In the 1530s, King Henry VIII began to challenge the Church's power within England and to restrict the power of the Pope in Rome. Henry wanted a male heir to promote the continuation of his dynasty and wanted a divorce from his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. The Pope would not grant King Henry VIII a divorce, so unable to get what he wanted, Henry began the process of changing religious authority in England. He passed the Act of Supremacy in 1534, officially severing ties between the Church of England and the Pope, requiring the English population to recognize the King as the Supreme Head of the Church. This separation laid the foundation for the modern Church of England. We talked about the history behind the terms "Protestant" and "Protestantism" in Christianity. We discussed examples of Protestant sects of Christianity and some of the different names used for church leaders such as priests, pastors, ministers, reverends, etc. As for Henry VIII, his desire for a male heir led to a lot of violence and chaos in England. Ironically, his second daughter becomes Queen Elizabeth I - one of England's greatest monarchs. She actually changes the course of English and world history as we will see in future class sessions.