HRE33 - Unit 2 - The Medieval Era

The Fall of the Roman Empire

• As Germanic tribes begin to attack Rome, the West eventually falls

• Barbarians in the Dark Ages cause a decline in the empire

• All that’s left as a structure is the Church

• Rome was sacked by Visigoths in 410 AD

• There was a constant pressure on Roman borders from these external factors

• As Attila the Hun attacks, Pope St. Leo meets him and convinces him to not attack

  • The Church begins to take on a temporal role

• The Church responds:

  • It becomes more universal, not just Greco-Roman

  • The Church structure becomes essential for maintaining unity in a collapsing Empire

  • The Church’s thinking begins to shift away from Greek philosophy, because Germanic tribes didn’t have the same academic background

• Many of these groups converted to Christianity, but they also converted to Arianism, because it was widespread

After the Fall of Rome (476AD)

• Because barbarians didn’t have higher education, there was a stagnation in intellectual development

  • Instead, academic pursuits were limited to priests/monks

  • They preserved knowledge and culture

• There is economic collapse because there is no longer a common economy

• Paganism continues

• Crime increases

• Diocese continue to form to grow the Church

• The Church learns that it does not need an empire, and it becomes the dominant unifying force

The Conversions of the Barbarians

• Missionaries translated scriptures into Gothic languages

• Sts. Martin of Tours, Patrick, Columba, and Boniface worked to convert France, Ireland, Scotland, and other Germanic areas, respectively

• Ireland became a centre for missionaries

• The Church saw it as necessary to preach to everyone

  • They would convince kings first, and their influence would trickle down to the lower classes

  • Some rulers would impose Christianity

• The Christianization of Europe civilized it

• Bishops would inherit state duties

• Monks became the new missionaries

Monasticism

• Because Christianity was widespread, and the authenticity of faith was questionable, some sought out asceticism to live a more authentic Christian life

  • This allowed them to separate themselves from temptation and practice penance

• Monasticism began in the 3rd century, but became more practiced during this period

• Monks could live eremitical or cenobitical lifestyles

• These monasteries followed a Rule based on the life of Christ

• These monasteries became central because:

  • They responded to rural life, where towns would emerge around monasteries

  • They protected intellectual tradition (scriptoria)

  • They civilized the Germanic people by sharing literacy, agriculture, and skills

  • They trained new priests and provided spiritual/missionary guidance

  • They were self-sufficient

St. Benedict (6th Century)

• St. Benedict withdrew from society, but when people followed him, he became their abbot (father)

• He established monasteries, but he himself was not the abbot

  • He submitted himself to the authority of another

  • Rule of St. Benedict - The scheduled day that the monks were to follow

  • Ora et Labora - Prayer and work; the ideal for living a consecrated life for God

• The health of the monastery indicated the health of the Church

  • The monks were responsible for keeping the Church from straying

The Papacy

• The term pope was first applied to many, and then just the Bishop of Rome

• The pope’s role became more solidified in the West, but the East still had their patriarchs

• The temporal influence became confirmed when Pope Sts. Leo and Gregory the Great stopped Attila and the Lombards from attacking

• However, the Church still struggled to remove itself from the state

  • The Church grew its structures under persecution, so it already knew how to be independent

• Within individual diocese, the local bishop and the Pope were seen as unifying symbols

Pope St. Gregory the Great (590 AD)

• Traditionally seen as the turning point between antiquity and the medieval times

• He lived as a monk, but was then elected to Pope by the popular vote of the crowd

• He said that he was the Servant of the Servants of God

• He reformed the Church with clerical celibacy

• He sold his wealth and helped the poor

  • He also saw to the shipment of food to Rome in the times of famine

  • He cleaned the city streets, buried the dead, and made Roman roads safer

• Gregory affirms the primacy of the Bishop of Rome, even when the Eastern emperor tries to pressure him out

• He stood firm in religious matters

• He worked to convert barbarians and works directly with the tribes

• He enshrined St. Augustine’s writings as teachings, and wrote about the Sacraments and Purgatory

The Letter to Abbot Mellitus (601 AD)

• From Pope Gregory the Great to Abbot Mellitus, who helped St. Augustine, about the conversion of English people

• Christianity became more widespread, but also incorporated worthy elements of other cultures (assimilation)

• Do not destroy pagan temples, but instead bless them with holy water, add an altar, replace idols with relics of saints, and use them for Christianity

  • People are already familiar with this place

• Instead of sacrifice, let them have large celebrations for feast days of martyrs

  • Instead of eating for the devil, they are eating for God

• They will not be deprived of exterior joys, and will associate goodness with the faith