Gutenberg, Reformation, Revolution
As both Americans and members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, freedom of speech and freedom of religion are both very important to us. We seek to bring the gospel to all people, no matter what their gender, race, or income. With the church education fund, we work to make education available to all, and enable each willing citizen to take part in the issues of their community and provide for their families. We believe that God is "no respecter of persons", and so it is important to us to allow everyone an equal opportunity at life. The United States of America was founded on the principles of freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and freedom of the press.
In 15th century Europe, only the few elect were able to own and read Bibles. Every book produced in Europe had to be copied by hand. The Catholic Church held a monopoly on religion throughout greater Europe. Priests were believed to be the bridge between God and the people, which made the people dependent upon them and separated the masses from God. "Indulgences", pardons for their sins, could be bought from the priests for a price. The church took it upon itself to forgive the sinners instead of leaving sacred matters between God and His people. The Bible was written and church services were conducted in Latin, keeping the people even further from establishing their own opinion of religion and their own testimony. It was the age-old battle between the oligarchy and the serfs, the elite and the masses.
In the time and place in which we live, I don't think we can fully comprehend what that would be like. Too bad if you had an insatiable desire to know the truth or decide for yourself; the Pope and the priests held the keys to the gospel... keys they refused to give out to just anyone.
In approximately 1455, Johann Gutenberg produced the first printed Bible. With Gutenberg's new technological discovery, books (printed knowledge) now became more available to the masses, lowering the price of books and written material (since they could now be produced in greater quantities), opening up issues of interest, religion, politics, and new ideas to the general public. Besides wealth, the main divide between the oligarchs and the serfs was education. After all... knowledge is power. However, the oligarchs weren't so happy about these new developments. Did they want the power to be shared and spread out equally? Of course not. So, in an attempt to at least filter the knowledge that was now being distributed at greater quantities and speeds, they conspired to censor the material that was being printed.
Today, the issue of "the rich vs. the poor", or the "oligarchy vs. the serfs" is still hot and prevalent. Occupy Wall Street, anyone? Though the protest is over money, rather than freedom of religion, Occupy Wall Street is a "leaderless resistance movement with people of many colors, genders, and political persuasions. The one thing that we all have in common is that We Are The 99% that will no longer tolerate the greed and corruption of the 1%."
The Catholic church's decision to keep the teachings of the Bible inaccessible to the common public was not only an infringement on freedom of religion, but also freedom of the press. By withholding information that would give the public the power over themselves and give them a direct connection to God, they made themselves a needed commodity as middle-men.
In 15th century Europe, only the few elect were able to own and read Bibles. Every book produced in Europe had to be copied by hand. The Catholic Church held a monopoly on religion throughout greater Europe. Priests were believed to be the bridge between God and the people, which made the people dependent upon them and separated the masses from God. "Indulgences", pardons for their sins, could be bought from the priests for a price. The church took it upon itself to forgive the sinners instead of leaving sacred matters between God and His people. The Bible was written and church services were conducted in Latin, keeping the people even further from establishing their own opinion of religion and their own testimony. It was the age-old battle between the oligarchy and the serfs, the elite and the masses.
In the time and place in which we live, I don't think we can fully comprehend what that would be like. Too bad if you had an insatiable desire to know the truth or decide for yourself; the Pope and the priests held the keys to the gospel... keys they refused to give out to just anyone.
In approximately 1455, Johann Gutenberg produced the first printed Bible. With Gutenberg's new technological discovery, books (printed knowledge) now became more available to the masses, lowering the price of books and written material (since they could now be produced in greater quantities), opening up issues of interest, religion, politics, and new ideas to the general public. Besides wealth, the main divide between the oligarchs and the serfs was education. After all... knowledge is power. However, the oligarchs weren't so happy about these new developments. Did they want the power to be shared and spread out equally? Of course not. So, in an attempt to at least filter the knowledge that was now being distributed at greater quantities and speeds, they conspired to censor the material that was being printed.
Today, the issue of "the rich vs. the poor", or the "oligarchy vs. the serfs" is still hot and prevalent. Occupy Wall Street, anyone? Though the protest is over money, rather than freedom of religion, Occupy Wall Street is a "leaderless resistance movement with people of many colors, genders, and political persuasions. The one thing that we all have in common is that We Are The 99% that will no longer tolerate the greed and corruption of the 1%."
The Catholic church's decision to keep the teachings of the Bible inaccessible to the common public was not only an infringement on freedom of religion, but also freedom of the press. By withholding information that would give the public the power over themselves and give them a direct connection to God, they made themselves a needed commodity as middle-men.
Johann Gutenberg was the first man to print a book on a printing press he crafted. The 42-lined Bible he printed symbolized something very special-- higher education and information made ready for the public. No longer would knowledge remain elusive to educated, the wealthy, the priests, the oligarchs... soon, everyone would be given the chance to read, know, and decide for themselves. From a single printing press in Mainz, Germany, sprung the Printing Revolution. Starting with only a single machine, by 1500, over twenty-million copies of the Bible had been printed throughout Europe. The explosion of knowledge that resulted from the Printing Revolution also helped give rise to the Scientific Revolution, and also greatly factored into the democratization of knowledge.
http://www.bl.uk/treasures/gutenberg/basics.html
http://www.medieval-life-and-times.info/medieval-religion/protestant-reformation.htm
http://occupywallst.org/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Printing_Revolution#The_Printing_Revolution
http://www.bl.uk/treasures/gutenberg/basics.html
http://www.medieval-life-and-times.info/medieval-religion/protestant-reformation.htm
http://occupywallst.org/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Printing_Revolution#The_Printing_Revolution
Sorry, the title should be spelled "Gutenberg, Reformation, Revolution."
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