Medieval Religious Practices

Cult of the Virgin

Mary becomes increasingly important in the Middle Ages.
Christianity lacks goddesses, Mary fills this void.
Mary is considered born without original sin (Immaculate Conception).
She is the Mother of God (God-bearer).

Organization of Religious Practice

Religious practice becomes organized and codified.
Those who do not believe (infidels) must be eliminated (Jews, Muslims).
Heretics (Christians with differing beliefs) must also be eliminated.

Monasteries

Monasteries were walled off and self-sufficient.
Monks separate themselves from worldly temptations.
Vows of poverty and silence were common.
Joining a monastery is typically voluntary, driven by religious dedication.
Monasteries became wealthy through donations from kings, nobles, and others seeking prayers for their souls.

Monks as Intercessors

Monks prayed constantly, interceding between average people and God.
People donated to monasteries in exchange for prayers, including leaving entire estates.
This created contradictions, as monks became wealthy despite vows of poverty.

Crusades

Pope Urban II called for crusades to retake the Holy Land from Muslims.
Aimed to redirect Christian violence towards non-Christians.
Knights, often violent, were sent to expend energies elsewhere.
First Crusade saw initial success, but most failed to achieve objectives.
Crusaders were promised absolution of sins.

Impact of Crusades

Crusaders gained new knowledge, spices, literature, science, and math from the East.
The Crusades spurred the development of Western Europe.
Christians learned that Muslims shared commonalities.
Byzantine Empire and Muslims were weakened.
Fourth Crusade attacked Constantinople, further weakening the Byzantine Empire.
Christian violence led to a rise in fundamentalist Islam.
Christians slowly retook Spain.

Knowledge Expansion

Crusaders brought back knowledge of science, art, spices, fabrics from the East.
Western knowledge expanded, leading to a reckoning with Aristotle's ideas.