1.) What did the Albigensians believe?
The Albigensians believed in pure manichaeism. They strongly believed that physical bodies were wicked. So the pregnant woman were basically bringing forth more evil into the world is what they’re saying. Bodies were prisons for the living souls inside of us. Since our bodies are evil that meant that the sacramental system was prohibited because consuming the wine which is the blood of jesus (physical thing) and body of jesus which is the bread (also a physical thing). Let me remind you that this isn’t my thoughts, that’s what the Albigensians truly believed in.
2.) Describe the mendicant orders of the thirteenth century
Their lived a guy by the name of Francis of Assisi, he was known for rebuilding the church. He received a dream one night from God to help restore broken churches. He did the unexpected and stripped of himself everything he owned and gave to the poor just like it was said by Jesus himself in the bible. His actions surprised many including his father. By restoring churches Francis thought of it as literal, so he began to physically restore churches. Then, later he figures out that what God meant was to restore faith and strength amongst all the people inside the churches. Francis’s transformation from luxurious living into a simple pious lifestyle has gave people a sense of direction once again and everyone followed Francis.
3.) What was the significance of King Philip IV of France?
King Philip ‘the fair’ didn’t mean he was a fair king, it simply meant that he was a very handsome guy back then. He lived a relatively pious/virtuous life especially after his wife’s death. Because of the military conflicts he was in, he was in constant need of money. The source of his money came from, basically stealing from others. He grabbed some metal from the civilians melted them down to make coins. (Just my separate thought here, this kinda reminds me of counterfeiting money, but not exactly if you know what I mean). So, after restoring the little military problem he demanded people to be loyal to him despite their beliefs. King Philip had to come in first for everyone. The fact that he lived a pious life made him a somewhat decent ruler, with many flaws of course.
Thanks for reading this essay, I hope you liked it! I’ll be posting more soon, so stay tuned. As always have a great rest of your day!
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