Need for reformation
At what point in history did the Church need a reformation? I have heard people say that the Church needed a reformation as early as the 2nd century because it had become Roman Catholic in its teaching. I have heard others say that the Church did not need a reformation until the 16th century, and these people support reading books such as The Imitation of Christ that are generally considered Roman Catholic. I have even seen some Lutheran Franciscans! At what point did the Church become corrupt and need to be reformed?
I suppose the answer can depend on what you see in the word “reformation.” If “reformation” is simply the church addressing doctrinal errors and removing them, then reformation was needed and implemented already in the first century. The church meeting in Jerusalem (Acts 15) addressed the error of the Judaizers.
The Judaizers taught a way of salvation that combined faith in Jesus and the works of the law. The church rejected that and restated what all of Scripture teaches—that people enjoy salvation through faith in Jesus Christ alone.
You might enjoy an article from the “Reformation issue” of Forward in Christ last October. The article speaks of “a constant need for reform.” This link will take you to that article.