In this episode of History 102, 'WhatIfAltHist' creator Rudyard Lynch and co-host Austin Padgett talk about the Protestant Reformation, masterfully drawing parallels between historical information technology revolutions (like the printing press) and our current internet age, exploring how such advances fundamentally alter how societies process information and relate to authority.

They offer fresh perspectives on well-worn historical territory, suggesting for instance that the Reformation wasn't just about religious doctrine, but represented a quantum leap in human agency and individualism that helped birth the modern world.

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HIGHLIGHTS:

History as psychological/biological process

Importance of psychological shifts in Reformation

Two modern parallels to Reformation

Warhammer Fantasy analogy

Catholic Church's medieval dominance

Carl Jung's analysis of Catholicism

Information technology breakthrough comparison

Gutenberg's printing press invention

Media control in 20th century

Catholic Church's role in literacy

Catholic Church as science investor

Discussion of Cathars and early heresies

Impact of Black Death

Italian Renaissance discussion

Martin Luther's background

Luther's 95 Theses

Introduction of Calvinism

Calvinism and totalitarianism

Spanish attempts to destroy Protestantism

Germanic and English Protestant adoption

Modern elite's Protestant/French Revolution roots

Harvard's Calvinist origins

Left's appropriation of Protestant ideas

Modern rejection of rational inquiry

Elite perspectives on population control

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BOOKS RECOMMENDED:

"The Reformation" by Will Durant"

"Protestants: The Faith That Made the Modern World" by Alec Ryrie

"Doubt" by Alec Ryrie

"A Secular Age" by Charles Taylor

"Rise of the West" by William H. McNeill

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