The act of heresy

The act of heresy was considered a serious crime because it suggested that the accused did not believe in God, or in the existence of God. At first, according to Levack and others, the role of rooting out who were heretics and who were not fell to the Catholic Church. In actuality, this was a self-appointed mission and one which most priests, bishops, and other inquisitors took to heart (Levack, 1987).

The Inquisition, then, was designed to create a lot of converts for the Catholic church, converts who were Jewish, Islamic or Protestant. It was essential that the Catholic church get these converts, because, as St. Bernard of Clairvaux and Geertz both suggest, the Catholic church considered itself to be the preserver of the family (Ruiz, 2001). The Catholic Inquisition thrived in France, in Spain, in Germany (to a lesser extent) and in Italy (Levack, 1987).

The Kings of France and Spain, and some of the rulers of the City States of Italy all ruled by a concept known as "Divine Right" where their power to rule came basically from God. In these nations, the main enemies were the Protestants who were questioning the complete power of the Church to speak for God, and therefore were talking against the king. It is essential to remember, as Wakefield reminds us, the Middle Ages were a period of great unrest when every thing was being called in question (Ruiz, 2001).

For instance, the Catholic Church had long insisted that the Earth was the center of the Universe and

Related Essays

The English Reformation .... Putting the .... for Submission of the Clergy and the greater English .... to aid him in compiling arguments against the "Lutheran heresy", thus solidifying his .... (1635 7 )

Capital Punishment Views .... Not only were the crimes of treason, heresy, and murder punishable by death, but stealing (.... of 1713), and even cutting down a tree (.... of 1723) were .... (2287 9 )

Beatrice de Planissoles & Peter Abelard .... unconscious participation in eating stolen goods, Reginald suffers more from this .... than as .... of Beatrice, we see a woman who is accused of heresy on hearsay .... (2558 10 )

History of Witchcraft in Europe .... authority, church authorities treated secularism as heresy, identified heresy with witchcraft .... this bull, he appointed regional inquisitors, an .... that began .... (2731 11 )

Criminal Punishment & Deterrence Problem .... People recognize that death is a suitable punishment only for an .... of equal magnitude .... to return to the days when someone could be executed for heresy or for .... (1794 7 )

Category: Philosophy - T