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Prologue - Pre-Church History

In the beginning, God created the earth and the universe and saw

that it was good. Then He created man and woman and they

lived in the Garden of Eden. Eventually Adam and Eve ate from

the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and were exiled from

the Garden, thus bringing sin into the world. After many

generations, God saw the corruption in man and decided to flood

the world. He saw one good man, however, and told him of the

impending flood and instructed him to build an ark and to bring

aboard two of every animal. After this, he swore to never flood

the Earth again, the rainbow being a sign of this promise. After many other generations, God

called out to a man named Abram for him to follow God. As such, Abram found God and the

Jewish religion. God made a covenant with Abram that he would have many descendants. His

wife, Sarah, however, was not fertile and Abram had a child with his servant Hagar and had a

son, Ishmael. God renewed his covenant with Abram that he

would have a child with Sarah, and a sign would be

circumcision and he would be known as Abraham. God says

that he will bless Ishmael (from whom the Muslim faith

would rise) and Abraham has Isaac (from who would come

the Jews). Later, God made the Davidic Covenant with David

that he would be king and the Messiah would come from his

line. After many more years, an angle appeared to Mary that

she would immaculately conceive a child who would be the

Son of God, Jesus Christ, the Messiah.

By: Andrew Wingersky

God Creates the Earth

The Flood

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The Life and Works of Jesus The Catholic Church itself was started by Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ was born in 4 B.C. in Nazareth. He was

born in a farm animal stable and laid in a manger. It is

believed that the North Star itself light up brighter than

ever and that three kings followed the North Star to

witness the birth of the Most High, The King of Kings,

Jesus Christ himself. It is also believed that shepherds

attended the birth of Jesus. The three kings each gave

one gift to Jesus and his family. One king gave the gift

of gold. The gold represented that Jesus is the king of

kings. Another king gave Jesus incense. The incense

represented how Jesus is divine because incense is

burned with intent to go up to God. The final gift is

myrrh, and it represents how he is human, mortal. Jesus

was born into this world through a virgin. It was announced to Mary by Arc Angel Gabriel that she was

going to give birth to the Son of God. She agreed to it and in several months she gave birth to Jesus. She

gave birth to the man that would start the biggest religion to this day. He would most the renowned

person to ever live on Earth.

Jesus grew up in Nazareth under the reign of King Herod. He and his family had to flee Nazareth because

Kind Herod had a statewide execution of all boys under the age

of two. Him and His family was warned and thankfully made it

out alive. Jesus’ father John was a carpenter and John taught

Jesus how to be a carpenter. Jesus started his ministry, the

ministry that would change the world, around the years of 28-29

A.D. He was about 30 when he began his ministry. Jesus traveled

to many places during his ministry. The most significant places

that he traveled were: Jerusalem, Jericho, and Capernaum.

During his travels, he “picked up” his 12 apostles. They would be

with him till the very end. He also met some prominent biblical

characters along the way as well. He met Mary Magdalene, a

woman who Jesus saved from prostitution. Jesus was captured

around the years of 33-36. He had an extremely unfair trial. Even

though Pontius Pilot found him innocent, he was still executed.

His execution was one of the most unpleasant execution methods

of the time. After being severely scourged, he was forced to drag

a wooden cross many miles to Eusebius. He was then nailed

through the hands and feet to the cross and left there to die. He

was

hung in between two criminals. He was hung

at 9 am and He finally died at 3 pm. He was

buried, but in three days He resurrected and

ascended into Heaven, in paradise.

Jesus was important during his time that he

was alive on this Earth in such a way that the

most prominent religion to this day is based

Nativity Scene

Jesus as a child

Jesus being crucified

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on belief in Him and the rest of the Holy Trinity. His life on earth was entirely perfect; sin was absent in

His life. He was the human form of God on earth, both human and divine. During his time on earth, he

essentially updated the Ten Commandments to suit the time period. He introduced the Beatitudes at his

Sermon on Mount. He taught about many different things, like divorce, the anawim, discrimination, etc.

His life was important because of the new ideas that he taught and his universality. Although sad and

unfortunate, the death of Jesus was a very important aspect of his life. His dying on the cross saved us

from hell and reunited us with God in heaven because through his death, our sin is forgiven. Our souls are

re-invigorated and we are saved from spiritual death. His death was not in vain what so ever, it is still

remembered today as a valiant act of valor. The part of Jesus’ life that matters most to Christians is the

resurrection of Christ.

Probably the most renowned event in the life of Jesus is the resurrection. It was his rising from death. He

was dead and placed in a tomb for three whole days then he resurrected. We still celebrate the

Resurrection of Christ today. During Easter, we celebrate how Jesus resurrected and ascended into

heaven. Resurrection assures Christians the possibility of new life in Heaven, a life after death that is far

better than our life here on Earth. It is a life in paradise. Resurrection demonstrates how there is more to

our life than our life on Earth. Jesus was quite possibly one of the most important and renowned person to

ever be born into this Earth. Christianity would not exist in any form at all if Jesus was never born. His

ideas were revolutionary for the time. He lived an absolutely perfect life.

By: Alec Gonzales

Diocletian Persecution

The Diocletian Persecutions took place from 303 A.D.

– 313 A.D., a decade of struggle for the Christians.

Early Roman emperors had always discriminated

Christians in the empire. It was not till 250 A.D. that

the Roman Empire publically endorsed the

discrimination of Christians with their passing of a law

that forced Christians to sacrifice to Roman idols, or

face imprisonment and execution. People were being

killed for their faith! Out of fear, many Christians

sacrificed to the Roman idols, and the ones who didn’t

were incarcerated and martyred. In 302, a man named

Gallienus urged Emperor Diocletian to begin a general

persecution of Christians. Diocletian debated the idea,

and finally on February 24, 303, he began the

persecution that would make or break Christianity. The Diocletian Persecution was stricter in certain parts

of the emperor and more lax in certain parts. Where Diocletian and Gallienus resided, the laws were

upheld very strictly. Where Constantius resided, the laws were not upheld as harshly. The reason for the

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persecution was that Diocletian was seeking to restore the original religions of Rome and Greece. He

himself worshiped the Olympian Gods. He felt that the Christians were preventing him from doing this,

so he had to “remove” them, as they were an obstacle, a nuisance

There were various ways that Christians were persecuted during the Great Persecution. One way was

being tied to a stake and then burned alive. Some people were skinned alive, and left to die. Another way

to be executed was to be put into a coliseum, still a popular

sight today, and forced to fight wild beasts. Crucifixion was

still used during this era. These are just a few of the

torturous ways that people were executed. Some were

worse, like having your intestine slowly ripped out with a

revolving device. The Great Persecution finally ended with

the electing of Constantine, the first Christian Emperor to

reside in Rome. He ended the Great Persecution in 313.

By Alec Gonzales

Saints Emerge St. George was born the year 275 or 281 A.D., it isn’t

known which of these years it he was born. He was a

Roman Soldier, as portrait in the image. He is known as

one of the most prominent military saints to ever live. St.

George is often portrayed as slaying a dragon and a maiden

in the distance. The dragon represents Satan and the

Corrupt Roman Empire, whereas the maiden represents the

martyrdom of saints. He is protecting the martyrdom of

saints from Satan and the Roman Empire. St. George was

most likely born into Christian Noble family. He traveled

to Rome to meet with Diocletian. He met with Diocletian

to discuss his becoming a soldier in the Roman Army. He

was accepted into the army and after a few years he

acquired the rank of Tribusus and was stationed as an

imperial guard of the Emperor at Nicomedia. In 303 when

Diocletian endorsed the Great Persecution. Since

Diocletian liked George, he offered him land, slaves,

money, and power, but George refused to convert. He was

not going to worship Diocletian’s idols. Since George

refused to convert, Diocletian was left no with no other

choice than to execute him. After torturing him multiple

times, the Romans eventually decapitated him because he

still refused to give up his faith. Before he died, he gave all

of his possessions to the poor and needy. He was not

selfish at all.

St. George died on April 23, 303. His Feast day is on April

23, the same day that he died. St. George is the patron saint of Boy Scouts America. His colors are red

and white.

By: Alec Gonzales

St. George in his Army Uniform

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Second Council of Constantinople

Advances in the Church circa 6th

Century

In the 6th

century, the current Roman Emperor at the time – Emperor Justinian sought out for

Constantinople and to reclaim these western lands from the inhabiting Germans. These lands

would include North Africa up to Italy. The reclaiming of these lands was quite successful, buy

at the cost of destroying urban centers and ruining economies in the West. Some cities were even

abandoned and the main surviving Roman institution was the Western Church, the last remaining

link to Greek culture and civilization.

In the East, Rome has shifted into a new period of history

called the Byzantine. This was the time of the transformation

of the Roman world or fall of the Roman Empire. Although

there were many more Christians in the East that in the west,

developments in the West were the ones that would set stage

for major developments in the Christian world during the

later Middle ages.

The Major council that took place in the 6th

century was the Second Council of Constantinople.

Church was firmly opposed to all those who had either inspired or assisted Nestorius, the

eponymous heresiarch of Nestorianism—the proposition that the Christ and Jesus were two

separate persons loosely conjoined, and that the Virgin

Mary could not be called the Mother of God (Theotokos)

but only the mother of Christ (Christotokos). Nestorius

was an archbishop that was opposed to the following ideas

of calling Virgin Mary “Mother of God” and agreed with

the fact that Jesus had two natures. Justinian hoped that

the public rejection of these supposedly Nestorian

writings and their authors would help reconcile the

empire's Monophysites, those who belief that Christ has

one nature, with the Council of Chalcedon, which had determined that Christ had "two natures,"

divine and human, a formula which was seen by many as opening the door to Nestorianism.

Saint Gregory I the Great served his papacy in the 6th

century (590AD). He was a Doctor of the

church and one of the four great Latin Fathers of the Church. He had the most influence on the

early medieval church as the multitudes of writings he created. In the 530s the second Church of

the Holy Wisdom, the Hagia Sophia was built in Constantinople under Justinian. He was also a

very important writer in his time period, one of the two in his century.

As the political borders of the Roman Empire crumbled away and then destroyed, Christianity

spread beyond the old borders of the empire and into areas never Romanized.

Byzantium Empire in 555AD

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Christianity spread to Ireland, a land that was never exposed to Christianity. The spread in faith

was catalyzed by a former slave man, Saint Peter. He escaped slavery and was consecrated as a

bishop. After becoming a bishop, he returned to his homeland to preach the Gospel.

Christianity further spread to places such as Arabia, Gaul (modern day

France), Britain, and more heavily in Germany. The spread to the

Germans and the Franks was quite successful, but some Germanics

would praise their former Gods alongside with Jesus. They would

sometimes inter-swap between their Gods and ask for victory before

battle.

These were the major events of the 6th

Century: the Pope, Pope

Gregory the Great I, who wrote a multitude of documents, the Second Council of Constantinople

which clarified the divinity of Jesus and the nomenclature of Virgin Mary, and lastly the

missionaries that were spread through the northern and eastern Europe.

By: Niels Mohty

Rise of Islam and its Impact

Arabian religious leader named Muhammad

ibn ‘Abdullāh began to spread the message

of the Koran, which includes some tradition

similar to those of the Christian and Jewish

faith. Birth of Prophet Muhammad was the

beginning of Islam. After his teachings and

his death, his teachings were taught and

preached all over the Arabian Pedinusa and

more. This new faith, called submission,

proclaimed the worship and obedience of a

purely monotheist God as the purpose of

life. This uprising in a new religion would

pose many threats to Christianity during the middle ages. Prophet Muhammad unified the

Arabian Peninsula in 630 under the order of Islam. This unification also included a former

Christian nation: Yemen. After Prophet Muhammad died, a caliphate (Muslim empire) emerged.

Back to Christianity, there were three main councils that took place during the 7th

century. These

three councils:

Conversion of pagans

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1. The Third Council of Constantinople was met for the purpose of repudiating

monothelitism and reaffirmed that Christ had both human and divine wills.

2. The Quinisext Council discussed raising some local canons to ecumenical status,

establishing principles of clerical discipline, addressing the Biblical canon, and

establishing the pentarchy.

3. The Second Council of Nicaea which declared that images of Jesus misrepresented him

and that images of Mary and the saints were idols. The Second Council of Nicaea

restored the veneration of icons and ended the first iconoclasm.

Tensions between East and West grew as conflict arose over misunderstandings about

Hesychasm, the act of prayer. Communication between the Greek East and Latin West by the 7th

century had become dangerous and practically ceased - this marked the Great Schism.

Churches still kept preaching the word of the Gospel to new countries. They continued to preach

in the regular areas – Germany, England, and France, but there was a new place that they could

preach Christianity; China. When Christianity was first introduced to China, three major

religious systems, Buddhism, Confucianism, and

Taoism, were already popular there, woven into

the ancient traditions and customs of the people.

Active trade for centuries between China and the

West could have brought Christian missionaries at

an early date. Christianity was welcomed by

Emperor T'ai Tsung, the founder of the Tang

Dynasty. The emperor, having examined the

sacred writings, ordered their translation and the

preaching of their message. He also directed the

building of a Christian monastery in his capital.

According to the inscription, his successor,

Emperor Kao Tsung, also encouraged Christianity and ordered the building of a monastery in

each province of his domain.

The Muslims being in the Holy Land sparked conflict between the Christians and the Muslims.

The Muslim armies applied pressure on the Eastern Orthodox Byzantium Empire. Apostasy was

threatened with death punishment. Many Christians would convert just to avoid taxes and

discrimination. These actions deflected the Church from its positive growth, backed churches

into ghetto communities, and discouraged evangelism. The Islamic government eventually

controlled the trade routes and essentially closed the proclamation of the Gospel.

Ancient Chinese Church

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Example of Iconoclasm

Islamic rule started to spread and more and more land was starting to be conquered by the

Muslims as they ran rampant in the south.

The Roman-Persian Wars: Conflict between the Persian Nation and the Roman empires was

going on for approximately 700+ years. The series of wars waged upon each other weakened

them both equally, allowing Islamic nations to take advantage of their weakness and conquering

Persia.

Byzantine-Arab Wars: Following the death of Muhammad in 632, there was a push by the

Muslims to conquer tribes of the East - mostly Christian Ghassanids. The Byzantine-Muslim

Wars were a series of wars between the Arab Muslims Caliphates and the Eastern Orthodox

Byzantine Empire. As a result the Byzantines saw an extensive loss of territory. The initial

conflict lasted from 629-717, ending with the Second Arab Siege of Constantinople. After the

Arab conquest of North Africa in the 7th century the Eastern Orthodox Church of Egypt in

Alexandria were a minority even among Christians and remained small for centuries.

The wars that took place in the 7th

century shaped Christianity in a different way, a degrading

one. There were also three main councils that took place mainly concerning the veneration of

saints and the Lord. Christianity started to sprout in new places such as China.

By: Niels Mohty

Islamic Presence in a Christian World

Christianity in the 8th century was much affected by the rise of Islam in the south. Toward the

end of 8th century, the Muslim nation had conquered all of Persia and most of the Byzantine

territories which would include: Egypt, Syria, and Palestine. These events seemed to mark that

Muslim world has overtaken the Christian world. Muslim nations became the most powerful

nations in the Mediterranean areas.

As usual per century, there were a few more councils and

movements that took place in the 8th

century. The Second

Council of Nicea affirmed the making and veneration of

icons while also forbidding the worship of icons and the

making of three-dimensional statuary. Iconoclasm was a

movement within the Eastern Christian Byzantine church

to establish that the Christian culture of portraits of the

family of Christ and subsequent Christians and biblical

scenes were not of a Christian origin and therefore

heretical. Iconoclasm is the deliberate destruction of

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religious icons and other symbols or monuments, usually with religious or political motives. This

movement was later defined as heretical under the council. The group destroyed much of the

Christian churches' art history, which is needed in addressing the traditional interruptions of the

Christian faith and the artistic works that in the early church were devoted to Jesus Christ or

God. Many works were destroyed during this period. There was even more tension between East

and West parts of the Church because of the conflict over the ideal of

iconoclasm. In the Byzantine side of the conflict, they forbid the

creation and veneration of religious images. Judaism and Islam forbid

this practice as well. Despite all of this conflict and hardship, the

missionaries seem to strive and not only strive, but reach new places

such as the Netherlands, non-Frankish Germany, and Scandinavia.

The missionaries still were in function in the old places such as China

and Anglo-Saxons.

There was an important Saint during this time period – Saint John.

Saint John of Damascus wrote works expounding the Christian faith,

and composed hymns which are still used liturgically in Eastern

Christian practice throughout the world. He is considered "the last of

the Fathers" of the Eastern Orthodox Church and is best known for

his strong defense of icons and is generally considered to be the last of the Church Fathers.

The Arabs, under the command of the Berber General Tarik ibn Ziyad, first began their conquest

of southern Spain in 711. A raiding party led by Tarik was sent to intervene in a civil war in the

Visigothic kingdom in Hispania. Crossing the Strait of Gibraltar, they won a decisive victory in

the summer of 711 at the Battle of Guadalete and by 718 the Muslims dominated most of the

peninsula.

Overall in the 8th

century, the Church faced more problems such as the veneration of the saints

and if the production of religious images should be outlawed. As the Catholic institution was

arguing over this, the Muslims and their empire grew in size and power.

By: Niels Mohty

Conflict and Coronation

In the 9th

Century, the Charlemagne was coroneted as Holy Roman Emperor. Being coroneted

symbolized the pope's alleged right to crown Christian sovereigns, and the emperor's role as

protector of the Roman Catholic Church.

Saint John of Damascus

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A Church in Russia

This time period in where Charlemagne was coronated was called the Carolingian Renaissance.

With this, his papacy had acquired a new protectorate in the West in return from Charlemagne’s

Coronation, but also led to a schism, because the emperors and patriarchs of Constantinople

interpreted themselves as the true descendants of the Roman Empire dating back to the

beginnings of the Church.

As usual, the missionaries in the foreign countries still

prospered, adding more and more countries to the list every

century. The Spread of Christianity became more prevalent in

areas of Moravia, Bulgaria, Rus' (Slavic), and Scandinavia.

In the East Slavic area (Rus'), and after the First Bulgarian

Empire was converted to Christianity, it started a massive

missionary expansion north and east. As a result it was able

to convert and help convert many East Slavic peoples and introduce to them Bulgarian books and

Church literature in Bulgarian, most notably the Rus'. Christianize them had already been made

in the 9th century, with the Christianization of the Rus' Khaganate. The efforts were finally

successful in the 10th century, when about 980 Vladimir the Great was baptized.

In this century, the new Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne was appointed and this caused

problems for the Church as some people claimed to be the direct descendent and therefore was

eligible for this title. As for the missionaries went - they went well and flourished in new areas in

the world; mostly eastern and northern Europe.

By: Niels Mohty

A Period of Peace

By the end of the 10th

century in Christianity, the word of the Gospel and its teaching has spread

throughout much of Europe and Asia. The Church in England was forming, but on the downside,

the Eastern Orthodox Church was still fighting each other in religious views which ultimately

erupt in the Great Schism.

As the Carolingian Empire started to fail, more theological activity was being seen and

intellectually influences from the Arab world started to merge via Spain.

The last of Europe was being introduced to the Gospel. Poland becomes Christianized and

buildings of Churches and other religious monuments are erected. Poland became unified under

the name of Christianity and was unified by the 13th

century. Also, the Kingdom of Hungary

became Christianized at the end of the 10th

century.

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Area of what now is Belarus, Russia and the Ukraine was

settled by the Kievan Rus' with an attempt to Christianize

them which had already been made in the 9th century, with

the Christianization of the Rus' Khaganate. The efforts were

finally successful in the 10th century, when about 980

Vladimir the Great was baptized at Chersonesos.

By: Niels Mohty

The Great Schism and Church Problems

Christianity in the 11th century is marked primarily by the Great Schism of the Church, which

formally divided the State church of the Roman Empire into Eastern (Greek) and Western (Latin)

branches.

The Investiture Controversy, or Lay investiture

controversy, was the most significant conflict

between secular and religious powers in

medieval Europe. It began as a dispute in the

11th century between the Holy Roman Emperor

Henry IV, and Pope Gregory VII concerning

who would appoint bishops (investiture). The

end of lay investiture threatened to undercut the

power of the empire and the ambitions of

noblemen for the benefit of Church reform.

Noblemen who held lands hereditarily passed

those lands on within their family. However,

because bishops had no legitimate children, when a bishop died it was the king's right to appoint

a successor. So, while a king had little recourse in preventing noblemen from acquiring powerful

domains via inheritance and dynastic marriages, a king could keep careful control of lands under

the domain of his bishops. The Church wanted to end this lay investiture because of the potential

corruption, not only from vacant sees but also from other practices such as simony.

By: Niels Mohty

Baptism of Poland

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1000-1500: Introduction and Preview

The period between 1000 and 1500 is known as “The High Middle Ages,” and was one of the

richest times in all history for creative theological thinking. Great scholars, attached to the

growing European universities, were hammering out refinements of basic Christian doctrines that

dealt with questions Christians of all times ask. It was an era not only of rich theology, but of

powerful preaching and evangelistic outreach; it was also a time when great leaders tried to focus

people’s attention on true Christian discipleship. Often our view of the Middle Ages is of

corruption and power politics at the papal level, and that element was present, but this series of

studies attempts to emphasize the positive accomplishments of great men of God in this time of

the flowering of the Christian Medieval civilization.

The Rise of the Papal Monarchy: Gregory VII and his Colleagues

At a synod in 1059, Hildebrand (Pope Gregory VII) and his

colleague Peter Damian issued harsh rebukes against

cathedral canons who lived “like laypeople.” In their view,

canons (groups of priests who were attached to specific

cathedrals or other churches) should live an “apostolic

common life,” cloistered within the church’s premise and

separate from the town’s laypeople. Many canons,

however, had taken up residence in homes and had begun

gathering personal possessions, something considered ‘un-

apostolic’. The Gregorian Reform partially took root,

launching a partial overhaul of the system by establishing

the “Rule of Augustine,” a rigorous, ascetic regulation of the

common life, for canons. Though only a minority of the

population adopted the Augustinian rule, it established a

significant alternative to the prevailing clerical culture of the time and reveals a lot about the

kind of Christianity that Gregory and his supporters sought to create.

By: Andrew Wingersky

Gregory VII

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The Struggle of Two Universals: German

Empire and Papal Monarchy

Through the reforms of Cluny, a series of forceful

Popes sought to free the Church from secular

control. A German, Pope St. Leo IX (1049–1054)

was the first of these reformer Popes. A relative

of Emperor Henry III, he traveled widely to fight

against the abuses of clerical incontinence, lay

investiture, and simony. A successor, Pope

Nicholas II (1058–1061), helped the cause of the

papacy by creating the College of Cardinals to

elect future Popes. The early efforts at reform

were led by St. Peter Damian and Hildebrand, the

brilliant monk from Cluny, who became Pope

Gregory VII. The brilliant Gregory VII’s

pontificate 1073–1085) was a milestone, the

beginning of a reform that gained for the Church

unparalleled status and power in Europe over the

next two centuries. Gregory’s reforms included

an insistence on clerical celibacy throughout the

Church, a move that led to revolts in some areas.

He also staunchly moved to eradicate simony and stamp out lay investiture. Gregory firmly held

that God founded the Church and commissioned it to welcome all humanity into a single society

ruled by divine law. Because the Church was founded by Christ, she is above all their human

societies, including the state. Gregory’s foundational beliefs were expressed in his controversial

Dictates of the Pope, which, in twenty-seven propositions, spelled out the rights of the Pope in

relationship to secular rulers.

By: Andrew Wingersky

The Crusades: The Odyssey of Faith

The Crusades were a series of Holy Wars launched by the Christian states of Europe against the

Saracens. The Crusades started in 1095 when Pope Claremont preached the First Crusade at the

Council of Claremont. The Pope’s preaching led to thousands immediately affixing the cross to

their garments – the name Crusade given to the Holy Wars came from the old French word

Pope Leo IX

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‘crois’ meaning ‘cross’. The Crusades were great military expeditions undertaken by the

Christian nations of Europe for the purpose of rescuing

the holy places of Palestine from the hands of the

Mohammedans. They were eight in number, the first

four being called the Principal Crusades, and the

remaining four the Minor Crusades. Also, there was a

Children’s Crusade. There were several other

expeditions which were insignificant in numbers or

results. The reason for the crusades was a war between

Christians and Moslems which centered on the city of

Jerusalem. The City of Jerusalem held a Holy

significance to the Christian religion. The Church of the

Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem commemorated the hill of

crucifixion and the tomb of Christ’s burial and was

visited by Pilgrims. In 1065, Jerusalem was taken by

the Turks and 3000 Christians were massacred starting

a chain of events which contributed to the cause of the

crusades. The objectives of the crusades was at first to release the Holy Land, in particular

Jerusalem, from the Saracens, but in time was extended to seizing Spain from the Moors, the

Slavs and Pagans from eastern Europe, and the islands of the Mediterranean.

By: Andrew Wingersky

Return of Spain to the Christian Fold (The

Reconquista)

The Reconquista refers to the medieval Christian conquest

of the Iberian Peninsula (present-day Spain and Portugal)

from the Moslem forces, who had invaded the area in 711.

After 1000, the Moslem caliphate of Cordoba began to

break into several smaller states divided by warfare. This

provided the opportunity for Christian forces to initiate

the Reconquista, led by the Kingdom of Castile which

captured the important Moslem city of Toledo in 1085.The

kingdom of Aragón also began its own offensive against the

Moors in the early twelfth century and the union with

Catalonia in 1140 furnished additional military strength. In

1212, Pope Innocent III proclaimed a full crusade against

The Crusades

The Reconquista

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the Moors and the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in the same year provided the Christians with a

decisive victory from which the Moors never fully recovered. Castile captured Cordoba in 1236

and Cadiz in 1262. By 1270, the Moors were confined to the small Kingdom of Granada in the

south of Spain, which they held until 1492 when Ferdinand V and Isabella I completed

the Reconquista by capturing the last Moorish enclave in Spain.

By: Andrew Wingersky

Salvation Theology and Medieval

Theologians

The ‘High medieval’ period is also known as the ‘scholastic’

period, and is generally agreed to begin with Saint Anselm of

Canterbury, an Italian philosopher, theologian, and church official

who is famous as the originator of the ontological argument for the

existence of God. The 13th

and 14th

centuries are generally

regarded as the high period of scholasticism. The early 13th

century witnessed the culmination of the recovery of Greek

philosophy. Schools of translation appeared in Italy and Sicily,

and eventually in the rest of Europe. Scholars such as Adelard of

Bath travelled to Sicily and the Arab world, translating works on

astronomy and mathematics, including the first complete

translation of Euclid’s Elements. Also, powerful Norman kings

gathered men of knowledge from Italy and other areas into their

courts as a sign of their prestige. William of Moerbeke’s

translations and editions of Greek philosophical texts in the

middle half of the 13th

century helped in the formation of a clearer

picture of Greek philosophy, and in particular of Aristotle, than was given by the Arabic versions

they had previously relied on, which had distorted or obscured the relation between Platonic and

Aristotelian systems of philosophy. His work formed the basis of the major commentaries that

followed.

By: Andrew Wingersky

Plato, Seneca, Artistole From left to right

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England's Own Struggle: Archbishops of

Canterbury vs. Ambitious Kings

When Henry II became the Duke of Normandy in 1150 and Count of Anjou after his

father’s death in 1151, he married Eleanor of Aquitaine in 1152 and ruled her duchy as well, thus

becoming more powerful than his lord, King Louis of France. As such, King Louis was fearful

of his loos of influence in France and stated war on the couple, joined by Henry’s younger

brother Geoffrey who claimed the inheritance of Anjou. Their feeble opposition was easily

overcome, however, and Henry acquired a vast swathe of

territory in France from Normandy through Anjou to

Aquitaine. Meanwhile, in England, Stephen was unable to

gain the support that he needed from his Barons, fearful that

a victory for either side would be followed by a massive

confiscation of lands. He had quarreled with his Archbishop

of Canterbury in 1147, and the Church had, as a result,

refused to acknowledge his son Eustace as his heir. When

Eustace met an untimely death in 1154, Stephen was forced

to meet Henry at Wallingford, the great Barons decided to

shift any and all allegiances away from the King of England

to the one he was more or less forced to recognize as his

successor. Henry was duly crowned with general English

acclaim. Henry II left a greater impression upon the

institutions of England than any other king. Before long,

however, King Henry II and Archbishop Becket got into a dispute with three main factors

causing it: differing personalities, political implications, and the tolerance of the Age.

Eventually, as the quarrel progressed, Becket died and was more powerful and influential in said

death. Then, Henry’s sons broke out into open rebellion aided by the Queen. The sons’ lack of

cooperation, however, allowed Henry to defeat them and imprison Eleanor for her part. Henry

eventually divided up his kingdom.

By: Andrew Wingersky

Henry II

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The Story of Two Opposites: Francis of

Assisi and Dominic of Spain

With the end of the Crusades came the birth of a new social class, city people (bourgeoisie) who,

in turn, developed trades. These changes helped to hasten the end of feudalism and helped to

respond to the ever-growing migration to cities, the new form of religious life developed in the

Church to serve the needs of the city people – the mendicant or “begging” orders. Among the

new religious orders founded at this time were the Carmelites and Augustinians, but two most

important new orders of the time were the Dominicans and the Franciscans. Unlike members of

earlier orders who lived in monasteries, the early Dominican and Franciscan friars kept on the

move, living a simple life of poverty, preaching in towns and begging for their food and shelter.

St. Dominic Guzman founded his Order of Preachers (the

Dominicans) to combat heresies, most notably the Albigensian

heresy. The Dominicans took their vow of poverty and

became leaders in the emerging universities. Later, they also

assumed a prominent role on the court of the Inquisition, a

special Church tribunal to curb the spread of heresies. St.

Thomas Aquinas, one of the greatest theologians of the Middle

Ages, was a Dominican. St. Francis of Assisi founded the

Order of Friar Minors, popularly known as Franciscans. Like

the Dominicans, the Franciscans took the vows of poverty,

chastity, and obedience and lived simply among the people,

bringing Christ to the marketplace. The mendicant orders

helped the Church at a critical time as radical reforming groups

had begun to emerge as a response to a Church that had grown rich and powerful.

Universities developed in the large cities of Europe during this time

period, and rival clerical orders within the Church began to battle for

political and intellectual control over these centers of educational life.

The two main orders founded in this period were the Franciscans and

the Dominicans. The Franciscans were founded by Francis of Assisi in

1209. Their leader in the middle of the century was Bonaventure, a

traditionalist who defended the theology of Augustine and the

philosophy of Plato, incorporating only a little of Aristotle in with the

more neoplatonist elements. Following Anselm, Bonaventure supposed

that reason can discover truth only when philosophy is illuminated by

religious faith. Other important Franciscan writers were Duns

Scotus, Peter Auriol, and William of Ockham.

Francis of Assisi

Dominic Guzman

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By contrast, the Dominican order, founded by St Dominic in 1215 placed more emphasis on the

use of reason and made extensive use of the new Aristotelian sources derived from the East, and

Moorish Spain. The great representatives of Dominican thinking in this period were Albertus

Magnus and (especially) Thomas Aquinas, whose artful synthesis of Greek rationalism and

Christian doctrine eventually came to define Catholic philosophy. Aquinas placed more

emphasis on reason and argumentation, and was one of the first to use the new translation of

Aristotle's metaphysical and epistemological writing. This was a significant departure from the

Neoplatonic and Augustinian thinking that had dominated much of early Scholasticism. Aquinas

showed how it was possible to incorporate much of the philosophy of Aristotle without falling

into the "errors" of the Commentator Averroes.

By: Andrew Wingersky

Bernard of Clairvaux and the Cistercians

Bernard was born in Burgundy to a family of lower nobility

and with parents of virtue. Because his mother who exerted

the most influence on him, her death in 1107 marked the

beginning of his long path to complete conversion. He

eventually sought out the counsel of the abbot of Citeaux,

Stephen Harding, and decided to enter his small, struggling,

new community called the Cistercians. The order had been

established in 1098 to restore Benedictine monasticism to a

more primitive and austere state. Bernard was so taken

with the order; he persuaded not only his brothers but some

25 others to join him at Citeaux in 1112. Here he began

practicing lifelong ascetic disciplines (strict fasting, sleep

deprivation, etc.), which severely impaired his health---he

was plagued by a myriad of diseases. Within three years,

he was appointed abbot of the third Cistercian monastery

and continued to show his growing spiritual wisdom. By

1118 Clairvaux was able to found its first daughter house—the first of some 70 Cistercian

monasteries Bernard founded (which in turn founded another 100 monasteries in Bernard’s

lifetime). As the order grew, so did Bernard’s influence and responsibilities.

By: Andrew Wingersky

Bernard of Clairvaux

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Medieval Church Architecture

Architecture played a very important role for the church in medieval England. The more

splendid the architecture, the more the church believed it was praising God. The church in

Medieval England poured vast sums of

money into the creation of grandiose

architectural projects that peaked in the

cathedrals at Canterbury and York.

Medieval churches and cathedrals were

superbly built. The vast sums accrued

by the church (primarily from the

poorer classes) gave it the opportunity

to spend on large building projects.

Many of the churches and cathedrals

that survive from the medieval times

have also had additions to them. The

cathedrals started in the reign of

William the Conqueror were the largest buildings seen in England up to that time. With the

exception of Worcester Cathedral, William appointed Norman bishops to these cathedrals.

Therefore, these men would have been heavily influenced by the architecture used in Normandy

and this style came to dominate the architecture of the cathedrals build under William. Norman

architecture is also referred to as Romanesque because it was influenced by the Ancient Romans.

By: Andrew Wingersky

Thomas Aquinas and the Thomistic Synthesis

Thomism is the philosophical school that arose as a legacy

of the work and thought of Saint Thomas Aquinas,

philosopher, theologian, and Doctor of the Church. In

philosophy, his commentaries on Aristotle are his most

lasting contribution. In theology, his Summa Theologica

was one of the most influential documents in medieval

theology and continues to be studied today in theology and

philosophy classes. Thomas believed that truth is true

wherever it is found, and thus consulted Greek, Roman,

Jewish, and Muslim philosophers. Specifically, he was a

realist. He largely followed Aristotelian terminology and

Medieval Church

Thomas Aquinas

22

metaphysics, and wrote comprehensive commentaries on Aristotle, often affirming Aristotle’s

views with independent arguments. Thomas respectfully referred to Aristotle simply as “the

Philosopher.” He also adhered to some neoplatonic principles. Shortly before Thomas died, his

friend Reginald of Piperno implored him to finish his works. With the decree Postquam

sanctissimus, Pope St. Pius X declared that 24 theses formulated by teachers from various

institutions…clearly contain the principles and more important thoughts of Thomas.

By: Andrew Wingersky

Downfall of the Papal Monarchy

Gregory VII’s success in establishing a papal monarchy, which dominated the Church and all

emperors and kings, was continued by successor popes though the 11th

, 12th

, and 14th

centuries.

As time went on, however, the gradual formation of nation states and the power of their kings

and emperors would put an end to the concept of Christendom – the various peoples of the West

united by the Church – as established by Charlemagne in the 9th

century. Furthermore, the

events of the 14th

century called into question not only the power of the popes but their authority

and spiritual and moral prestige. The major marks of the downfall of the Papal Monarchy were

the conflicts between the Popes and the German kings, the conflicts between the Popes and the

French, the Babylonian Captivity (in which the papacy remained in Avignon, France), and the

return of the Papacy to Rome.

By: Andrew Wingersky

Prelude to the Reformation

Although the Reformation officially began in 1517, there were

many key men who began to call for reform in the church.

Among the men who called for reform some of the most

important were John Wycliffe, John Hus, and Martin Luther.

John Wycliffe was born in England and studied at Oxford. He

eventually came to criticize the clergy in 1376 and the corruption

of the Roman Church, and rejected purgatory and the worship of

saints. Wycliffe yearned to return the church to the first-century

Christianity. He believed the Bible to be the supreme authority

for the Christian faith. Although he was a priest of the Roman

Church for his life, he declared the only head of the church was

Christ. Those who followed him were called “Lollards,” and went about preaching the gospel.

John Wycliffe

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John Hus was influenced by Wycliffe but was a diligent independent thinker. He preached

against corruption of the roman Church and believed that the church consists of the total number

of the predestined (those who would be saved). He distinguished between being in the church

and being of the church. He taught that one could be in the church and yet not be a real member

of it. He also taught that cardinals and popes were not necessary to the government of the

church, although he would not have opposed the Episcopal form of government. The whole

nation of Bohemia followed Hus, even after his excommunication. When the pope summoned

Hus to the Council of Constance, the Emperor Sigismund ordered him to go and promised safe

conduct to and from the Council, but he did not interfere when he was condemned a heretic and

burned at the stake. Martin Luther also called for reform in the church in his 95 Theses thus

marking the beginning of the Reformation period.

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25

Pope Leo X

Secrets of the Vatican

As you may know the pope plays a very significant role in

the Catholic faith. I will give you the facts on some very

well-known popes of the last 500 years and bring you in on

the secrets of the Vatican. Let us start out with Pope Leo X;

he was the second son in the Medici family with the name

of Giovanni de Medici (Giovanni the magnificent). The

Medici’s had so much power he was made a cardinal at age

13. He then became Pope at 38 and he chose the name Leo

X. Within year of being pope he had drained all the money

from the church turning Rome into a cultural center of the

Renaissance. With dreams of rebuilding Saint Peter’s he

needed to make money and at that point he went out of

control. He started selling condolences (forgiveness from

god written on a scroll) to all the people. People thought it

was a small price to pay for a ticket into heaven and bought

them for husbands, wives, sons, daughters, and even dead

relatives just to make sure they made it into heaven. Martin

Luther saw this as an abomination and protested

immediately. He then wrote the 95 Theses, a list of things he though was wrong with the church.

Luther did not mean it in a way to aggravate the pope, but it did. Pope Leo X then he

excommunicated Luther from the church. Luther then breaks of to start Protestants. The

cardinals could see that the pope was getting out of hand so they planned to assassinate him,

Giovanni found out and used a double. They killed his double and at that moment Pope Leo X

was determined to kill all responsible. He killed the cardinals that conspired and then died

mysteriously later.

By Peter Marozzi

Pope John Paul II

Pope John Paul II (shown in the right) had a very interesting reign as pope.

He suffered on thing that most popes do not, an assassination attempt. It all

started on the morning of May 13, 1934, He was riding through St. Peter’s

square and then Mehmet Ali Ağca a Turkish ultra-naturalist and a member

of the Grey Wolves shot him 4 times with a Browning Hi-Power 45. It is a

Belgium semi-automatic handgun. It is used by over 50 countries

worldwide and is still used today. It would not be hard to obtain especially

in turkey at the time of an uproar. As the Pope drove by Mehmet shot him

four times and two other people empting his 13 round clip. Only 7 rounds

hit their target and the rest were launched into the air or missed. He was

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Pope John Paul I

quickly brought down and comprehended. The pope was in critical condition and was

immediately rushed to the hospital and luckily he survived. Mehmet Ali Ağca was sentenced to

life in Italian prison. But later he met with the pope and he was forgiven by the pope. His

sentence was later pardoned by the Italian government and commuted to 19 years in Italian

prison and 10 years in Turkish prison. He was released in 2010.

Pope John Paul I

Pope John Paul I was the shortest ever life of a pope. He was pope for 33 days. He was found

dead sitting up in his bed one morning by a nun. It was presumed COD was cardiac arrest. There

was no autopsy performed, but that is not uncommon for a pope.

Statements were taken but it is thought it is inaccurate on who

actually found the body and what he was doing before he died.

David Yallop later wrote a book on the happenings and concluded

that the pope could have been in potential danger from the IOR

(Vatican bank). The bank owed a lot of people money and most of

those people disappeared after the incident. Later one of the people

who the IOR owed money was found dead in his home and ruled

suicide. His family was in disbelief and ordered a reinvestigation,

the outcome, not suicide but an open verdict. Lucien Gregoire knew

the pope personally even before he became pope. He started to

investigate the sudden death of his friend and it came to a sudden

stop when he was mysteriously killed in a hit and run accident.

By: Peter Marozzi

Eastern and Western Schism

The Great Western Schism occurred in in Western

Christendom from 1378 - 1417. In 1378 the papal court

was based in Rome and an Italian was elected pope as

Pope Urban VI. The cardinals in the French interest

refused to accept him, declared his election void, and

named Clement VII as pope. Clement withdrew to

Avignon, whilst Urban remained in Rome. Western

Christendom could not decide which one to obey. Some

countries declared for Urban, while other countries

accepted Clement.

By: Peter Marozzi

27

Church of England The Church of England happened during the time the Protestant

Reformation. King Henry VIII (shown to the left) wanted to

divorce his wife but the church did not let him. So he declared

himself the head of his own church the Anglicans or the Church of

England. When he became the leader he divorced his wife and

repeated the process a couple of times. It is a different religion but

it is very similar to Catholic but Catholics follow the pope and they

follow the king and queen.

By: Peter Marozzi

Science Questions Faith in God

Since Da Vinci, to Galileo, Darwin, and Sir Isaac Newton

the church has been battling against science. The problem

of disagreeing over creation and miracles may never be

solved. The church does recognize evolution now, they

say that god created everything and he created things to

cause everything. A lot of those same people protest

things like invetro and abortion and other scientific things.

By: Peter Marozzi

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Abortion Abortion is a fragile subject and will

spark up an argument almost anywhere

you bring it up. I personally do not

voice my opinion openly just to retain

the peace. Catholics are Pro-life and

think abortion is murder. Others may

think it is okay. There have been anti-

abortion riots outside of the clinics and

they are so against it they insult the

people going in and throw eggs or

other things. Many states have tried to

pass rules on whether it should be legal

or not. Some presidents even say they

will fix the issues but nothing has

happened yet. Pro-choice states that since the Mother is holding the baby and that it is her body,

that she has the right to have an abortion at any time. Pro-life claims that the baby has a soul

(according to Catholic teachings) it would be considered murder and it forbidden to get an

abortion. I don’t think there will ever be a straight answer.

By Peter Marozzi

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Glossary

Americanism: the belief that American Catholics should adapt themselves to the best of American

culture rather than remove themselves and be confined to minority groups.

Aggiornmaneto: "A bringing up to date", was one of the key words used during the Second Vatican

Council both by bishops and the clergy

Apologist: Christian authors that protected the Church from anti-Christian writings or using reasoning

Apostle: Each of the twelve chief disciples of Jesus Christ; any important early Christian teacher, esp. St.

Paul.

Apostolic Father: a late first century or early second century author who knew actually knew some of

the Apostles or a few of their disciples.

Apostasy: A term that means total abandonment of the Church or the Catholic faith.

Arianism: A heresy denying the divinity of Christ, originating with the Alexandrian priest Arius

Baltimore Catechism: the first catechism written for Catholics in North America, replacing a translation

of Bellarmine's Small Catechism.

Caesaropapism: the doctrine that the state is supreme over the church in ecclesiastical matters.

canon (of the Bible): The list of the inspired books of the Bible endorsed by the Church.

Catholic Action: was the name of many groups of lay Catholics who were attempting to encourage a

Catholic influence on society

Christendom: A time during which great achievements were made taking place in the middle Ages when

the Church and the Western society were one. Broader, the term defines a larger territory where

Christianity is dominant.

Church: The name given the “People of God” who come together from the ends of the earth. For

Christians, the term has three meanings: the People of God gathered from the whole world; the local

church (diocese), and the liturgical assembly (primarily at Eucharist).

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Collegiality: is the relationship between colleagues. Colleagues are those explicitly united in a common

purpose and respecting each other's abilities to work

Conciliarism: A popular idea from the Middle Age claiming that the Pope has less authority than the

Church and that the Church could get rid of the Pope whenever it wants to. Conciliarism was

condemned during the first Vatican Council, but the Second Vatican Council endorsed it but stressed

that the Church was not superior to the powers of the papacy.

Council of Nicea: A council condemning Arianism, proclaimed the divinity of Jesus Christ, and issued a

creed of major Christian beliefs.

cuius regio, eius religio: “whose religion, his religion,” meaning that whatever the king’s religion is, will

be the religion of his/her people.

Dark Ages: A period of time around starting in 843 in which the Christian empire split into 3 different

divisions. With this political breakup of the Holy Roman Empire, disorder and civil wars followed. Weak

leaders caused even more fragmentation.

Deism: A religion that came about in the Age of Enlightenment that involves a belief in the existence of

a supreme being, specifically of a creator who does not intervene in the universe.

Didache: The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles

Donation of Pepin: The Donation of Pepin provided a legal basis for the formal organizing of the Papal

States, which inaugurated papal temporal rule over civil authorities.

Ecumenical Council: A worldwide, official assembly of the bishops under the direction of the Pope.

There have been twenty-one Ecumenical Councils in history, the most recent being the Second Vatican

Council (1962–1965).

Ecumenism: The movement that seeks Christian unity and eventually the unity of all peoples throughout

the world.

Edict of Milan: an edict tolerating Christianity throughout the Empire.

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Efficacious symbol: A description of sacrament; a sign of grace instituted by Christ and entrusted to the

Church. A sacrament is an efficacious symbol because it is a concrete, outward, and visible sign that is,

at the same time, what it represents.

Empiricism: A belief from the Age of Enlightenment that taught all knowledge is derived from sense-

experience.

Enlightenment: A name used in association with the Age of Reason after the Protestant Reformation

where it was held that only human reason, separated from religious belief, can “enlighten” people

Episkopoi: A word in Greek meaning bishop (or overseer)

Fall of Rome: Caused by an attack by the Visigoths in 410, Rome eventually fell in 476. One of the

results of the Fall of Rome was that the Pope emerged as a stronger and more powerful leader of the

Church.

Feudalism: A form of government popular in Europe in the Middle Ages in which a superior/lord

granted land to vassal to compensate for military service.

Filioque: “and from the Son,” one of the main motives for the Eastern Schism.

Freemasonry: Not revelation, governs human lives.

Four Articles: articles that made some outrageous claims: first, that the Pope had no power in temporal

matters; second, general councils were superior to the Pope in spiritual matters; third, the papacy must

adapt its rulings to the French Church; fourth, the decrees of the Pope are only binding on the faithful

when a general council agrees to them.

Gallicanism: A theory from the sixteenth century involving religion and politics that claimed that the

French Church is independent from the authority of the Pope.

Gnosticism: A heretical movement of the 2nd-century Christian Church, teaching that esoteric

knowledge (gnosis) of the supreme divine is enabled.

Hegira: Muhammad's departure from Mecca to Medina in ad 622.

Heresy: A false teaching that denies an essential (dogmatic) teaching of the Church.

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Hierarchy: The sacred leadership of the Church that is made up of the Pope, bishops, priests, and

deacons. The Pope is the symbol of unity in the Church and the successor to St. Peter.

Humanism: A movement of the Penaissance stressing the importance the rediscovery of art, literature,

and civilization of ancient Rome and Greece.

hypostatic union: The doctrine that in Jesus Christ, one divine being exists in two natures, in a divine

nature and in a human nature

Interdict: A Church Ruling preventing a person or religion from receiving or participating in the

sacraments.

Jansenism: A heretical belief teaching the depravity of humanity and that only a few receive the grace of

God. It is similar to Calvinism.

Josephinism: A heretical theory devised by Joseph II advocating the control of the state in matters of

religion, to include the control over the naming of bishops.

Justinian Code: A series of laws originally written in Latin that became the basis of European law that

was instituted by Byzantine emperor Justin (527–565).

Kerygma: A Greek word for the “proclamation” of religious truths about Jesus Christ (e.g., that he is the

way, the truth, and the life.).

Koinonia: The Greek word for “fellowship.” Christians are called to build fellowship with one another so

that they can be a sign of Christ to the world.

Koran: The Islamic sacred book, believed to be the word of God as dictated to Muhammad by the

archangel Gabriel and written down in Arabic.

Kulturkampf: refers to German policies in relation to secularity and the influence of the Roman Catholic

Church, enacted from 1871 to 1878 by the Prime Minister of Prussia, Otto von Bismarck. Liberalism.

lay investiture: A medieval practice where secular rulers of certain territories choose the bishop for that

territory.

Leitourgia: Latin term for liturgy, which means “work of the public.” The liturgy is the work of the

Blessed Trinity; the Father is the source of liturgy, Christ pours out the blessings of the Redemption he

33

won for us on the cross through the sacraments, and the Holy Spirit enlightens our faith and

encourages our response.

Lumen Gentium: the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, is one of the principal documents of the

Second Vatican Council

Macedonianism: A fourth century heresy named for a bishop of Macedonius that claimed that that the

Son created the Holy Spirit who was in turn subordinate to the Father and the Son.

Magisterium: The teaching authority of the church. The Lord bestowed the right to teach in his name

on the Apostles and their successors, that is, the bishops with the Pope as their leader.

Marks of the Church: Traditional signs of the Church: one, holy, catholic, and apostolic.

Mendicant: “to beg,” mendicants are members of a religion that take a vow stating that they are willing

Modernism: in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the

term describes the modernist movement in the arts

Monasticism: asceticism as a form of religious life; usually conducted in a community under a common

rule and characterized by celibacy and poverty.

Monophysitism: a Christian heresy of the 5th and 6th centuries that challenged the orthodox definition

of the two natures (human and divine) in Jesus and instead believed there was a single divine nature

Mystery: A term to describe God’s hidden plan for mankind. The Church is a mystery. St. Augustine

defined mystery as “a visible sign of invisible grace.”

Nepotism: The practice among those with power or influence of favoring relatives or friends, especially

by giving them jobs.

Nominalism: The doctrine that general ideas are mere names without any corresponding reality and that

only particular objects exist.

Orthodoxy: A condition of agreeing to obey the teaching of the faith.

Office of the Propagation of the Faith: An office pointed towards coordinating and centralizing the

missionary activity of Rome.

34

Opus Dei: a secular institute created as a personal prelature to the Pope and with its own bishop

independent of the typical diocesan framework.

Papal Inquisition: A Church tribunal from the thirteenth century in which papal representatives

employed the Inquisition to judge the guilt of suspected heretics with the aim of getting them to repent.

Pax Romana: “Peace of Rome,” A short period in time around Jesus’ birth.

Peace of God: An initiative beginning in the 10th century that was to make roads and cities more suited

for pilgrims and merchants.

Peace of Westphalia: The treaty ending the Thirty Years’ War that was signed in 1648. It solidified the

concepts of cuius regio, eius religio, which ended any hope for a united European Christendom.

Pelagianism: the theological doctrine put forward by Pelagius which denied original sin and affirmed the

ability of humans to be righteous

Pharisee: A Jewish sect during Jesus’ time that had a lot in common with Jesus including: belief in

Resurrection, the need for virtuous living, and the importance of the Law.

Preferential option for the poor: The option for the poor or the preferential option for the poor is one

of the basic principles of the Catholic social teaching as articulated in the 20th century.

Quietism: a heresy taking a dim view of humanity, claiming that humans are weak and powerless so

they shouldn’t take precedence over the national government.

Rationalism: A philosophy teaching that human reason is your “ticket to salvation”

Reign of Terror: an effort to wipe out Christianity itself by substituting a state religion, one that

Renaissance: A new cultural era occurring during the late middle Ages that rediscovered the ancient

civilization of Greece, Rome, and Egypt. The Renaissance stressed glorified the human body, pleasures of

life, and celebrated education.

Sacrament: An invisible sign of invisible grace. An efficacious symbol, a sacrament is an outward sign

instituted by Christ to confer grace.

Sadducee: A sect of Judaism that controlled the Temple. They were aristocratic.

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Schism: A break in Christian unity that takes place when a group of Christians separates itself from the

Church. This happens historically when

Scholasticism: a word describing the theological and philosophical system that came about through

Simony: The trade of Church offices that is condemned by the Church.

Syllabus of Errors: A list consisting of 80 errors that previously had been highlighted in earlier Church

teachings.

Theocracy: A civil form of government with the Church at its head.

Theotokos: Mother of God (used in the Eastern Orthodox Church as a title of the Virgin Mary).

Totalitarianism: is a political system where the state recognizes no limits to its authority and strives to

regulate every aspect of public.

Transubstantiation: A Church teaching that teaches how the bread and wine are consecrated into the

Body and Blood of Christ during Mass.

Truce of God: A policy ostracizing fighting from Wednesday evening to Monday morning, and also on

religious holidays. This left eighty days of the year for fighting. If you defied this truce, you were

excommunicated.

Ultramontanes: “Beyond the mountains,” ultramontanes describes supporters of the Pope who oppose

the nationalistic position of other French churchmen in the seventeenth century.

Unam Sanctam: one of the most extreme statements of Papal spiritual supremacy ever made. The

original document is lost but a version of the text can be found in the registers of Boniface VIII in

the Vatican Archives.

USCCB: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Official organization of the Catholic hierarchy in

the U.S. A canonical entity governing the church, and a public policy arm.

Vulgate: The principal Latin version of the Bible, prepared mainly by St. Jerome in the late 4th century,

and (as revised in 1592) adopted as the official text for the Roman Catholic Church

Zealot: A sect of Judaism hating Roman rule in the time of Jesus. They successfully started a revolution

against Rome.

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