Fearless Leader
Donor
Ok here's an idea that popped into my head, wanted to know what the rest of y'all thought.
One of the issues that faced the Eastern Orthodox Church during the initial centuries of the Ottoman Empire was the dire lack of clergy. Indeed in some areas this lack was never fully rectified. Given the right set of circumstances, could some Greek Christians, echoing the ongoing Protestant Reformation, bring Protestant theology to Greece in the 16th century and see it thrive?
Given certain trade links I don't think it's entirely unlikely to have the ideas of the Protestant Reformation spread. Add into that printing presses (perhaps in Venice?) printing out Bibles in Medieval Greek (the language of the people as most could not understand the Ancient Greek the Orthodox Church insists on using) as well as other texts. Of course they would face persecution, not only by the Ottoman Empire, but by the Eastern Orthodox Church, but persecution, even intense persecution might not spell the end for it.
Furthermore, I can't help but thinking that Greek Protestants would be in an excellent position to thrive under Ottoman occupation. Without the baggage of tradition and a formalized clergy they could theoretically operate as an underground church if need be. Furthermore ideologically they could draw parallels with the Early Church living under Rome in regards to their relations with the Ottoman Empire. Finally with an emphasis on education (in order to understand the Bible) Greek Protestants could serve as a vehicle for social mobility given enough time. Mind you the opposite could be true as well, I'd wager that it would only really take hold among the upper/middle class Greeks.
Though I'll admit having Greek Protestantism become a major cultural force is a bit of a long shot I'd imagine it could have profound effects on Greek culture and history in general.
1. Might the Demotic Greek NT have the same influence on the Greek Language as the Luther Bible had on German? Or the King James Version on English? How will a more homogenized Greek language affect history?
2. Though Max Weber's "Protestant Work Ethic" is highly disputed, surely stronger intellectual connections to the West could bring about changes in Greek culture?
One of the issues that faced the Eastern Orthodox Church during the initial centuries of the Ottoman Empire was the dire lack of clergy. Indeed in some areas this lack was never fully rectified. Given the right set of circumstances, could some Greek Christians, echoing the ongoing Protestant Reformation, bring Protestant theology to Greece in the 16th century and see it thrive?
Given certain trade links I don't think it's entirely unlikely to have the ideas of the Protestant Reformation spread. Add into that printing presses (perhaps in Venice?) printing out Bibles in Medieval Greek (the language of the people as most could not understand the Ancient Greek the Orthodox Church insists on using) as well as other texts. Of course they would face persecution, not only by the Ottoman Empire, but by the Eastern Orthodox Church, but persecution, even intense persecution might not spell the end for it.
Furthermore, I can't help but thinking that Greek Protestants would be in an excellent position to thrive under Ottoman occupation. Without the baggage of tradition and a formalized clergy they could theoretically operate as an underground church if need be. Furthermore ideologically they could draw parallels with the Early Church living under Rome in regards to their relations with the Ottoman Empire. Finally with an emphasis on education (in order to understand the Bible) Greek Protestants could serve as a vehicle for social mobility given enough time. Mind you the opposite could be true as well, I'd wager that it would only really take hold among the upper/middle class Greeks.
Though I'll admit having Greek Protestantism become a major cultural force is a bit of a long shot I'd imagine it could have profound effects on Greek culture and history in general.
1. Might the Demotic Greek NT have the same influence on the Greek Language as the Luther Bible had on German? Or the King James Version on English? How will a more homogenized Greek language affect history?
2. Though Max Weber's "Protestant Work Ethic" is highly disputed, surely stronger intellectual connections to the West could bring about changes in Greek culture?