War on Heresy : Faith and Power in Medieval Europe

by Moore, R. i.

• ISBN13: 9780674065826
• ISBN10: 0674065824
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2012-05-01
• Publisher: Harvard Univ Pr

Summary

Between 1000 and 1250, the Catholic Church confronted the threat of heresy with increasing force. Some of the most portentous events in medieval history-the Cathar crusade, the persecution and mass burnings of heretics, the papal inquisition established to identify and suppress beliefs that departed from the true religion-date from this period. Fear of heresy molded European society for the rest of the Middle Ages and beyond, and violent persecutions of the accused left an indelible mark. Yet, as R. I. Moore suggests, the version of these events that has come down to us may be more propaganda than historical reality. Popular accounts of heretical events, most notably the Cathar crusade, are derived from thirteenth-century inquisitors who saw organized heretical movements as a threat to society. Skeptical of the reliability of their reports, Moore reaches back to earlier contemporaneous sources, where he learns a startling truth: no coherent opposition to Catholicism, outside the Church itself, existed. The Cathars turn out to be a mythical construction, and religious difference does not explain the origins of battles against heretic practices and beliefs. A truer explanation lies in conflicts among elites-both secular and religious-who used the specter of heresy to extend their political and cultural authority and silence opposition. By focusing on the motives, anxieties, and interests of those who waged war on heresy, Moore's narrative reveals that early heretics may have died for their faith, but it was not because of their faith that they were put to death.

Table of Contents

List of Maps	p. ix
List of Illustrations	p. x
Preface	p. xii
Map	p. xiv
Prologue: Death arid a maiden	p. 1
Cry Havoc
The avenging flames	p. 13
The gift of the Holy Spirit	p. 32
The apostolic life	p. 45
Monks, miracles and Manichees	p. 56
The simoniac heresy	p. 71
Routing out these detestable plagues	p. 87
Sowers of the word	p. 104
Sheep in the midst of wolves	p. 127
Making enemies	p. 143
The Dogs of War
Exposed to contumely and persecution	p. 165
Sounding the alarm	p. 184
Drawing the lines	p. 204
Speaking of principles	p. 215
The enemy at the gate	p. 228
To war and arms	p. 241
Politics by other means	p. 264
The sleep of reason	p. 274
The vineyard of the lord	p. 298
Epilogue: A winter journey	p. 327
Afterword: The war among the scholars	p. 332
Chronology	p. 337
Further Reading	p. 343
Notes	p. 346
Glossary	p. 356
Biographical Index of Names	p. 358
Index	p. 371
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.