dgement" (Heusinger 24). The scenes shown include God Separating Light from Darkness, the Temptation and Fall of Adam and Eve, and the Flood. These centrally located narratives are surrounded by the images of the prophets, other Old Testament subjects, and the ancestors of Christ. One particularly moving narrative panel is The Creation of Adam. It is "...one of the greatest icons of Western art. Michelangelo has depicted Adam as if just awakened and about to be charged with the energy of life through the outstretched arm of God, who is borne aloft by a cloud of angels" (Spence 12). Many of the panels of the Sistine Chapel continue to influence interpretations of Bible passages, sculpting the modern understanding of God. For instance, the commonly accepted image of a flame-filled Hell beneath Heaven comes from Michelangelo's masterpiece. In the 1500s, Europe was coming out of the Middle Ages and entering into a period of rebirth and new ways of thinking. The Roman Catholic Church was also experiencing a change. The Protestant Reformation, led by such men as Martin Luther, John Calvin , and Ulrich Zwingli, was radically altering the face of religion. In response to these reformers, the Church called the Council of Trent and started the Catholic Counter-Reformation. Decrees were issued on such topics as Church doctrine, practices, worship, and the sacraments. This tumultuous and chaotic period gave rise to new ways of thinking, new ways of seeing the world and God. Michelangelo Buonarroti portrayed this dynamic religious climate of the times in his works of art. For example, [The Rosary of Hope] may be a reference to the need to adhere to the true teachings of the Church rather than abandon it for the heresy of the Protestant faith, which had abandoned the Rosary...[the fresco] may also refer to the Church and its wicked and corrupt ways, which it was now attempting to change to counte...
