7. what was the long-term impact of martin luther? s break from the catholic church? what do we see today as a result of his "revolution"

The long-term impact of Martin Luther's break from the Catholic Church was the division of Christianity into many factions and groups.  We see many Protestant churches today as a result of his "revolution."

Luther had not intended to break away from the Roman Catholic Church; he wanted to reform it and restore it to what he saw as a proper foundation on the Bible.  But Rome did not agree with him, and ultimately a new church, the Lutheran Church, formed.  There also were other Protestant reformers, and other new churches developed from their teachings and influence.

Another point might be made:  Luther emphasized the individual's freedom of conscience to believe what he thought the Word of God was saying.  Though Luther did not intend it as a political movement, this began thoughts in the direction of freedom of speech and conscience in social life.  The historian Philip Schaff has said that the Reformation "marks the end of the Middle Ages and the beginning of modern times. Starting from religion, it gave, directly or indirectly, a mighty impulse to every forward movement, and made Protestantism the chief propelling force in the history of modern civilization."

For more details on Schaff's point, read more on -

the transatlantic slave trade radically impaired africa's potential to develop economically and maintain its social and political stability. the arrival of europeans on the west african coast and their establishment of slave ports in various parts of the continent triggered a continuous process of exploitation of africa's human resources, labor, and commodities. this exploitative commerce influenced the african political and religious aristocracies, the warrior classes and the biracial elite, who made small gains from the slave trade, to participate in the oppression of their own people. the europeans, on the other hand, greatly benefited from the atlantic trade, since it allowed them to amass the raw materials that fed the industrial revolution to the detriment of african societies whose capacity to transform their modes of production into a viable entrepreneurial economy was severely halted.