The interests of the reformists covered a wide range,from to be burnt at stake.This triggered off the Hus War of the Czech wishing to see institutional reform of the Church,to making the people for national liberation. Bible accessible to the common folks,to liberating national economy and politics from the interference of the Roman Catholic Church and 2.Martin Luther (1483-1546)and His Doctrines carrying out wars in the interests of the peasants and revolution in the Martin Luther was the German leader of the Protestant interests of the bourgeoisie. Reformation.His doctrine marked the first break in the unity of the Catholic Church 1.Pre-Luther Religious Reformers a.Beginning of the Reformation a.John Wycliffe (about 1330-1384) Martin Luther was a priest,a vicar and a professor of theology. Chief forerunner of Reformation,John Wyclif was a Yorkshire His experiences in church matters and his study of the Scriptures led man by birth.He taught theology and philosophy at Oxford.He him to post on the door of the castle church at the University of made many vigorous attacks in both Latin and English on orthodox Wittenberg his 95 theses,making open protests against the church doctrines.For that and for his anti-clerical associations and indulgences that had been in practice for centuries.He quoted the activities,he was condemned as a heretic first time in 1380 and Scripture in support of his belief that men are redeemed by faith and second time in 1382.He died in retirement in 1384. not by the purchase of indulgences.This won sympathy among the John Wyclif believed that Christ is man's only overlord and that exploited peasantry who had to yield a good part of their fruits of salvation depends upon predestination and grace rather than on labour to the Church,as well as among the civil authorities who were membership of a visible church.He spread the doctrine that the Bible forced to see their funds drained to the Roman Catholic Church for is the supreme authority and insisted that all men have access to the their worldly pleasures. Scriptures in the vernacular.To practise what he preached,he took That was the beginning of the Reformation,and as it up the translation of the Bible into English for the first time. developed,it went beyond the institutional reform of the church and became one of the mainstreams for the liberation of national politics b.Jan Hus(1372-1415) from the Roman interference and for the liberation of economic A Bohemian Czech religious leader,Jan Hus was a theologian domination by the Roman Catholic Church. and preacher dedicated to preaching in Czech language.In his sermons he attacked the abuses of the Church.He was imprisoned b.Translation of the Bible and exiled for his reformist ideas and patriotic activities.His writings One of the doctrines of Martin Luther was that the Bible was the were condemned by the Roman Catholic Church who sentenced him supreme authority and man was only bound to the law of the word of 144 145