During the early Middle Ages, the bishop of Rome assumed control over the church in Europe as people looked to him for leadershi
p. With the Western Roman Empire gone, someone had to step in and fill the power void. By 500, the title of pope, or "Father-Protector," had been adopted, and the church proclaimed the pope to be Christ's substitute on earth.true/ false
The fall of the Western Roman Empire created a vacuum that needed to be filled. The Church had gained much power and infuence after becoming the official imperial religion. Rome became the center of Christianity. After the fall of the last Roman emperor, deposed by Odoacer, a Germanic king in 476 AD, the power of the papacy grew. In 751 AD, Pipin the Short, king of the Franks, invaded Italy , freeing Rome from the sieged laid by the Lombards . Pipin gave the pope control over some regions, they´d become the papal states.
The Protestant Reformation took place in the 16th century and was led mainly by Martin Luther. According to Luther, the Jews represented another challenge to Christian teachings, so he thought it was right to persecute Jews, as well as to set fire to their synagogues, to prohibit rabbis to teach about Judaism, to destroy Jews' homes, to sanction them economically and even to force them to do forced labor.
