We will study the religious crises of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, including the social, political, economic, and intellectual context within which the Reformation occurred. Key figures include Martin Luther in the Germanies; the Anabaptist, Menno Simons; John Calvin in France and Switzerland; Henry VIII and his divorce from his wife and from Rome, producing the Church of England, precursor to modern Methodism. The age of the Reformation includes the Catholics, not just the Council of Trent, but also new religious orders, schools, and social initiatives: the socially-conscious Sisters of Charity, the teaching Ursulines, the cloistered Carmelites; Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Jesuits; Charles Borromeo, reforming Bishop of Milan; Vincent de Paul, advocate for the poor; Teresa of Avila and Saint John of the Cross, Carmelite reformers and mystics; and Jean Baptiste de la Salle, founder of the Christian Brothers. We will pay attention to the care of the poor in this turbulent era. COUNTS AS A MDIV CHURCH HISTORY II CORE REQUIREMENT.