Anti-Catholicism

Anti-Catholicism is hostility towards or opposition to the Catholic Church, its clergy and adherents.

After the Reformation, Protestant states (especially England) made opposition to the Pope and Catholic rituals a major political theme. In the Early modern period, the Catholic Church struggled to maintain its traditional religious and political role in the face of rising secular powers in Europe. As a result of these struggles, there arose a hostile attitude towards the considerable political, social, spiritual and religious power of the Pope and the clergy in the form of anti-clericalism.