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Throughout most of the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church had a monopoly for religion in Western Europe. Few would challenge the Church for fear of eternal damnation.
Those the Church wished to punish could be excommunicated, which meant the disgrace of being unable to be buried in the church cemetery, as well as being thought to suffer an eternity in hell. The church often also referred those it regarded as criminals to the secular authorities for trial and appropriate punishment, thus relieving the clergy of the stain of blood on their hands. Any secular ruler who failed to implement the wishes of the church in these matters would himself risk punishment by the Church. Thus, the Catholic Church was feared absolutely.
When it was in the interests of the Church to do so, it could invite one ruler to invade another kingdom in order to eliminate a troublesome king, under the promise of the right to annexe territory. The Catholic Church eventually eliminated the troublesome Cathar non-Catholic sect in what is now southern France, by inviting the king of France to invade and annexe the Cathar territory. Thousand of western Christians heeded the Church's call for Crusades in the Holy Land, although the motivation was often for plunder, adventure and sport.
On the other hand, the Catholic Church held to itself the sole right to try or punish its own clergy. After the end of the Roman Empire, even the most powerful kings were not able to move against members of the clergy who challenged them or committed crimes against the secular laws.
The Church built up huge landholdings, worked by serfs or slaves, and its wealth was greater than any one kingdom.
What else can I help you with?
How powerful was the catholic church before the reformation?
Very powerful. The Catholic Church was the dominant influence on western civilization.
What was the catholic church doing wrong in the 1500s?
Corrupted by PowerThe Roman catholic church was the most powerful church in the whole of Europe at that point lol
The most powerful social institution of Galileo's time was the?
Catholic church or Church
Who were the Church opponents who thought the Catholic Church had become too wealthy and powerful?
It's just the Catholic Church, not the Roman Catholic Church. Roman is an epithet first commonly used in England after the protestant revolt to describe the Catholic Church. It is rarely used by the Catholic Church.
Who is the most powerful person in the catholic church?
The Holy Trinity!
Which kingdom, by allying with the Catholic Church, became the largest and most powerful in medieval Europe?
The Kingdom of France became the largest and most powerful in medieval Europe by allying with the Catholic Church.
Why did conflict arise between the humanist and the Catholic church?
Because the Catholic Church was all-powerful at the time and they obviously were reluctant to relinquish that power.
What was the dominant church in the middle ages?
In all of Europe before the eleventh century, the Roman Church was most powerful. In 1056, the Great Schism, which had been coming to a head for hundreds of years, split the Church into the Roman Catholic Church, in the West, and the Eastern Orthodox Church, in the East, and each of these was most powerful in its own sphere.
What time period was the Catholic Church the most powerful?
The most powerful what? The Catholic Church, being the Mystical Body of Christ (see Acts 9:1-5, and 1 Cor 12:12-14) has been the most powerful institution on the earth since the day that Our Blessed Lord founded it, and send the Holy Spirit to guide it. However, if you are asking when it was most powerful numerically, or politically, or in some other fashion, then you need to ask a specific question.
How come the Catholic church was so powerful in 1500?
Because the church had more money than the king (henry the 8th )
How did franks create kingdom in western Europe?
They gained a powerful ally in the roman catholic church.
Who are Eastern Catholics who recognize the pope?
Albanian Byzantine Catholic Church Armenian Catholic Church Bulgarian Greek Catholic Church Chaldean Catholic Church Coptic Catholic Church Patriarchate Ethiopian Catholic Church Byzantine Church of Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro Greek Byzantine Catholic Church Hungarian Byzantine Catholic Church Italo-Albanian Byzantine Catholic Church Macedonian Catholic Church Maronite Catholic Church Melkite Greek-Catholic Church Romanian Greek-Catholic Church Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Church Slovak Byzantine Catholic Church Syriac Catholic Church Patriarchate Syro-Malabar Catholic Church Syro-Malankara Catholic Church Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church
