In the course of the 12th century the "heresy" of the cataros gained ground, a term that derives from a Greek word that means pures And, while I remain marked in the orthodox history as a heresy , it was rather an original and peaceful cultural movement.
It is very difficult, given the fragmentary character and very partial of the documentation that we have (we know the doctrine catara especially through the refutations and reflections of its enemies) to specify the origins of this movement and the stages of its diffusion.
The cataros groups seem to be born in the west, from the preaching of the bogomilos , a very large dualistic religious group in the Balkans in the 10th and 11th centuries.
The name of « bulga ros »with which the cataros were designated everywhere seems to be proof of this.Some survivals of Manichaeism in the western regions of the Church facilitated success of Eastern preachers.
The cataros created followers in places where the religious climate appeared already troubled: in the north of France (Borgona, Campana, Flanders.) Also in the countries of the Rhine and, in greater numbers in northern Italy, along the trade routes that linked these regions with the Byzantine east, where they collected the inheritance of the ancient movement of the Palatine .
But, the south of France , where I call them Albigenses , was the place of their domain.
Some images of the region where the cataros lived
Suexito in France is primarily attributable to the unpopularity and the low dignity of much of the Languedoc clergy.The laity felt little respect for their priests, and the gentlemen clearly consecrated their children to the clergy.
Moreover, an atmosphere of political and social tolerance favored the Progress of the catara culture.For example, when the bishop asked a gentleman why he did not expel the heretics , he replied:
«We cannot do it because we have grown up among them; we have relatives among them and we see them live honorably »
Index of the article
Beliefs of the cataros
Now, what was the doctrine professed by Albigenses ? Like the Manicheans , he believed in the existence of the principles: that of good and evil, always in constant struggle.
Being the underworld world work Directly from the spirit of evil, the cataros preached the contempt of everything that was material.So that the soul could free itself from the world, they recommended the practice of asceticism and especially avoid marriage, which perpetuates the flesh.
In the name of this principle they condemned the Church , denied any value to their cries and their sacraments, and rejected some of their norms, such as the incarnation and divinity of Jesus Christ.It was impossible, according to them, that the god of good might have been incarnated.
The Cataros had organized a true Church of their own, with their rites s, their bishops, and their assemblies.In 1167, a great council cataro ecumenical deindole met in Saint-Felix-de-Caraman, near Toulouse.
The communities cataras comprised two categories of faithful.The most committed to the detachment of earthly things formed the group of perfects.
The perfect were, in effect, those who had received a kind of spiritual baptism, called the consolamentum .This rite was done by imposing hands and forced those who had received her to practice a rigorous asceticism.
On the other hand, the simple believers were the most numerous.These believers were waiting receive in the instant of death the consolamentum , which was, in short, a kind of extremeuncion.
The extermination of the cataros
In France , the increase in these beliefs was enormous.At the end of the 12th century, the cataros were so numerous that they didn't even have to hide.Like other movements similar, Catharism had taken root especially in cities, where the bourgeoisie and the popular classes adhered massively to the new doctrine.
But there were also nobles among the cataros , like the count of Foix, the count of Beziers, and Raymond VI, the count of Tolosa.
The Pope Innocent III , as soon as He went up to the pontifical solio, in 1198, decided to undertake the conversion of the heretics , but the missionaries sent to preach had no devastating success that they sought.
In addition, the formation of a true cult ura, and the political and economic development of a powerful feudal region, threatened for some with French unity.
Trying to benefit from the material and spiritual advantages that are recognized to the Crusaders , small lords and adventurers coming from the north, which included Simon de Montfort , set out for Languedoc in a crusade against the Albigensians that soon turned into a war between northern France and the southern regions.
The southern counties were ransacked, and their populations killed by this " crusade " who had the blessing of the Pope.After a strong resistance, the Languedoc had to submit to royal and papal authority in 1226.
Later, the Inquisition neighborhood all the rests of catharism that you could find.
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