Medieval Religion

By: Stephanie Collins

Religion in Medieval England

• The spiritual quests of the middle ages influenced the culture of the medieval times in many ways.

• Roman Catholic and Protestant were the two major religions in medieval England.

Roman Catholic

• The main idea of the Roman Catholic religion was that they remain apostolic.

• The most important idea of the church was that Peter was the first pope picked by Jesus himself. All the popes chosen after Peter were considered his successors.

Roman Catholic

• The church decided that the New Testament was God’s holy word and the Holy Spirit worked through the church.

• They also believed that the people couldn’t fully understand the scripture without the church’s help.

Roman Catholic

• They believed you could go to three different places for your afterlife.– 1) Heaven– 2) Hell– 3) Purgatory – a place for the people who did

half the requirements to get into heaven. It was a sentence of torture. The sentence varied depending on the pope’s choice to use the office of keys.

Protestant Religion

• The first protestant movement was led by Martin Luther who disagreed with certain Roman Catholic practices. Hence, they became known as the Lutherans.

• It began as a series of independent religious movements. At first, most who followed were those who rejected Catholicism and the excommunicated.

Protestant Beliefs

• Protestants believe in the trinity and that there is only one God.

• Their differences from the catholic religion include:– you only need faith in God to be saved– God is all gracious and his grace comes from Jesus

dying on the cross– people cannot save themselves; they are saved by

God’s grace.– the Bible is the only document of their religion– you can only go to either heaven or hell

Religion’s Influence on Daily Life

• Religion in medieval England had a huge impact on everyday life. Religion had a far greater role in life than it does today.

• The church dominated everyone’s life.

• They were taught that the only way to get to heaven was if the Roman Catholic Church let them.

The Power of the Church• The church had complete power over everyone. • Peasants would work for free on church land.• Everyone had to pay yearly tithe’s or else you

were told your soul would go to hell.• The church was very wealthy and you had to

pay it for:• - baptisms• - marriages• - burials(all of which you would be sent to hell for without)• The Church did not have to pay taxes

Contributors to Religion

• Martin Luther was a reformer and a key contributor to the movement of Protestantism. He also led to the new religious group called the Lutherans.

• Another religion of medieval England was Christian monasticism. This was founded by Anthony of the Desert and his disciple Pachomius.

Contributors to Medieval Religion

• Anslem was a great contributor to the church and to theology. He asked questions like “Why God was reincarnated?” And found the answer that only a man could repay a man’s debt.

• Anslem’s contribution to theology was the ontological proof of God’s existence.

Monks

• Any man could become a monk. First, they must take their vows before being accepted into the order.

• Once you became a monk, you remained one for the rest of your life. The monks would live under strict discipline.

• Some of the reasons for becoming a monk were:- to devote your life to God- to live a safe life- to escape the violence of the world- to lead a quiet and peaceful life

Wimples and Tonsures

• When a monk or nun took their final vows, they were clothed by the order they joined.- the robes of the Benedictine monks were black giving them the name “black monks”- the robes of the Cistercian monks were white giving them the name “white monks”

• For nuns, it was the wimple that made them distinct. The men were distinguished by their tonsure.

Wimples and Tonsures

• Nuns either completely shaved their heads or cut their hair very short. Either way their head would be covered by the wimple.

• The hair cut of both nuns and monks symbolized them putting aside their old lives and joining a new family.

• A tonsure might also indicate the clerical status of a monk.

• The most common type of tonsure

• A nun’s wimple