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Year 8 - Religious education

Renaissance and Enlightenment: religion and thought

Religion and politics in the Enlightenment: How were they aligned?

Unit Summary

In this unit there is a choice. Through a social science lens, pupils consider how psychologists analyse the phenomenon of religion. Or they may study the flowering of philosophy at the time of the Enlightenment through a depth study of Hobbes and Rousseau and their ideas of religion and society.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to explain how changes in worldviews during the Renaissance and the Enlightenment period impacted religion's role in society, including in political life.

Key Notes

  • Some worldviews are collective, reflecting the shared values of a society or era.
  • The Renaissance marks the end of the Middle Ages & is characterised by striving for progress in thought and creativity.
  • The Age of Enlightenment was an intellectual and philosophical movement in 17th and 18th-century Europe.
  • As the worldview of the Middle Ages changed, the Church's control over politics and life lessened.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • the Enlightenment: a 17th and 18th-century movement emphasising reason, science and individual rights
  • humanism (of the Renaissance): a movement that emphasised the value of human potential, drawing inspiration from classical Greek and Roman ideas
  • politics: the activities and decisions involved in governing a society or state
  • the Renaissance: a period of cultural, artistic, scientific and intellectual rebirth in Europe from the 14th to the 17th century

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • Renaissance and Enlightenment thinkers gave up the belief in God.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain the lesson in two key points.

Some worldviews are collective, reflecting the shared values of a society or era. The Renaissance marks the end of the Middle Ages & is characterised by striving for progress in thought and creativity.

2. What does this key word mean in this lesson? 'the Enlightenment'

a 17th and 18th-century movement emphasising reason, science and individual rights.

3. Correct this common mistake.

Mistake: Renaissance and Enlightenment thinkers gave up the belief in God. Correction: Renaissance and Enlightenment thinkers questioned religious authority but didn't necessarily stop believing in God, focusing instead on reason and human potential.

More Lessons In This Unit

Browse all guides in the Year 8 Religious education guide library.