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Period: 500 to 1500
Religion As Way of Life
During the Dark Ages we start to see people turn to worship a higher being than themselves. Religious values start to play on peoples conscience which enables them to become a more humane society. People started to migrate out of the busy cities where temptation and evil spread to a quieter lifestyle as many feared the wrath of God. -
600
Saint Benedict and the Order of Saint Benedict
Saint Benedict was a monk in Italy who believed that God wanted his followers to do more than pray, reflect and repent. He believed that to become good one must do good. Thus leading to the creation of the Order of Saint Benedict. Monks that lived under this order had to obey three main rules: Have nothing, don't marry and obey the head of the monastery. Monks cared for the people in their communities and spent hours transcribing important works so that they could be passed down by generation -
600
Muhammad and His Visions
The Arab people had a simple faith where they worshiped objects such as the stars and a stone that rested in Mecca as they believed it had fallen there from the heavens. At the same time, a man named Muhammad lived in Mecca who had a deep interest in religion and enjoyed hearing about Judaism and Christianity. Muhammad stated that he had a vision with the Angel Gabriel which ignited his devotion to religion. He claims he was called "read" and "honour thy God". Many didn't believe his visions. -
610
The Birth of Islam
Muhammad was widely known as a fool however the Priest of the Kaaba took note of his continued speaking about his visions and feared for the upholding of their religion. Muhammad travelled out of Mecca to a nearby oasis town filled with Jews who listen to Muhammad's preachings and found peace in his preachings about a singular God. Muhammad and his teachings gained in popularity, thus leading to Muhammad's call to a 'submission to the will of God' which in Arabic translated to Islam. -
638
Islam's Early Days
In the Koran followers of Islam are told to fight until people convert, a statement that they took very literally. After the Arab people followed the ways of Islam, Muslims took to a deadly siege against the city of Alexandria and over places like Palestine, Egypt, and Persia. The Arab's were under the rule of Bakr and Omar, successors of Muhammad. After Omar's death, the Arab's took to Constantinople but after seven years they walked away with Cyprus and Sicily and Spain alongside them. -
768
Charlemagne: King of the Franks
Charlemagne was a great conquer, he even took control over all of France, the Italian Alps and tried his luck in Spain (left it under Arab control). Besides that he saw himself as the head of Christianity and believed that he could force others to believe. He saw himself as the protector of Christianity for all Christians. He put those words into action when protecting the Pope against the Lombards. He wanted the Pope's favor as he wanted to restore Rome and bring Christianity. -
1076
Pope Gregory VII .v. King Henry IV
In the case of King Henry IV and Pope Gregory VII, both believed that they were the divine ruler of Christianity and neither acknowledged the others claim. The Pope excommunicated King Henry from the Church so that he could be the undoubted leader of Christianity. In this case, the princes could choose another leader to be King. In an effort to stay King, Henry IV headed to Italy without an army to get the banned lifted and so it was. Both sides were pleased by the outcome. -
Period: 1198 to 1216
Pope Innocent III
Pope Innocent III was arguably one of the most influential religious figures during this time period. He was the one almighty leader of Christianity. Religious leader and princes followed his sayings and he made sure that others would too. King John of England turned a blind eye to one of his orders and in return the Pope excommunicated the King banned any priest from giving mass in England. The English were in such uproar that they made their King apologise and take an oath of allegiance. -
1290
Burgher's and Craftsmen
Knights were often seen as the real hero of Christianity because they gave their lives for the religion however Burgher's and Craftsmen gave their money, strength, and wellbeings aid the growth of their religion and funded its spread. They wanted their churches and religious places to be the biggest and the most beautiful of all. Building a new church was done through the work of the community in doing so the people believed that it would be their thanks and offering delivered to God -
1295
Early Violence Aganist Jews
As the devotion of the followers of Christianity so did some of their hate. Christians were called to fix their ways after the events of the crusaders however some Christians developed deep hate for others that didn't follow Christianity. Jewish people were the main target of this hate. The Jewish people were still waiting for the arrival of the Messiah and many of their followers had either converted or been killed. This meant that this small group was receiving such large amounts of hate.
