovah's Witnesses use the term disfellowship to refer to their form of excommunication. The word excommunication means putting a specific individual or group out of communion. In some denominations, excommunication includes spiritual condemnation of the member or group. Excommunication may involve banishment , shunning, and shaming , depending on

6867-496: The church, they cannot receive any pension or emoluments associated with these dignities etc., and they are deprived of the right to vote or to be elected. In the Eastern Orthodox Church , excommunication is the exclusion of a member from the Eucharist . It is not expulsion from the churches. This can happen for such reasons as not having confessed within that year; excommunication can also be imposed as part of

6976-479: The clerics' monopoly of public ministry, and allowed all trained members of their community, men and women alike, to preach. The Western Schism reinforced a general desire for church reform. The Oxford theologian John Wycliffe (d. 1384) was one of the most radical critics. He attacked pilgrimages, the veneration of saints, and the doctrine of transubstantiation. He regarded the Church as an exclusive community of those chosen by God to salvation, and argued that

7085-481: The community. The vote of community members, however, can restore a person who has been excluded. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) practices excommunication as a penalty for those who commit serious sins , i.e. , actions that significantly impair the name or moral influence of the church or pose a threat to other people. In 2020, the church ceased using the term "excommunication" and instead refers to "withdrawal of membership". According to

7194-592: The congregation, and of receiving the sacraments . It is practiced by all of the ancient churches (such as the Catholic Church , Oriental Orthodox churches and the Eastern Orthodox churches ) as well as by other Christian denominations , but it is also used more generally to refer to similar types of institutional religious exclusionary practices and shunning among other religious groups. The Amish have also been known to excommunicate members that were either seen or known for breaking rules, or questioning

7303-470: The demolition of the ruined 4th-century St. Peter's Basilica in preparation for the building of a new Renaissance basilica . The necessity of a church reform in capite et membris ('in head and limbs') was frequently discussed at the ecumenical councils from the late 13th century . However, most stakeholders—popes, prelates and kings—preferred the status quo because they did not want to lose privileges or revenues. The system of papal dispensations

7412-480: The divine offer of grace (by acquiring merit .) In contrast, Duns Scotus (d. 1308) and Gregory of Rimini (d. 1358) argued that an individual's choice could not influence God's decision; Rimini also asserted that God predestined the fate of both the saved and the damned. Justification before God and the timing of grace was also the subject of controversy. Many theologians such as Scotus, Ockham, and Gabriel Biel (d. 1495) taught that God established rules how

7521-785: The ecclesiastic leaders also functioned as local secular princes, such as the prince-bishops in Kingdom of Germany and the English County Palatine of Durham , and the Grand Masters of the Teutonic Knights in their Baltic Ordensstaat . Other prelates might be regents or the power behind the throne. Believers were expected to pay the tithe (one tenth of their income) to the Church. Pluralism—the practice of holding multiple Church offices (or benefices )—was not unusual. This led to non-residence, and

7630-449: The faithful could gain divine grace. Other theologians such as Rimini, and Hugolino of Orvieto (d. 1374) proposed that no one could deserve divine favour without God's direct intercession. Western Christianity displayed a remarkable unity. This was the outcome of the Gregorian Reform that established papal supremacy over the Catholic Church , and achieved the legal separation of the Catholic clergy from laity . Clerical celibacy

7739-451: The final action of the official board, it shall be granted." Amish communities practice variations of excommunication known as "shunning". This practice may include isolation from community events or the cessation of all communication. Mennonite communities use the "ban", separation and correction on baptized members that fall into sin. Separated members must be avoided or "shunned" until they repent and reform. Shunning must be done in

7848-1050: The founder of the Methodist Churches, excommunicated sixty-four members from the Newcastle Methodist society alone for the following reasons: Two for cursing and swearing. Two for habitual Sabbath-breaking. Seventeen for drunkenness. Two for retailing spiritous liquors. Three for quarrelling and brawling. One for beating his wife. Three for habitual, wilful lying. Four for railing and evil-speaking. One for idleness and laziness. And, Nine-and-twenty for lightness and carelessness. The Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection , in its 2014 Discipline , includes "homosexuality, lesbianism, bi-sexuality, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery, and any attempt to alter one's gender by surgery", as well as remarriage after divorce among its excommunicable offences. The Evangelical Wesleyan Church , in its 2015 Discipline , states that "Any member of our church who

7957-437: The group, the offense that caused excommunication, or the rules or norms of the religious community. The grave act is often revoked in response to manifest repentance . Excommunication among Bahá'ís is rare and generally not used for transgressions of community standards, intellectual dissent, or conversion to other religions. Instead, it is the most severe punishment, reserved for suppressing organized dissent that threatens

8066-470: The highest degree of communion that you can have? Besides, the apostle mentions this eating as a way of keeping company which, however, they might hold with the heathen. He tells them, not to keep company with fornicators. Then he informs them, he means not with fornicators of this world, that is, the heathens; but, saith he, 'if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, etc. with such a one keep no company, no not to eat.' This makes it most apparent, that

8175-494: The home of Manz on January 21, 1525. Though Grebel and Manz were dead within two years—Grebel of the plague and Manz drowned by the Council of Zürich—the believers' baptism movement quickly spread through German-speaking Switzerland. On the day of Manz' execution, another leader, George Blaurock , was beaten and expelled from the city. From there, he travelled to Bern and eventually left Switzerland, never to return. Bern became

8284-493: The internal (private) forum only, or also in the external (public) forum, depending on whether scandal would be given if a person were privately absolved and yet publicly considered unrepentant." In the Eastern Catholic Churches , excommunication is imposed only by decree, never incurred automatically by latae sententiae excommunication. A distinction is made between minor and major excommunication. Those on whom minor excommunication has been imposed are excluded from receiving

8393-601: The issues that would soon come to the fore. A new intellectual movement known as Humanism emerged in the Late Middle Ages . The Humanists' slogan ad fontes ! ('back to the sources!') demonstrated their enthusiasm for Classical texts and textual criticism . The rise of the Ottoman Empire led to the mass immigration of Byzantine scholars to Western Europe, and many of them brought manuscripts previously unknown to western scholarship. This led to

8502-506: The late 7th century , no major disputes menaced the theological unity of the Western Church. Religious enthusiasts could organise their followers into nonconformist groups but they disbanded after their founder died. The Waldensians were a notable exception. Due to their efficient organisation, they survived not only the death of their founder Peter Waldo (d. c. 1205), but also a series of anti-heretic crusades . They rejected

8611-642: The lie to any suggestion that torpor and complacency were the hallmarks of religious life in the century before Martin Luther." Historians customarily refer to Wycliffe and Hus as "Forerunners of the Reformation". The two reformers' emphasis on the Bible is often regarded as an early example of one of the basic principles of the Reformation—the idea sola scriptura ('by the Scriptures alone'), although prominent scholastic theologians were also convinced that Scripture, interpreted reasonably and in accord with

8720-401: The lowest degrees of keeping company, which are forbidden. Keep no company with such a one, saith the apostle, no not to eat – as much as to say, no not in so low a degree as to eat with him. But eating with him at the Lord's supper, is the very highest degree of visible Christian communion. Who can suppose that the apostle meant this: Take heed and have no company with a man, no not so much as in

8829-524: The moment of committing the offense for which canon law imposes that penalty) or ferendae sententiae (incurred only when imposed by a legitimate superior or declared as the sentence of an ecclesiastical court). The Catholic Church teaches in the Council of Trent that "excommunicated persons are not members of the Church, because they have been cut off by her sentence from the number of her children and belong not to her communion until they repent". In

8938-453: The most crucial episodes of the early modern period, or even regarded as the event separating the modern era from the Middle Ages . The term Protestant, though initially purely political in nature, later acquired a broader sense, referring to a member of any Western church that subscribed to the main Reformation (or anti-Catholic ) principles . Six princes of the Holy Roman Empire and rulers of fourteen Imperial Free Cities , who issued

9047-528: The offerings, etc.). "Excommunicates lose rights, such as the right to the sacraments, but they are still bound to the obligations of the law; their rights are restored when they are reconciled through the remission of the penalty." These are the only effects for those who have incurred a latae sententiae excommunication. For instance, a priest may not refuse Communion publicly to those who are under an automatic excommunication, as long as it has not been officially declared to have been incurred by them, even if

9156-494: The other sacraments, to administer sacraments or sacramentals, to exercise any ecclesiastical offices, ministries, or functions whatsoever, and any such exercise by them is null and void. They are to be removed from participation in the Divine Liturgy and any public celebrations of divine worship. They are forbidden to make use of any privileges granted to them and cannot be given any dignity, office, ministry, or function in

9265-725: The papacy as a precondition for salvation . A year later, French troops arrested him, and in 1309, the seat of the papacy was transferred from the chaotic Rome to Avignon . During the period of the Avignon Papacy , the popes assumed control of the appointment of all senior Catholic clerics. The appointees had to pay fees and other contributions to the Roman Curia. The idea that Rome was the legitimate center of Catholicism never ceased, with Pope Gregory XI ( r.  1370–1378 ) returning to Rome. However, conflict between his successor Urban VII ( r.  1378–1389 ) and

9374-535: The papal bull Exsurge Domine (May 16, 1520), Pope Leo X condemned Luther 's twenty-third proposition according to which "excommunications are merely external punishments, nor do they deprive a man of the common spiritual prayers of the Church". Pope Pius VI in Auctorem Fidei (August 28, 1794) condemned the notion which maintained that the effect of excommunication is only exterior because of its own nature it excludes only from exterior communion with

9483-434: The popes owed obedience to the ecumenical councils . This idea known as conciliarism was condemned by Pope Pius II ( r.  1458–1467 ) in a papal bull , but ecclesiastic and secular leaders often referred to it during their conflicts with the papacy. Relationships between the papacy and powerful Catholic rulers were regulated in special agreements known as concordats , limiting papal authority. As princes of

9592-451: The priest knows that they have incurred it—although if the person's offence was a "manifest grave sin", then the priest is obliged to refuse their communion by canon 915 . On the other hand, if the priest knows that excommunication has been imposed on someone or that an automatic excommunication has been declared (and is no longer merely an undeclared automatic excommunication), he is forbidden to administer Holy Communion to that person. In

9701-517: The professional staff of the Roman Curia . Secular clerics were organised into territorial units known as dioceses , each ruled by a bishop or archbishop . Each diocese was divided into parishes headed by parish priests who administered most sacraments to the faithful. These were sacred rites thought to transfer divine grace to humankind. The Council of Florence declared baptism , confirmation , marriage , extreme unction , penance ,

9810-518: The protection of Elector Frederick the Wise . The spread of Gutenberg's printing press provided the means for the rapid dissemination of religious materials in the vernacular. The initial movement in Germany diversified, and nearby other reformers such as Huldrych Zwingli and John Calvin with different theologies arose. In general, the Reformers argued that salvation in Christianity

9919-526: The resistance of autonomous institutions such as cathedral chapters . Neither could they exercise authority over non-resident clerics who had received their benefice from the papacy. On the eve of the Reformation, the Fifth Council of the Lateran was the last occasion when efforts to introduce a far-reaching reform from above could have achieved but it was dissolved in 1517 without making decisions on

10028-419: The sacrifice of the Eucharist or any other ceremonies of worship; celebrating or receiving the sacraments; or exercising any ecclesiastical offices, ministries, or functions. Under current Catholic canon law, excommunicates remain bound by ecclesiastical obligations such as attending Mass, even though they are barred from receiving the Eucharist and from taking an active part in the liturgy (reading, bringing

10137-405: The sale of certificates of indulgences had been a well-established method of papal fund raising, he announced new indulgences in the papal bull Sacrosanctis in 1515. On the advice of the banker Jakob Fugger (d. 1525), he appointed the pluralist prelate Albert of Brandenburg (d. 1545) to supervise the sale campaign in Germany. The Dominican friar Johann Tetzel (d. 1519), a leading figure in

10246-571: The specific reasons for individual withdrawal of membership are typically kept confidential and are seldom made public by church leadership. Those who have their membership withdrawn lose the right to partake of the sacrament . Such persons are permitted to attend church meetings but participation is limited: they cannot offer public prayers, preach sermons, and cannot enter temples . Such individuals are also prohibited from wearing or purchasing temple garments and from paying tithes . A person whose membership has been withdrawn may be re-baptized after

10355-417: The spirit of moderation and Christian charity; the aim is not to destroy but to reform the person. Hutterite communities use a form of excommunication called "the ban" on baptized members that fall into sin repeatedly. For Baptists , excommunication is used as a last resort by denominations and churches for members who do not want to repent of beliefs or behavior at odds with the confession of faith of

10464-607: The starting and ending date of the Reformation have always been debated. The most commonly used starting date is 31 October 1517—the day when the German theologian Martin Luther (d. 1546) allegedly nailed up a copy of his disputation paper on indulgences and papal power known as the Ninety-five Theses to the door of the castle church in Wittenberg in Electoral Saxony . Calvinist historians often propose that

10573-493: The state could seize the corrupt clerics' endowments. Known as Lollards , Wycliffe's followers rejected clerical celibacy and the grant of indulgences. The Parliament of England passed a law against heretics , but Lollard communities survived the purges. Wycliffe's theology had a marked impact on the Prague academic Jan Hus (d. 1415). He delivered popular sermons against the clerics' wealth and temporal powers, for which he

10682-480: The supranational character of the Catholic Church. In 1409, cardinals from both sides elected a new pope at the Council of Pisa but his two rivals refused to resign. More prudent preparations paved the way for the Council of Constance . Here, one of the three popes resigned, his two rivals were deposed, and the newly elected Martin V ( r.  1417–1431 ) was acknowledged as the legitimate pope throughout Catholic Europe. The Council of Constance declared that

10791-403: The term "Reformation" as "an interpretative category—a way of mapping out a slice of history in which certain ideas, attitudes, and values were developed, explored, and applied". The historian Peter Marshall emphasizes that the "call for 'reform' within Christianity is about as old as the religion itself, and in every age there have been urgent attempts to bring it about". Charlemagne employed

10900-614: The unity of believers. Covenant-breaker is a term used by Bahá'ís to refer to a person who has been excommunicated from the Bahá'í community for breaking the ' Covenant ': actively promoting schism in the religion or otherwise opposing the legitimacy of the chain of succession of leadership. Currently, the Universal House of Justice has the sole authority to declare a person a Covenant-breaker, and once identified, all Bahá'ís are expected to shun them, even if they are family members. According to 'Abdu'l Baha Covenant-breaking

11009-596: Was a completed status based on faith in Jesus alone and not a process that could involve good works , as in the Catholic view. Protestantism also introduced new ecclesiology . The Counter-Reformation was the Catholic reform efforts initiated in response to the Protestant Reformation and its causes. In the 16th-century context, the term mainly covers four major movements: Lutheranism , Calvinism ,

11118-528: Was a principal obstacle to the implementation of reform measures, as the Holy See regularly granted immunities to those who did not want to execute them. Within regular clergy, the so-called " congregations of strict observance" spread. These were monastic communities that returned to the strict interpretation of their order's rule. Reformist bishops tried to discipline their clergy through regular canonical visitations but their attempts mainly failed due to

11227-650: Was also celebrated in Latin. Catholics regarded the Vulgate as the Bible's authentic Latin translation. Commentators applied several methods of interpretations to resolve contradictions between Bible texts. In the universities, scholastic theology held sway. Legitimate debates among scholastic theologians were not uncommon. Predestination —God's decision about an individual's fate in afterlife—was frequently discussed. Ockhamist theologians taught that God destined to salvation those about whom foreknew that they would accept

11336-462: Was also growing, and witch-hunts intensified. From the end of the 15th century , a new, sexually transmitted infection spread in Europe. This was syphilis that destroyed its victims' looks with ulcers and scabs before killing them. Along with the French invasion of Italy , the syphilis gave the background to the success of the charismatic preacher Girolamo Savonarola (d. 1498) who called for

11445-592: Was at a distance from others). The Lutheran process, though rarely used, has created unusual situations in recent years due to its somewhat democratic excommunication process. One example was an effort to get serial killer Dennis Rader excommunicated from his denomination (the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ) by individuals who tried to "lobby" Rader's fellow church members into voting for his excommunication. The Church of England does not have any specific canons regarding how or why

11554-543: Was common but fell into disrepute because it was applied unevenly and could be avoided on payment of fines. The ECUSA is in the Anglican Communion , and shares many canons with the Church of England which would determine its policy on excommunication. In the Reformed Churches , excommunication has generally been seen as the culmination of church discipline , which is one of the three marks of

11663-408: Was mirrored by popular artistic motifs, such as the allegory of danse macabre ('dance of death'). The fear also contributed to the growing popularity of Masses for the dead . Already detectable among early Christians , these ceremonies indicated a widespread belief in purgatory —a transitory state for souls that needed purification before entering heaven . Fear of malevolent magical practice

11772-487: Was reinforced through the prohibition of clerical marriage ; ecclesiastical courts were granted exclusive jurisdiction over clerics, and also over matrimonial causes. Priests were ordained by bishops in accordance with the principle of apostolic succession —a claim to the uninterrupted transmission of their consecrating power from Christ's Apostles through generations of bishops. Bishops, abbots , abbesses , and other prelates might possess remarkable wealth. Some of

11881-539: Was summoned to the Council of Constance. Although the German king Sigismund of Luxemburg ( r.  1410–1437 ) had granted him safe conduct, Hus was sentenced to death for heresy and burned at the stake on 6 July 1415. His execution led to a nationwide religious movement in Bohemia , and the papacy called for a series of crusades against Hus's followers. The moderate Hussites , mainly Czech aristocrats and academics, were known as Utraquists for they taught that

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