Ambassador College
Church History
Lecture 18
The Catholic Church - History
I. HISTORICAL EVENTS:
From The Popes and Their Church, by Joseph McCabe:
"Of all the fictions which still shelter from the storm of modern criticism
under the leaky umbrella of 'Catholic Truth,' the legend of the divine foundation of the Papacy and the Papal system
is quite the boldest and most romantic. No divine force, but a pitifully human series of forgeries and coercions,
of pious frauds and truculent ambitions perpetrated in an age of deep ignorance, built up the Papal power, hierarchy,
and creed." p. 3
A. 1870 - Infallibility of the Pope when he speaks Ex-Cathedra.
Taken from The Spirit of Catholicism, by Karl Adam:
"The Catholic sorrowfully recognizes that even the holders of the highest
and most exalted office on earth can be children of their age and slaves of its conceptions, and that the Holy
Spirit in governing the Church does not guard every act of the pope but is infallibly operative only when the pope
speaks ex-cathedra, i.e. when basing himself on the sources of the faith and in the fullness of his power as Head
of the Church and successor of St. Peter, he pronounces a decision in matters of faith or morals which embraces
and binds the whole Church." p. 248
B. c.800-1000 Enter darkest age of human history.
1. Called "Midnight of the dark ages".
2. Speaking of Religious history and corruption.
C. c.900's "Rule of Harlots".
1. Papacy very corrupt for a period of 600 years.
From 900-1500's, time of the Reformation.
2. John XII - One of the all time worst popes. Guilty
of almost all crimes.
From The Popes and Their Church, we read:
"Liutprand tells us how John, pressed by a rival, appealed to the Emperor
Otto, and when Otto came to Rome the Romans brought up against their spiritual father a list of crimes which would,
they said, 'make a comedian blush for shame'; and a comedian was the lowest thing they knew. The Romans were lenient,
but they could not tolerate a Pope who committed murder, perjury, adultery, incest (with his two sisters), rape,
and sacrilege. Before the synod convoked by Otto it was proved that John had 'turned the Lateran Palace into a
brothel,' cut out the eyes of or castrated those who criticized him, raped girls and women who came to pray in
St. Peter's, gambled, cursed, drunk to the devil.... There was, in brief, nothing that he had not done." p.
35
HISTORICAL EVENTS CONTINUED
3. Bonafax VII - Murdered Pope John 14th to gain throne
of the Pope.
a. Papacy referred to as "monsters
of guild", and "antichrists" by a bishop within the church
b. Almost all offices of priests
and bishops were bough
4. John XIX - Went through ranks of the priesthood in one day to become Pope.
5. Benedict IX (1033-1039) - One of the worst Popes.
a. Bought office at 12 years
of age
b. Committed horrible sins
against church doctrine
D. Late 1,000's:
1. German Emperors become predominate political force.
2. Pope Gregory VII (Hildebrand):
a. Had control of papacy for
several years
b. Was later elected Pope
in 1073
c. First to discourage reading
of the Bible
d. Clergy among the wealthiest
people of Europe
E. c.1100 Urban II begins crusades (1198).
1. Main motive for crusades, to free Holy Land.
2. Primarily against Albegenses.
F. 1160 Adrian IV - first and only English Pope.
G. 1200's Peak of Papal Power.
1. 1198-1216 - Innocent III:
a. Most powerful Pope, called
himself "Vicar of God", "Vicar of Christ," and "Supreme Power of the World"
b.
Claimed right to depose kings and princes
c. All things on earth subject
to the "Vicar of Christ"
2. Penance and indulgences come into play.
3. Indulgences, special services, granted instead
of penance, (prayer after confession).
From Developments of Roman Catholicism, we read:
"One of the most disastrous developments of Romanism, and one that has
brought more shame and misery into its history than perhaps any other, is its doctrine of indulgences. That doctrine
is that the Church has the power to grant to penitent due to them for their sins, and under temporal punishment
is included the punishment being now endured in purgatory, or that will be endured there hereafter. The ground
on which the doctrine is composed of the infinite merits of Christ and the works of supererogation done by the
saints. These merits it can transfer to those who comply with the conditions which from time to time it lays down
for the reception of the indulgences." p.68
HISTORY CONTINUED
a. Special services included killing
a heretic or serving in the papal army
b. Note: dealing with illiterate
people, those educated were in the priesthood
c. Last act of Contrition
- give all penance and indulgences to relative in purgatory, condemn self to hell unless God grants benevolence
sending you to purgatory
4. Innocents declarations and doctrines:
a. Bible forbidden to be read
in the Vernacular
From The Popes and Their Church, by Joseph McCabe, we read:
"You rub your eyes, or your ears, and you inquire further; and you discover
the most ingenious system that was ever devised for keeping educated people uneducated. This is the system of 'Catholic
Truth.' The Catholic must read his own literature (duly authorized by the bishop, whose beaver hat is stamped on
the front page), and must not read any that differs from it. Catholics are safely kept within the compound of 'Catholic
Truth,' and it will be understood that quaint doctrines may be imposed under such circumstances." p. 4
b. Brought state under total control
of the church
c. All monarchs of Europe
obeyed his will
d. Ordered two crusades
e. Decreed doctrines of Transubstantiation
f. Declared that once made
pope, cannot be excommunicated
g. Declared doctrine of papal
infallibility
h. Condemned Magna Carda -
granting rights to the common man
i. Not as much more blood
shed until the 1500's than at this time
1)
Ordered extermination of heretics
2)
Massacred Albegenses
II. INQUISITION
A. Time frame: 1200's
1. Turned heretics over to civil authorities to absolve
themselves from guilt.
a. There were 3 inquisitors
to make it very legal
b. There were three basic
tortures
c. The worst torture was fire
d. Oaths were taken by all
to help the inquisitors
e. They used the Bible for
justification
f. Killing became indiscriminate
g. Age did not matter
h. Many different methods
were used for torture
i. For some the motive was
money
j. Many took advantage of
women during this time
2. Aimed at Albigenses.
3. No pope has ever apologized for the Inquisition
until Jn. Paul II who did mention it while in Spain
4. Boniface VIII - (1294 - 1303)
a. "Unim Sanctum"
- all subject to Roman pontiff
b. Dante called church "sewer
of corruption"
c. Dante developed concept
of hell
B. Time frame: 1300's:
1. Political power shifts from Germany to France.
2. 70 years - papal office moved to Avignon, France.