Catholic religion dominated the lives of the medieval people between the 5th and the 15th century. Whether one was a peasant or a King, he/she had to dedicate his/her life to the church. Catholic religion became the only acceptable Christian religion, as it had a universal meaning. So powerful was the institution that it had its own lands, taxes, and laws. Apart from tax collection, the Catholic Church received gifts from people who wanted favors from heaven.
With the power, the church became so wealthy that it could even influence decisions of European Kings (“Middle Ages Religion” par. 4). Attempts to oppose the Catholic Church would lead to excommunication. It was not easy to dislodge Christianity from the lives and minds of the medieval men and women, as it was a template of ideas and modes of behavior. Within hours of birth an individual had to be baptized since it was one of the important events in the lives of medieval people.
Christianity of the medieval age had rituals and symbolisms in its practice. The village priest was responsible for consistent and regular administration of vital sacraments. In addition, he had the role of absolving women and men of their sins upon confession. Notably, the church wielded a lot of power during the medieval period in Europe.
The rise of Charlemagne and Carolingian Empire helped in protecting the church from criticism, and went on to unite its people under the church (“Middle Ages Religion” par. 7). He further organized for training programs for the clergy in order to make them more intellectual, moral and effective in their service delivery.
Renaissance humanism consists of teachings of Roman and Greek that scholars compiled in Italy and later spread across Europe (“Renaissance Humanism” par. 1). Humanism developed to challenge the utilitarian approach and its scholastic education associated with it. It aimed at instilling creativity skills in men and women, as well as reading and writing skills.
The whole concept of renaissance humanism drifted away from the medieval Christianity given that it intended to encourage independence of the mind. In Italy, for instance, Francesco Petrarch (1304-1374) who stood for conservative humanism had to balance extreme piety and frank secularism given the evidence and accuracy of ideas from most scientific activities (“Renaissance Humanism” par. 5).
This illustrates the rebirth of individualism where one thinks for himself/herself; however, the rise of caste system in the church suppressed the concept of individualism.
For instance, the church was of the view that individualism brought arrogance and rebellion to Christian teachings. Humanists were more concerned with the surrounding environment than with heaven’s mysteries. Machiavelli included the concept of individual expression and intellectual freedom in his literature, thus eliciting the protestant revolt.
The Byzantine Empire went to war with Bulgaria in the 11th century. So costly was the war that the Byzantine could not fight the Ottoman Turks for curving much of the state into Sultunate of Rum.
The capture of the King resulted in several attacks in 1071. Constant attacks by the Islamic neighbors further weakened the empire; this made it lose control over Constantinople in 1204 (Duiker and Spielvoge 47). When the Byzantine Empire lost control of its cities, a puppet government was established that weakened further the essential aspects of the empire.
Misappropriation of funds coupled with the numerous external and internal conflicts resulted in the fall of the once powerful empire in Italy in 1453. In allowing the West into the territory to help fight the Islamists during the first crusade, Byzantine continued to lose grip of the region. The fourth crusade partitioned the empire, hence weakening the King’s influence. From the analysis of the roles that crusades played, it is evident that they facilitated the fall of the Byzantine Empire.
Works Cited
Duiker, William J., and Jackson J. Spielvogel. The Essential World History. 7th ed. Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth ;, 2013. Print.
Middle Ages Religion, lordsandladies.org. N.p., n.d. Web.
Renaissance Humanism, The History Guide. N.p., n.d. Web.