10.3b.

3
THE RENEWAL OF THE
CHURCH THROUGH THE
HOLY SPIRIT
This chapter presents the following key learning points:
• The Holy Spirit stirs renewal of the Church through various
religious orders and lay movements
• The Church experienced upheaval, then renewal, through
the Protestant and Catholic Reformations
• The Holy Spirit constantly renews the Church.

The Holy Spirit stirs renewal of the Church through various

religious orders and lay movements
Over the centuries, there were many people who were disturbed by the pressures experienced
by those who wanted to follow Christ and live his Gospel. They wanted to help people overcome
the difficulties of living Christian lives in societies that did not reflect the teachings of Jesus.

The Spirit stirred ‘saints’ to establish religious orders where the members could live with a
renewed spirit of Christ-like poverty.

The Franciscans
St Francis of Assisi founded the Franciscan order in 1209. The
Franciscans sought to return to the life of the early Church, following
the example of Jesus and his first disciples.

St Francis was the son of a wealthy Italian merchant. In 1206 he

recognised, through the Holy Spirit, the call to rebuild the Church.
At first, he thought this call referred to the damage at the church of
St Damiano, where he heard the call. On rebuilding St Damiano, he
realised that the call related to the Church in general.

One of the most famous events in St Francis’ life was when he

renounced all wealth before the Bishop of Assisi, symbolically leaving
behind even his clothes. After a few years of living as a hermit and
caring for lepers, St Francis began preaching. In 1208, he attracted
followers and established the Franciscan order. By 1221, there were
between three and five thousand Franciscans. He died in 1226 and
was canonized two years later by Pope Gregory IX.
St. Francis Renounces all Worldly Goods,
detail of Pietro di Bernardone, 1297-99
(fresco) by Giotto di Bondone (c.1266-1337)

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 The Poor Clares
In 1212 the Poor Clares, a religious Order for
women, was founded by St Clare of Assisi,
a close friend and supporter of St Francis.
Inspired by the spirit of St Francis, the Poor
Clares also follow the ideal of poverty of
spirit. They do not preach, but live lives
of contemplative prayer and mental
and manual work. St Clare was canonised
in 1255.

Saint Clare receiving the rules of

her Order from Pope Innocent
IV, from Nuremberg or Bamberg,
c.1360-70 (painted wood) by
German School, (14th century)

The Dominicans
This Order was founded in Southern
France in 1215 by a Spaniard, St Dominic
de Guzman, for the purpose of
teaching and preaching the Gospel.
The Dominican Order grew to around
twenty thousand members between
1215 and 1347.

St Dominic’s followers also embraced

a spirit of poverty, so that they could
move about freely according to where
their preaching was needed. They
were free of property ties and financial
concerns.

According to legend, Our Lady appeared

to St Dominic to charge him to
promote devotion to the Rosary.
She promised that its power would
change people’s hearts.

The Cistercians
Founded in the early twelfth century,
this Order also expanded and its
members were active in preaching.
They also embraced a spirit of The Virgin Offering the Rosary to St. Dominic,
poverty and rejected wealth and the 1641 (oil on canvas) by Crayer, Gaspar de (1584-1669)

acquisition of material things.

2 YEAR 10 | COME FOLLOW ME

The Church experienced upheaval, then renewal, through the
Protestant and Catholic Reformations
The ‘Reformation’ is the term that refers to the division of European Christianity into Catholic
and Protestant, and the changes that resulted from this division. There were several causes.

The Great Schism (Schism of the West or the Reformation)

In 1309, Pope Clement V (a Frenchman) moved
the papacy to the French Archdiocese of Avignon
at the insistence of the French King Philip VI.
Rome had become too dangerous as various
groups tried to gain control of the papacy.

Avignon remained the residence for five

successive popes before Pope Gregory XII
returned to Rome in 1377. Gregory died the next
year and an Italian, Pope Urban VI, was elected by
the cardinals who were pressured by the Romans
to return to an Italian pope.

In September 1379, the cardinals subsequently announced that Pope Urban’s election was
invalid. In his stead they elected Pope Clement VII, who lived in Avignon. This led to great
confusion, for both popes were considered by different parties to be the legitimate successor
of St Peter.

Pope Clement and his successor in Avignon, Benedict XIII, came to be called anti-Popes, that
is, illegitimate claimants to the papacy.

Meanwhile, Pope Urban’s successor in Rome was Pope Gregory XII. In 1409, the cardinals
attempted to re-solve the situation by calling the Council of Pisa. The Council attempted to
depose both Pope Benedict in Avignon and Pope Gregory in Rome and to elect a new Pope,
Pope Alexander V.

Neither Alexander V nor his successor John XXII, were recognised by either Pope Benedict or
Pope Gregory and both Benedict and Gregory resisted all efforts to have themselves removed.
This meant that there were three claimants to the succession of St Peter when, in reality, there
could be only one.

Another council was called to resolve the issue and between 1414 and 1418 the Council of
Florence was held. By 1418 anti-Pope John XXII had been removed, Pope Gregory had resigned,
and anti-Pope Benedict had fled.

A new Pope was elected, Pope Martin V. The Great Schism was over. One of the key figures who
helped to bring this about was St Catherine of Siena.

In Class Work
Research the history of the Great Schism. Create an illustrated time line.

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The decline of the Papacy
The Great Schism caused a serious decline in the standing and influence of the papacy.
Corruption again grew in the Church. Church titles were sold to raise money, and the clergy
often lived immoral and greedy lives.

The efforts of Pope Martin and later Popes to bring about reform were undermined by many
bishops, as well as kings and other rulers. Popular dissatisfaction was widespread and anti-
clericalism flourished.

Martin Luther
In 1517, a priest, Martin Luther, protested against Church corruption. He believed that moral
failure was due to theological failure. He then proceeded to develop his own theology, which
rejected many of the fundamental beliefs of the Catholic Church, handed down since the time
of the Apostles.

This led to the establishment of the Lutheran Church in Germany. By 1544, Lutheranism had
spread to Sweden, Denmark and Norway.

John Calvin
John Calvin, a French Protestant who fled to Switzerland for his own safety, established another
Church in 1541. Calvinism became more radically anti-Catholic than Lutheranism. Calvin
rejected everything that was not found explicitly in the Bible.

King Henry VIII

In 1534, King Henry VIII of England broke with Rome because Pope Clement VII refused to
grant him an annulment of his marriage to Queen Catherine of Aragon. He founded the
Church of England and declared himself its head.

The Church of England became the official religion in England when Henry’s son, Edward VI
(1547-1553), became king. His half-sister, Queen Elizabeth I (1558-1603), consolidated the position
of the Church of England.

Around 350 Catholics who refused to give up their Catholic faith were martyred. They were
beheaded, burned at the stake or hung, drawn and quartered. Among the most famous
martyrs were Saints Thomas More, who had served Henry VIII as Chancellor of England, John
Fisher (Bishop of Rochester), Margaret Clitherow (a lay woman) and Edmund Campion and
Robert Southwell (Jesuit priests).

For your information...

Before England had prime ministers, the highest office in the land was ‘Chancellor’. Sir
Thomas More was appointed to this position by Henry VIII in 1529 and served the king
until he resigned the office in 1532. Just three years later he was beheaded. His “crime”
was to refuse to swear to new laws which would have acknowledged that Henry, and
not the Pope, was the head of the Church in England. While on the scaffold, St Thomas
declared that he died, “the king’s good servant, but God’s first.” Thomas More was
canonised in 1935. He is the patron saint of lawyers, politicians and large families.

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The Council of Trent
In the fifteenth century,
there was need for another
response within the Church
to the corruption that was
affecting it. Individuals and
movements were led through
their consciences to restore the
Church. The Spirit led them to
recognise that some ideas and
practices in the Church had
moved a long way from the
teachings and life of Jesus.

New spiritual writings

appeared, such as the
Imitation of Christ by Thomas
a Kempis. Diocesan priests
began to live in community,
though without vows. One of
the great reforming Popes, The First Chapter of the 25th Council of Trent,
Paul IV, had been a member Venetian School, c.1630 by Italian School,
(17th century)
of such a community.

The greatest force for reforming the Church at this time was the Council of Trent. This Council
was called by Pope Paul III and met three times in the northern Italian city of Trent.

In Class Work
Why did the Church feel that there was need for reform?

Research one of the reforming councils or events and make a list of dot points
about the activities and the key figures involved in the reforms.

For your information...

Pope Paul III is remembered as the Pope who had Michelangelo paint The Last
Judgement in the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, and who excommunicated Henry VIII
in 1538.

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Last Judgement, from the Sistine Chapel, 1538-41 (fresco)
by Buonarroti, Michelangelo (1475-1564)

The Council of Trent renewed Catholic beliefs, the celebration of the Mass and the sacraments,
the training of priests and the responsibilities of Bishops. It made laws that addressed the areas
of Church corruption.

This council was so successful that its influence continued until the Second Vatican Council
(1962-1965).

Usually the term ‘The Reformation’ refers to the establishment of non-Catholic Churches in
response to corruption within the Catholic Church.

The Catholic reforms to this corruption are usually collectively referred to as the ‘Counter-
Reformation’. However, the more correct historical term is ‘the Catholic Reformation’, for this
reform came from within the Church.

6 YEAR 10 | COME FOLLOW ME

The Holy Spirit constantly renews the Church
The Holy Spirit constantly influences and renews the Church. In an ever changing world the
Spirit moves people to follow Christ even though historical events may cause major upheavals
in all aspects of their lives.

A new era of human history began in the eighteenth century, now called ‘the Enlightenment’.
Scientific discoveries, European political changes, such as those associated with the French
Revolution, and the ideas of philosophers led to people placing an emphasis on human reason.

Enlightenment thinkers argued that earlier traditions and authorities should be replaced by
what the human reason could work out for itself.

This led to a rejection of many religious beliefs. God’s Revelation, for example, was rejected
because it did not always conform to what people thought. Religious authority and ideas of
social responsibility were also rejected. This way of thinking led many to leave the Church.

However, over time, some came to see the limits of personal reason and personal opinions. For
example, human reason cannot explain many ordinary realities of life such as love and grief.

There were many scientific and technological

developments during the eighteenth century.
With growing communication, the world seemed
more and more like a global village.

In the world of religion also, there were

developments. This led to the breaking down of
barriers caused by the Reformation. Ecumenical
dialogue began.

The wars of the Twentieth Century, particularly the

two World Wars, also caused much soul-searching
for the Churches, who had tended to be inward
looking. They realized that they would need to
engage with the world to influence it to bring
about God’s law.

During this time atheism (belief that there is no
God) and agnosticism (belief that God cannot be
known) were gaining popularity. The reasons for
this included:
• the ideas of the Enlightenment and the writer,
Karl Marx
• the sense of control caused by scientific and
technological development
• strong anti-clericalism in some countries
• the destructive influences of the Great
Depression and two World Wars.
For your information...
In 1998 Pope John Paul II wrote
an encyclical letter which made
it clear that, rather than being in
conflict, faith and reason are both
necessary in the search for truth.
It begins: Faith and reason are like
two wings on which the human
spirit rises to the contemplation of
the truth, and God has placed in
the human heart a desire to know
the truth …(Fides et ratio, preamble)

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The Spirit stirs renewal
Many believers were moved by their consciences to recognise the pressures facing those
wanting to follow Christ. During this time the Holy Spirit moved some members of the Church
to counter these pressures.

Some people in the Church were inspired to found new religious congregations to serve those
in need. These included the educational and health needs of the poor who were growing in
number as a result of social change.

Many of these congregations are found in Western Australia today, for example, the Mercy
and St John of God Sisters founded by Catherine McAuley and Mother Visitation Clancy
respectively, and the Marist and Christian Brothers founded by St Marcellin Champagnat and
Blessed Edmund Rice respectively.

In Australia, Blessed Mary MacKillop founded the Sisters of St Joseph to teach young
Australians, especially those who lived in poverty. Her idea was for the sisters to move with the
people when, for example, gold mining wound up in one place and opened in another.

Lay movements also began to care

for the poor and needy, for example
the St Vincent de Paul Society,
founded by Frederick Ozanam.

The official Church also recognised

the need to engage in the care and
needs of the poor and oppressed in
new ways. Pope Leo XIII (1878-1903)
published a now famous encyclical
on the conditions of working people,
called Rerum Novarum (‘Of New
Things’). In this, Leo XIII insisted that
workers have the rights to form trade
unions, collective bargaining, a just
wage and decent working conditions.

These rights were not generally

recognised at the time, for the rich
were growing richer but exploiting
the poor to make greater profits.

Pope Leo claimed for the Church the

right to promote justice at all levels of
society. This encyclical was fol-lowed
by other such encyclicals and Church
documents which continue to be Portrait of St. Vincent de Paul
(1576–1660) (pencil on paper) by
issued by the different Popes right Dumonstier, Daniel (1574-1646) (attr. to)
down to today.

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Ecumenism
The movement for
Church unity, began
as Churches entered
into dialogue. Over
time, ecumenical
movements have
gained momentum.
Churches recognised
that they have much
in common while
there still remain
important areas of
sincere disagreement
that need to be prayed
about and resolved.

For your information...

The word ‘ecumenical’ derives from a Greek word meaning ‘of the whole world.’ An
ecumenical council is a great council of the whole Church. An ecumenical movement
aims to bring the separated Christian Churches together.

In Class Work
Find examples of ecumenism in Australia today.

One of the areas of disagreement between Christian Churches is the role of the pope. Unlike
the Catholic Church, most other Churches function by a majority vote of members. These
Churches do not accept that the teaching authority of the Church is something Jesus gave to
Peter and the bishops.

During the twentieth century, many Catholics and other Christians resisted governments,
systems and ideas that were oppressing people, particularly Communism and Nazism.

As a result, many of these people were martyred for their beliefs and actions. Shared sufferings
in the struggle for justice and peace led to greater closeness between Catholics and other
Christians. Catholic saints included St Edith Stein and St Maximilian Kolbe. Other Christian
heroes include the Lutheran minister, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and Baptist minister, Martin Luther
King, Jr.

These are just some examples of changes stirred by the Spirit to renew the Church and its
efforts to spread the Gospel. The greatest of all events, however, was the Second Vatican
Council – the twenty-first general council in the two thousand year old Church.

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 In Class Work
Research the history of one of the religious orders or congregation’s in WA to
determine:
• When and where the religious order or congregation was founded
• When members of the order or congregation arrived in WA
• What apostolate the order or congregation undertook in WA
• The extent of the expansion of the order or congregation’s work in WA
• Evidence of the order or congregation’s presence that can still be found in WA.

Pope John XXIII calls the Second Vatican Council

From 1939 to 1958, a strong and dynamic Pope
served the Church. He was Pope Pius XII. Though
controversial in some respects, Pope Pius won wide-
spread acceptance for the Church in the world.

After the death of Pope Pius, on 28 October 1958, the

Cardinals elected a seventy-seven year old successor,
Pope John XXIII. Pope John XXIII was thought of as
a ‘stop-gap’ Pope who would keep the Church calm
after the energy of Pope Pius.

Pope John XXIII revealed on 25 January, 1959, that he

had been moved by the Holy Spirit to call the Second
Vatican Council. He opened the Council on 11 October
1962. Approximately 2500 bishops from all around
the world participated in the Council. Its purpose was
to renew the whole Church so that it could play the
role Christ intended for his Church in the modern world.

For your information...

Nobody in 1958 expected the newly elected Pope John XXIII to do anything that would
“rock the Church”. He was widely liked for his warm personality and sense of humour;
most people in the Church, including the car-dinals who elected him, thought he would
be a ‘stop-gap Pope’.

The Church was surprised when the aged Pope John XXIII called the Second Vatican
Council. This is an example of the constant movement of the Holy Spirit towards
renewing the Church so that it can be what God wants it to be – the chief means of
assisting the Spirit to build the kingdom of God on earth.

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Pope John XXIII died eight months after opening the Council. However, he left a new way
of thinking about the role of the Church in the modern world that affected the work of the
Council. An open and engaging personality, Pope John XXIII broke through barriers with those
hostile to the Church, such as the Communist Party in Italy and elsewhere.

Pope John XXIII recognised all the good in the world as the action of the Holy Spirit, and
refused to see only the negatives. He was deeply pastoral and people-oriented. In 2000,
Pope John Paul II declared him Blessed John XXIII.

Pope Paul VI
On 21 June, 1963, Pope Paul VI
was elected. He was a man of
vast diplomatic experience,
having worked as a kind of
‘foreign minister’ to Pius XII.
It would be Pope Paul VI who
would lead the Council to a
successful conclusion.

When Pope John XXIII

opened the Council, it was
thought that its work would
require one session of two
months. In fact, it required
four sessions between 1962
and 1965.

Changes by the Second

Vatican Council
The Council of Trent was
called to reform the Church
from within, so that it
would be the spiritual body
Christ intended. Where the
Church had been mainly
preoccupied with the Church
in Europe, the Second
Vatican Council, was calling
for reform of how the Church
engaged with the whole of
the modern world.

It was a Council with bishops

from Syria, Africa, Oceania,
the Pacific and many other
non-European countries –
and, so, was radically different Second Vatican Council Convened in 1963
from the Council of Trent. (photo) by St. Peter’s, Vatican, Rome, Italy

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The Second Vatican Council produced sixteen
documents that have changed the Church
radically, even though their implementation has
not been completed.

Changes that Catholics have experienced include:

• the Mass and the sacraments being celebrated in the language of the people
• the Church being seen primarily as the sign of Christ’s presence in the world, and not
primarily an institution or organisation
• recognition that the Church is made up of all who have received Baptism, and not simply
bishops, priests and religious
• recognition that the role of the laity is to bring the Gospel of Jesus into ordinary society: the
Church’s mission is not just the responsibility of bishops, priests and religious
• consultation in Church decision-making, which is necessary to discover more fully the
guidance of the Holy Spirit
• efforts to work with other churches for Christian unity, and to work with non-Christian
religions
• an emphasis on the dignity of the human person.

Journal Activity
Reflect on the changes that took place in the Church as a result of Vatican II. In your
journal write about one or two of them that you consider the most relevant to you as a
young adult.

Since the Council, the Church has grown enormously throughout the world, about 40 percent
between 1978 and 2001. This is despite decline in religious practice in European countries,
and countries like Australia which, because of materialism and individualism, are in danger of
fulfilling the prophecy of Jesus that, ‘those concerned with the love of riches and the worries of
the world’ will not develop in the kind of faith that leads to real closeness to God (Mark 4:19).

12 YEAR 10 | COME FOLLOW ME

The Spirit leads people to follow the
Gospel of Jesus
Because it is for people who do not think themselves perfect,
the Church will always reflect imperfections. Jesus was criticised
by the Pharisees for associating with sinners. He was thought a
bad judge of character. He replied that he had come for sinners,
for he came for those who recognised their need for God
(Matthew 9:12-13).

However, it is the Holy Spirit who leads believers through their

consciences to judge when events, institutions and people are
not following the Gospel of Jesus. In this way, the Holy Spirit has
moved people throughout its history to renew the Church by:
• working against corruption
• challenging leaders, including Popes
• standing against immoral social trends, and political powers – even at the cost of lives
• developing further the teachings of the Church
• re-expressing teachings in ways that people can better
understand and live in their current situations
• changing structures that interfere with the Church playing its role in the world.

The human element will never dominate the divine element in the Church. The events studied
in this Chapter are some of the ways that the promises of Jesus for the Church have been
fulfilled, for example:

‘… the gates of the underworld can never overpower it.’ (Matthew 16:18)

‘I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.’ (Matthew 28:20)

Journal Activity
This chapter has emphasised the importance of the work of the Holy Spirit
in renewing and creating hope in the Church.

What gives you hope in your life?

Write a prayer in which you focus on the strength and guidance of the
Holy Spirit to give you hope in your life.

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 In Class Work
Use the information from Chapter 3 to answer these questions.
1. Three religious orders founded in the Thirteenth century were the C___________,
the F___________ and the P______ C__________.
2. What was the Great Schism?
3. Name three people who, in their efforts to reform, broke away from the
Catholic Church.
4. What were some of the areas in which the Council of Trent renewed
Catholic beliefs?
5. What is meant by the Age of Enlightenment?
6. What was the important work of Pope Leo XIII?
7. List three of the religious orders that operate in WA.
8. List three of the changes brought about by the Second Vatican Council.
9. What is the aim of the ecumenical movement?

14 YEAR 10 | COME FOLLOW ME