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Session 5 (1000 – 1300)

• As the year 1000 approaches, many prepare for the coming of the Lord.
• The expansion of Islam continues to occupy Christian thought and activities.
• 1009--Moslems sack the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.
• 1054 – Official split between West-Roman Church and East Orthodox Church. Eastern Schism Orthodox Churches
• 1071--Seljuks conquer Armenia, ending the Byzantine Empire in Asia Minor.
• 1095--Pope Urban II proclaims the First Crusaders to reclaim Jerusalem from the Moslems.
• 1099--Crusaders take Jerusalem. Knights Templar and Hospitaller Knights.
• A century and a half of weak popes ends by the middle of the century, and papal authority begins to increase. Pope Gregory VII (1073-1085), "Hildebrand," moves to reform the church with emphasis on Priestly Celibacy and complete freedom of the Church from the State.
• William of Normandy conquers England, appointing Lanfranc Archbishop of Canterbury in 1070. Lanfranc reorganizes and reforms the English church.
• Anselm Archbishop of Canterbury succeeds Lanfranc as Archbishop of Canterbury in 1093. Wrote Why Did God Become a Man? explaining the reasons for Christ's death. “I believe so that I may understand.”
• Musical developments: In 1015 Pomposa Monastery near Ravenna introduces sight singing. By the middle of the century, polyphonic singing replaces monophonic Gregorian Chant, the harp arrives in Europe, and the first German Christmas carol is written.

1100
• Gothic architecture, with its pointed arches and high, vaulted ceilings prevails in church building. Universities begin to be built.
• 1104--Acre taken by the Crusaders, fell to Moslems again in 1191
• 1115--St. Bernard establishes monastery at Clairvaux. He will become the "greatest churchman of the 12th century."
• 1123 1st Lateran Council.
• 1139 2nd Lateran Council.
• 1182--Notre Dame Cathedral consecrated
• The medieval papacy, at the height of its power and influence, continues to encourage crusades to liberate the Holy Land from the Moslems.
• 1147--Second Crusade (supported by Bernard of Clairvaux) fails, with most Crusaders dying in Asia Minor.
• 1170--Pope Alexander III established rules for the canonization of saints, the same year Thomas Becket is murdered in England. Becket is canonized in 1173 (incorruptables).
• 1179 3rd Lateran Council.
• 1176 Rise of Waldensian itinerant lay preacher movement. Stressed the Bible being written in the language of the people and it should be the final authority.
• 1187--Loss of Jerusalem by the Crusaders
• 1187 3rd Crusade – Pope Gregory VIII.

1200
• This century is often called the high point of the middle ages, with the papacy reaching its greatest power, scholastic philosophy reaching its zenith, and Gothic Cathedrals towering over the landscape.
• Church fights against Albingensian Heresies.
• 1209--Francis of Assisi establishes Franciscans (canonized 1228).
• 1215 - 4th Lateran Council.
• 1220--Dominican Friars established as a teaching order, later entrusted by the Pope with the Inquisition. Some became missionaries to Central Asia, Persian Gulf, India, and China.
• With Pope Innocent III (1198-1216) the papacy was at the height of its powers. Affirmed all churches were under his control.
• Thomas Aquinas summarizes Scholastic Theology in his Summa Theologica, 1271, writing, intelligo ut credam "I understand, in order that I may believe." Scholasticism later gives rise to Mysticism movement.
• 1200-1400 Rise in Universities with the study of the arts, theology, law and medicine. Today’s degrees of bachelor, masters and doctorate created as well as today’s traditional testing and graduation attire (caps, hoods, gowns).
• 1245 1st General Council of Lyons.
• 1274 2nd General Council of Lyons.

Discussion Questions

Were the Crusades a good or bad thing? One opinion Crusaders

What is the difference between scholasticism and mysticism?

Session 6 (1300 – 1500)

The Papacy, having reached its high point with Innocent III (1160-1216), begins a decline under Boniface VIII (c. 1234-1303).
• 1302--Papal bull "Unam sanctum" pronounces the highest papal claims to supremacy.
• 1311 Council of Vienna.
• 1309-1377 - "Babylonian Captivity" of papacy lasted 70 yrs. Pope resides in Avignon, France, strongly under the control of the French King. Increase in papal taxation.
• 1378-1417 - Great "Papal Schism", with two or three popes claiming authority.
• The Black Death or bubonic plague ravages Europe; 25 million Europeans, over 1/4 of the population, dies.
• Mysticism flourishes in Germany with condemned writings of Dominican Meister Eckhart.
• 1305-1314 - Dante writes his Divine Comedy mirroring the heights and depths of the Christianity of the 13th and 14th centuries and criticizes popes.
• 1350 – 1650 – Start of "Renaissance", Latin for “rebirth” coined in 1854, marks the transition from medieval to modern.
• 1382 - John Wyclif expelled from Oxford, translates Bible into English, and trains lay preachers to spread the Scripture. Wrote “Civil Dominion.” Spoke against ecclesiastical corruption. Taught that scripture not the pope was the sole authority. Influences a lay group of preachers called the “Lollards.”
• 1398--John Hus begins lecturing at Prague University and spreads Wycliffe's ideas. He wrote “De Ecclesia.” Later burned at the stake. His writings later influenced the Moravians.

1400

• 1409 -1418 - The Councils of Pisa, Council of Constance seeks to end the Great Papal Schism, the embarrassment of having two or three popes competing for authority and power. This same council burns Czech priest John Hus as a heretic and condemns John Wycliffe posthumously. 1431-1439 Council of Basle.
• 1431 -- French peasant woman Joan of Arc is burned at Rouen as a witch.
• 1453 -- The Turks capture Constantinople and turn St. Sophia Basilica into a mosque. The many scholars fleeing west encourage a revival of classical learning - the Renaissance. Russian Orthodox church as head quarters for the Orthodox Churches.
• 1453 -- Johann Gutenburg develops his printing press and prints the first Bible.
• 1478 -- The Inquisitions against heresy in Spain set up by Ferdinand and Isabella with papal approval. Under Torquemada Jews are given 3 months to become Christians or leave. Lasted 350 years in order to weed out heretics and enemies of the state as a capital crime.
• Florence under the Medicis becomes the center of Renaissance humanism. Brunelleschi, Donatello, Michelangelo, Botticelli, and Leonardo da Vinci all create important works of art.
• 1492 -- Columbus' voyage and a new age of exploration and Christian expansion begin.

Discussion Question

Were the Spanish Inquisitions used to protect church and state?

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