RENAISSANCE CUPS
ESSAY
REFORMATION CUP ESSAY QUESTION
The chalice shown on the left was used by a sixteenth century Roman Catholic
priest in the celebration of the Mass. The wooden cup on the right is what
he used to celebrate the Lord's Supper after he left the Church and became
a follower of Martin Luther. How does the new cup reflect the theology
of the Reformation?

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STUDENT INSTRUCTIONS (THE FOLLOWING IS YOUR CHEAT SHEET)
When you do the AP Exam you have thirty-five minutes to complete your "short" essay. You must decide what items are important enough to warrent your time and you must also answer the question within the boundaries suggested by the question. The theme for this essay is the ways in which the new cup relfects the theology and ideals of the Reformation.
FIRST WRITE A THESIS STATEMENT WHICH DIRECTLY ANSWERS ALL PARTS OF THE QUESTION AND DIVIDES ITSELF INTO CATEGORIES WHICH WILL BECOME THE BODY PARAGRAPHS OF YOUR ESSAY.
You should strive for balance. You must discuss the Catholic cup in order to have something to contrast the Protestant cup with. The following are ideas you could select from to flesh out your essays. You should choose several ideas (remember the rule of three) to demonstrate the Catholic theology and the you will be able to contrast it with several ideas concerning the Protestant cup (rule of three) You need not choose everything, but you should select enough to give adequate support to your answer. Good Luck.
Essay Body
Catholic Chalice: how does it reflect the ideals of the Catholic Church
at the time?
Medieval period: summit of power and influence for church
wealth of church reflected glory of God. (examples)
Renaissance-changing values:
Emphasis on secularism and humanism rather than
Church and spiritual needs
Church wealth had been based on land: losing power
and support because of change in economy (barter to
money)
hurt by inflation
indulgences to pay for Saint Peter's Cathedral
New Cup: Savonarola "Chalice of gold versus Chalice of wood"
Simple, unadorned--a return to the past
Reflects Luther's desire to reform the church and his own
personal desire for salvation (Erickson)
Luther a reflection of many people caught in shift of values, new
wealth, new ideas and goals
A desire for a closer relationship with God
Need to match reality of business and capitalism with spiritual goals
(Weber)
Simplicity of religion meshed with nationalism and desire of rulers
to be independent of Rome
Rulers resented wealth and power of Church and also the gold drain
National states needed churches
Educated middle classes desired more control over their own lives
Priest becomes a minister "ideal life style changed from monastery
to home; marriage became acceptable
K. Clark--Protestants did not create major art, they were the
barbarians who destroyed the beautiful.
Conclusion Your conclusion should include a Topic sentence and a
summary of each paragraph of your body followed by
a restatement of the thesis.
READ ME
IF THE SUMMARY CANNOT BE TIED BACK TO THE THESIS
THEN YOUR ESSAY DOES NOT ANSWER THE QUESTION AND MUST BE REWRITTEN