FROM HUMANISM TO PROTEST: POLITICAL, MENTAL, AND INTELLECTUAL BRIDGES FROM THE RENAISSANCE TO THE REFORMATION

Abstract

The article offers a comprehensive analysis of the interconnections between the European Renaissance and the Reformation through the prism of political, mental, and intellectual transformations that took place in the XIVth–XVIth centuries. The authors examine these two epochs not as isolated phenomena but as interconnected stages in the evolution of European civilization, linked by “transits” of ideas, values, and cultural models. Attention is drawn to the transformation of the individual’s role within the systems of relations “Church – individual”, “Church – state”, and “Church – society”, as well as to the gradual rise of critical attitudes toward the institutional Church. One of the key outcomes of this process was the distinction between the concepts of “spirituality” and “religiosity,” which enabled humanists and reformers to reconceptualize the place of faith in human life. The study demonstrates how the humanist methodology – emphasizing primary sources, philological precision, and historical-critical approaches – was adopted and further developed by the Reformation leaders, who sought to unite individual spiritual autonomy with a renewed Christian doctrine. Examples of this intellectual exchange include the influence of Erasmus of Rotterdam’s humanist methods on Martin Luther’s reformist ideas, as well as Lorenzo Valla’s historical-critical analysis of biblical texts, which laid the groundwork for reassessing ecclesiastical authority. At the same time, figures such as John Calvin and Philipp Melanchthon embodied the synthesis of humanist erudition and reformist zeal, illustrating how personal spirituality could be harmonized with doctrinal reform. The article also examines political factors, particularly the weakening of papal centralization and the growing influence of secular rulers, which created a favorable environment for the spread of ideas of religious freedom and secularization. The authors conclude that the Renaissance and the Reformation constituted stages of a single, continuous process of rethinking the spiritual and sociocultural foundations of the European world. This approach makes it possible to recognize an ongoing dialogue between humanist and reformist thought, which significantly shaped the formation of a new religious identity and the cultural paradigm of early modern Europe.