Tag: inquisition

When discussing the role of inquisition in the fight against heresy, intention becomes a topic of tricky distinction. While the general desire was that of rehabilitation as the inquisitors were tasked with herding lost sheep, the struggles for power cannot be denied. As heretics ultimately stood as a symbol of opposition towards the church, their… Continue reading Inquisition In the Early Medieval Church →

The main group of heretics, which posed a threat to the church, consisted of the Cathars, Albigensians, Manichaeans and Good Christians.Pope Innocent III spearheaded the first notable action against heretics; he said that any act of heresy would be considered treason. This decree would be known as Vergentis Ad abolendam. If you were found guilty… Continue reading Papal and Decrees →

The twelfth and thirteenth centuries saw the development both of active, widespread movements that challenged the official theology and hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church, and the development of an apparatus, the Inquisition, to systematically identify and extirpate heretical communities. The earliest sect to pose such a challenge was that variously called the Cathars, Albigensians,… Continue reading The Construction of Heresy →