The 5 most important medieval heresies

Medieval heresies were dissident currents from the official religion that not only had an impact on a spiritual level, but also endangered the foundations of medieval society. But why were the medieval heresies so strong? Why did they put the entire medieval structure in check, and even the Papacy? And what were the most important heresies?

That the Middle Ages was a theocentric society is evident. The medieval human being did not conceive of the world without the presence of God, and religion was inserted in their daily life with the same naturalness as on market days or guild meetings. In fact, churches not only practiced worship, but also served as a framework for civil and even commercial assemblies.

Now it is a mistake to think that the medieval faith was a single whole. In fact, during the 10 centuries that this period lasted, various ideological currents and spiritual, which often represented a protest against the official religion promulgated by the Church Catholic.

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The main medieval heresies

Let's see a list of the most important medieval heresies and their main characteristics.

1. The Arians, one of the first medieval heresies

Shortly after the death of Jesus, the first differences among Christians began to appear. The subject became more radical as the centuries passed, and towards the fifth century we find a clear differentiation between Catholics and Arians, one of the first important divisions within the Christianity.

Who were the Arians? The birth of the Arian faith is attributed to Arius, a presbyter of Alexandria (3rd and 4th centuries), and gradually spread throughout Europe over the following centuries.

The main Arian groups were the Germanic peoples who crossed the borders of the Roman Empire in the fifth century; among them, the Goths. As these conquering peoples settled in Roman territory and founded kingdoms, they abandoned their Arian faith and converted to Catholicism. The first German king to renounce Arianism was Clovis, King of the Franks (496).

The Arian faith was based mainly on the belief that Christ had not existed forever and that he had been created by God. This philosophy directly clashed with the idea of ​​the Trinity, which held that Christ was of the same essence as the Father and therefore had not been created.

The Council of Nicaea (4th century) condemned Arianism, which represented, in addition to a deviation from the faith considered true, a threat to the stability of the Empire.

However, the doctrine was still valid for many years, especially among the Germanic peoples. The Lombard king Grimoaldo (c. VII) is considered the last Germanic monarch to convert to the Catholic faith.

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2. The followers of Arnaldo de Brescia: the Arnaldistas

The preaching of Canon Arnaldo de Brescia must be situated in a different context from the one that surrounded Arianism. We are already in the twelfth century; the growth of cities is unstoppable and the cathedral schools and the first universities are in full swing. Ideological currents travel from one side of Europe to the other, questioning the tenets of the official Orthodox faith.

The Gregorian reform, promoted by Pope Gregory VII a century earlier, aimed to return to the Church the initial precepts of Christianity, which included, among others, chastity and poverty. In reality, this reform concealed a political motive, which was none other than entrench papal authority over regional powers. Thus, the Christian liturgy was unified under the Roman rite (and thus, the liturgical manifestations of each area were lost). Papal superiority was also proclaimed over any temporal power and, therefore, over the emperor, something that did not please the lords at all.

Thus, despite the fact that the Gregorian reform also contemplated a purification of customs within the Church, it was not enough to meet the needs of the faithful and, furthermore, represented a direct affront against the authority of the powers local. It is not surprising, then, that during the following century a series of heresies developed with force that represented a clear protest against the papal power and its doctrine.

In this context it is understood the appearance of preachers like Arlando de Brescia, who promulgated poverty and the absolute rejection of riches. The direct docking of him to the Pope causes him to be arrested by Frederick I, who, after obtaining the Pope's promise to make him emperor, delivers the prisoner to the Roman curia. Arnaldo is sentenced to death, and his remains are thrown into the Tiber River to prevent pilgrimages to his grave.

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3. The Waldenses or the Poor of Lyon

Barely two decades after the death of Arnaldo de Brescia, a new heretical current emerged: the Waldenses, also called the Poor of Lyon. Followers of Pedro Valdo, a rich merchant from Lyon who abandoned his luxurious existence to embrace the begging life, this group took up the idea of ​​poverty that Arnaldo had already rescued. In this case, they emphasized the contradiction represented by being both rich and Christian.

This medieval heresy went further by raising the question of preaching; They considered that every Christian, even if he was a layman, had the obligation to preach, thus following the order written in the Gospels: Go and announce the good news to all peoples.

Many consider Pedro Valdo as one of the precursors of Protestantism, since one of the most important bases of his doctrine was free access to the Gospels and the translation of the Bible into common languages, in order to be understood by all the faithful without the need for a intercessor. The Waldensians were condemned at the III Lateran Council, along with the Cathar heresy.

4. Dulcino and the millenarian doctrines

Throughout the Middle Ages, millenarianism had been spreading, a quite heterodox current that based its beliefs on the Apocalypse of Saint John. from this book he took the idea of ​​the second coming of Christ, the arrival of the Antichrist and the fight between Good and Evil.

There were many followers of this current; among them, the abbot Joaquin de Fiore and Dulcino, founder of the sect of the Apostolic Brothers or dulcinistas. Dulcino continued the idea, defended by previous heresies, of the return to evangelical poverty. But, in addition, the dulcinistas preached the end of time and the restoration of order after the second descent of Christ.

Dulcino was an uncomfortable figure for the official Church, since he directly attacked the ecclesiastical hierarchy and its opulence. In the same way, he was persona non grata for the feudal lords, since he also criticized the feudal system, a basic pillar of medieval society. Pope Clement V, from the papal seat of Avignon, enacted a crusade against the Dulcinistas, which culminated in Dulcino's arrest, torture, and execution in the summer of 1307.

5. The Cathars or Albigensians, the most famous medieval heresy

If there is a widely known and tremendously popular heresy it is the cathar heresy. A multitude of legends and myths have been told about her, and sometimes it is difficult to distinguish reality from fantasy.

The great fame that the Cathars acquired is given, on the one hand, by the very nature of their doctrine, and on the other, by the great commotion that their existence caused. Indeed, Pope Innocent III called the lords of France to a crusade against the Cathars (also called Albigensians, since they had one of their most important fiefdoms in the city of Albi). The crusade was bloody, stretched out over time and finally led to the annexation of the Languedoc territories, where the Cathars had no less than five dioceses, to the French crown.

But what did the Cathars believe? Their faith was rooted in the dualistic philosophies that came from the East: they believed in a good God, creator of souls, and in an evil demon, author of bodies and all physical manifestations. Thus, the “purest” Cathars rejected marriage and procreation, as well as the eating of meat. Salvation was obtained through an absolute renunciation of everything created by the devil, that is, all of creation. Only the souls were good and pure.

Catharism was one of the last medieval heresies, but also one of the most important. After putting the feudal order and the official Church in check, the Cathars disappeared in the middle of the 13th century, although there are testimonies of their survival until the beginning of the following century. We hope that this brief review of the most important medieval heresies will help you to better understand this complex period of history.