"We are living in a world where the old rules no longer apply." Such was the case during the early modern period in Europe. Prior to this sudden change in the "rules" Europe went through an extensive period of illiteracy and lack of enlightenment. The centuries following the downfall of the Roman Empire would be the years defined as the middle ages. During this phase, the Catholic Church dominated the beliefs of the people and its power was very rarely threatened by outside forces. The Pope, or head of the Catholic Church, spent a majority of his time collecting church taxes, or tithes, selling indulgences, and acting as God's representative on Earth. For a long time no one questioned his authority, or the Church's legitimacy. Ultimately, the belief system of humanism would lead to the collapse of the Church's influence, and the reformation itself. What transpired was not a direct war between humanism and the Church, in fact some humanistic qualities agreed with Church doctrine, but some of these beliefs would in due course lead to the reformation.
             Humanism was a very extensive philosophy that began to spread during the early renaissance period. Its main ideas were the devotion to ancient and classical cultures, generally the Romans, and the appreciation for the beauty of man, art, nature, logic and reasoning. Pico Della Mirandola says that, "At last it seems to me I have come to understand why man is the most fortunate of creatures and consequently worthy of all admiration and what precisely is that rank which is his lot in the universal chain of Being–a rank to be envied not only by brutes but even by the stars and by minds beyond this world." Humanists were confident that mankind had the ability to discover for itself what was true and what was false in the world. It also, in opposition to all theories of universal determinism, fatalism, or predestination, believed ...