Yes, I do believe so.
For example, the Reformation. In teaching that the Bible, not the church, was the main source of religious spirituality, power was taken from the Pope. After being denied a divorce from the Pope, Henry VIII formed the Church of England. In cases like this, the power from the papacy has been altered and taken by European princes. Most other world powers follow a similar pattern. Remaining strong and independent for some time, another power takes over and overrules causing the decline.
Erica Perkins
2 comments:
True, like the formation of the Gallican church (Concordat of Bolgna). However, the Pope still got his annates in this case. Although, I think the church had been in a state of decline for quite sometime, what with humanism and all those secular/religiously critical books they wrote then like Dante's and Machiavelli's. And while England broke off from the church, Spain stayed right next to the Church and gained power as well and formed the Jesuits, athough the increased power wasn't really connected with the papal connection. The remaining French connection to the Papacy did prove useful in encouraging the Wars between protestants and catholics in Germany. And while part of Germany stayed with the church another part didn't and in a sense Germany lost power because of disunity. So perhaps, not all the papacy.
Yes i agree, there are always recurring patterns in the rise and fall of nations like the overthrow of one religion for another sort of like the reformation. There are also many other examples like the rise and fall of greece, and that was followed by the rise and fall of rome which mirrored Greece in everthing, even art and philosophy.
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