The Counter-Reformation was a process of spiritual renewal that occurred within the Catholic Church , beginning in the 1540s . It is also known as the Catholic Reformation.

It originated from the need for the Church to reorganize itself and propose a strategy against the advance of the Protestant Reformation , in addition to responding to the questions and criticisms of Catholic Christians themselves .

In order to discuss the measures to be taken in the face of the crisis in the Church, Pope Paul III summoned the Council of Trent , which met from 1545 to 1563 in the city of Trent, in northern Italy.

During this period, the questions of Martin Luther were discussed and numerous measures were taken to strengthen the authority of the papacy . In addition, the dogmas of the Catholic Church were established and religious ceremonies were regulated along with the training of priests, so that they did not deviate from the principles of the Church.

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Causes and consequences of the Counter-Reformation

Causes

The causes of the Counter-Reformation were the following:

• The moral crisis of the Catholic Church. Many faithful believed that the papacy had strayed from the true values ​​of Christianity and criticized the institution of the Church.
• The Protestant Reformation started in Germany in 1517 by Martin Luther, which caused both a religious and a political division in Europe. As a result of this, opposing sides were formed that criticized or supported the Catholic Church.
• Faced with the dissemination of different branches of Protestantism, the Catholic Church found it necessary to develop a strategy not to lose believers and attract new faithful.
• During the conquest of America and different territories of Asia, Europeans discovered a huge number of people who were not part of the Catholic Church, but who practiced religions considered pagan or heresy . Faced with this, the Church needed a strategy to convert this entire population to Catholicism.

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Consequences

The consequences of the Counter-Reformation were the following:

• The Inquisition , a medieval institution that persecuted and punished people who deviated from Catholic dogma, became relevant.
• Religious orders oriented towards evangelization , such as the Society of Jesus, founded in 1534, were strengthened.
• Strict rules were imposed on artistic production within the religious sphere, with the aim that the images did not deviate from dogma.
• It was established that the representatives of the Church would be the only ones authorized to interpret the Holy Scriptures.
• Dogmas questioned by Protestantism were established, such as the presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist, the virginal conception of Mary, the validity of the 7 sacraments, among others.
• The intransigent attitude of the Catholic Church towards Protestantism, added to the political interests of the reigning monarchies, caused a series of conflicts that led to wars of religion throughout the seventeenth century .