The Church in the Middle Ages

The Church in the Middle Ages The Catholic Church greatly influenced the lives of people in the Middle Ages. The Church owned land, they controlled people’s beliefs, they were wealthy and they were led by the Pope. Majority of people in the Middle Ages were Catholic and relied on the Church for teachings, rewards and punishments. The church used threats, teachings and law to control people of the Middle Ages.

People went on Crusades for the Pope and the Church. The Church told people if they did not obey their rules and beliefs they would go to hell.People of the Middle Ages were forced to pay taxes, or tithes, to the Church. The Church in the Middle Ages was highly influential on people’s lives and made every person obey them and believe in their teaching. The Church was one of the most important establishments in the Middle Ages. The Church consisted of different orders, the Pope, the Archbishops, the Bishops, the clergy (monks and priests) and the laity (ordinary believers). The Church was very wealthy and they owned a lot of land.

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The Church did not answer to the King, but only to the Pope.The Church educated the public in their teachings, general schooling and laws. The Church could make people do anything they wanted them to do.

They were very powerful, wealthy and they were very influential of people’s lives. Peasants were made to work for the Church, give up their own time and money for the Church. Peasants payed 10% of their earnings to the Church each year, this was called tithes. Peasants had very little money, so for the majority of the time they had to pay with animals, seeds, harvested grain etc.Because of this, peasants usually had a shortage of seeds and would not have enough food or money to feed and support their family. If peasants didn’t pay their tithes, they would go to hell. Peasants had to work for the Church for a long time; this mean they had less time to look after their own land and crops. Peasants were forced to work for the Church and pay the Church; this influenced their lives a lot.

The Church was extremely wealthy; this meant they had the most control of all in the Middle Ages.As the Church was payed taxes, worked for by peasants and did not have to pay taxes to any one they were very wealthy, and wealth meant power in the Middle Ages. The Church manipulated many things; people had to pay to be baptised, if they did not they would not be able to go to heaven; people could not be a couple as this was a sin, they had to be married and people had to pay the Church to get married; people had to pay for burials, if you were not buried on holy ground, you would not go to heaven. By being paid for all these things, the church was very wealthy and powerful.The Church’s teachings were one of the main influences on people’s lives. The Church supplied education for the public.

People that attended schooling were told many things such as, you must come to church if you want to go to heaven and you must obey the Church and its laws. People were educated in the way of the Lord and how you must obey the Church and the Pope as they have been chosen by God. The Church taught people that they must attend church services, pay taxes and obey by the Church’s laws; if the people didn’t do these things they would go to hell and/or be punished.The teachings of the Church influenced people’s lives very much in the Middle Ages. Laws and punishments that were created by the Church influenced people’s lives. Peasants believed that if they didn’t obey the Church’s teachings they would go to hell or be punished severely. The Church told everyone that in order to go to heaven they would have to obey the Church’s teachings, attend mass and pay taxes.

People would be charged for heresy if they went against the Church. They would be burnt at the stake in front of the town. The Pope could excommunicate peasants if they opposed the church.This would mean that they would not be able to attend Church services and would go to hell when they died. Peasants were forced to obey the Church and go by their teachings and rules. Pope Urban II, the head of the Catholic Church at the time of the Crusades, sent pilgrims on Crusades to take control of new land and to win back Holy Land. The Crusades were military campaigns that Christian nations of Europe went on in order to rescue holy places of Palestine from the Muslims. In 1095, the Pope said, “God wills it.

Christ Himself will be your leader when you fight for Jerusalem. There were eight major Crusades in total, but only the First Crusade, which lasted 4 years between 1095 and 1099, was successful. Tens of thousands of people travelled over a thousand miles to set out on the Crusades. Over 3,000 Christians were killed and the rest were treated extremely badly The Crusades of the Middle Ages had a great impact on the development of European civilisation and they influenced the power and wealth of the Church. The Catholic Church greatly influenced people’s lives in the Middle Ages. They were wealthy, as people had to pay taxes, work for them and had to pay to go to heaven.They were powerful and people would obey everything the Church wanted because otherwise they would be punished or go to hell.

Many people were Catholics and they relied heavily on the Church. The Church told people what to believe and what to do. People were scared to go against the Church as they would be punished.

People relied on the Church for education and they were taught how they had to obey the Church, and if they didn’t pay the Church they would go to Hell. People had to attend Church services, because if they didn’t they would go to hell. The Church greatly influenced people’s lives in the Middle Ages.

Author: Becky Norton

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