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Many people are extremely faithful to their religion. People go on and on about how their religion is the best and that everyone should follow their footsteps. Some people in the 1400s took their religion to the extreme, especially in Italy. Prime examples of these people would be nuns, and one of the most well known nuns of this era was Catherine of Siena. Catherine was a religious figure and also a political figure during these times. Still till this day, people in Italy have sanctified as a saint. In this paper we will discuss the life of Catherine of Siena, her impact on the Catholic church and then also we will finish by discussing the impact she had politically.
Saint Catherine of Siena was born Caterina di Benincasa, in 1347 in Siena,
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Italy. She was the youngest child of her parents, which had many other children, about twenty-two. She grew up extremely intelligent, happy and an tremendously religious child. Around the age of six, she began having visions of Guardian Angels as they protected the people. Just a child a Catherine of Siena was already off to a tremendous religious’ life. When Catherine was eleven, her parents started to think about marrying her off. Obviously since Catherine of Siena was so devoted to God she did not was to devote to any other man. She went on a protest by first cutting off her hair, to make herself lest attractive. She doubled in her prayers as well knowing that God would be the only one to save her. When she finally hit the age of maturity, she entered the Dominican Third order. She did not want to join just any convent, because she still wanted the option to live at home. Joining the Dominican Third order allowed her to do so. For the next several years, she spent her time in prayer, alone and trying to get politically involved. Saint Catherine of Siena impacted the Catholic Church so heavily that she is still considered one of the greatest saints who ever lived, man or woman.
Her hardships in life are what made her the person she was, like many of the saints, and she understood that suffering was just part of life. Europe in Catherine’s days were no walk in the park, the country was being destroyed by the plague known as the Black Death. Saint Catherine was always in line waiting to help the next person in need. In the book written by Katharina Wilson, she explains one of the moments where Catherine helped a priest who had caught the Black Death while working in a hospital. Catherine ran into the priests’ room and said “get up father, there is work to be done. Have something to eat”. The priest almost immediately, without hesitation, stood from his death bed and noticed he was no longer ill. Our Saint Catherine was not perfect though, she did have her times where she did not feel the presence of God anymore and felt alone. She would ask God “O Lord, where wert Thou when my heart was so sorely vexed with foul and hateful temptations?”. After she would ask this she would hear a voice from God telling her “Daughter, I was in thy heart, fortifying thee by grace”. Catherine said that she found strength in these words and that she would go out and do even more for the people just as God would want her to. She continued to help the sick, she continued to be compassionate and continued to pray hard. She …show more content…
would not go unnoticed for all she was doing. She made a huge difference and a vast majority of the people would always be appreciative. Catherine of Siena’s holiness began to spread across Europe, and began to become a symbol of hope, spiritual guidance and love to people form all around. From the politicians, to the serfs, to royalty, other religious figures, men and woman alike, and just ordinary people. Catherine lived in a time where the Catholic church was at its lowest point in history because there was not just one claimant to the Papacy and the strength of the church depended on the Papacy. Politically she was highly successful in convincing the Pope Gregory XI to return to return to his appropriate home which was in Rome.
Himself and several of the popes before him have been living in France for the past decades. Currently the pope still resides in Rome and the next pope is due to reside also there also, and that is due thanks to Catherine of Siena. Saint Catherine also tried to persuade the French court to launch the crusade against the Ottoman Turks and the other Muslim countries. She would write letters to Charles V of France, explaining that the godless wars between Christian kings, were like fighting against brothers. Showing the wars in this light, she tried to convince the French King that if he were to continue in this war against the English, that it was harmful to both sides of the monarchy, spiritually and religiously. This stress on peace among the Christian states as the key to salvation may be found in many of her teachings and many of her efforts to in over the respect of the Papal states. Saint Catherine’s ability to intervene in politics was not only supported by her spiritual connection with God but by her connections that her family had in politics in Siena. After all these efforts her plans to unite all the Catholic nations fell because of the Florentines’ reluctance to bear Pope Gregory XIs partnership with the rulers of Milan. This did not stop our Saint Catherine though, she continued to shape the way for other woman in the church and
continued her faithfulness to the lord. After Pope Gregory XIs death they had elected a new Pope, Pope Urban VI. Soon after his election a group of French cardinals claimed they only voted for him because they feared the mobs and then tried to elect a new Pope, Clement VII. Pope Urban VI immediately excommunicated those cardinals, but Clement VII and his followers went off to continue his ruler ship. European monarchs were almost equally divided between Pope Urban VI and Pope Clement VII. Each of them claimed to be the rightful Pope and the other to be the son of Satan. This brought up the Great Schism, and our Catherine followed along side of Pope Urban VI and would write poems and letters to those who supported Pope Clement VII in hope they would come to their senses. Although her involvement did not end the Great Schism, she did have an impact and tried her best. She tried to eradicate the sin that the Greta Schism brought by giving up all food and water. Her already being weak from extreme fasting, grew extremely ill, and stopped the fast but she ended up dying at the young age of thirty-three due to her malnourished body. Saint Catherine of Siena, was named one of the patron saints of Italy in 1939, and in 1970 she was recognized as the Doctor of the Church, meaning that her teachings were approved by the church. Saint Catherine of Siena was possibly one of the most influential women in the 1400th century and possibly one of the most influential women in history. She had such a huge impact on the Catholic church not only religiously or spiritually, but also politically. She had such a devotion to God that it ended up costing her life, Catherine did not mid at all though, she recognized it as a privilege to be able to serve her God and die for her God. She is still one of the Patron Saints in Italy and will continue to influence women in our history.
Jeanne de Jussie, a dedicated Catholic nun, recorded events that took place in Geneva during the Reformation as the official chronicler for the Saint Clare convent. Although littered with biases, Jeanne de Jussie’s experiences reflect broader trends during the Reformation; therefore, The Short Chronicle is a valid source and not merely a personal attack against the Protestants. Her experiences and beliefs, including those concerning celibacy, reflected those of many members of the Catholic Church during the Reformation. Also, her categorization of Protestants as ‘heretics’ was consistent with the practices of the Catholic Church. Although biased, her fears about Protestant views on celibacy and marriage were legitimate and consistent with
Chapter one, ‘Beginnings at Assisi,’ offers a vivid description of the social, political, economic, cultural, demographic description of Assisi and its inhabitants. Here, the author describes the life of Francis and the situations and circumstances prompting his journey to spread the ideal gospel life to the world. This chapter is relevant in determining the circumstances that instigated a need for reforms in the Catholic Church. This chapter is applicable in my life because it offers insight on the fundamental Christian I can rely on in my daily life.
With the hindsight of the 1960s, it is easy for us to view how influencers of the era have reformed and revitalised the Christian tradition to a great extent. Because of this hindsight of the 1960s, an era in which the zeitgeist was full of intellectuals, poets, musicians and authors, we can see the traditions of Christianity were considered to be backward to a world that was changing in terms of beliefs and ethics as society embraced these social reforms. The statement then clearly reflects Pope John XXIII and his impacts on Catholicism. Pope John XXIII recognized these changes and through his leadership, the impacts he had on Christianity had a substantially large influence over the Catholic Church as he ultimately altered the Christian tradition by creating the Vatican II. By doing so, he adjusted traditional Church Scriptures (ressourcement), involved himself with promoting ecumenicalism and also interfaith-dialogue as well as becoming engaged in the modern world (aggiornamento), therefore meeting the needs of the evolving society by revitalising the old traditions.
Pope Urban II was sought by Alexius Comnenus, a Byzantine Emperor who wanted the papacy to help his army hold off the advancing Seljuk Turks in Asia Minor. The reason for Alexius Comnenus contacting the pope rather than another emperor or monarch wasn’t just the fact they were secular, but because the pope would have more power to persuade the people. The Gregorian movement in 1050-80 was ultimately was responsible for the new instilled power of the papacy’s position over nonreligious rulers. The pope agreed to aid the Byzantine emperor, but he also had his own agenda when it came to the military advances and the new power of his position. The papacy did not intend to only help the Byzantine Empire but to further save all of Christendom from being overrun.
Kings often struggled with the Church over power and land, both trying desperately to obtain them, both committing atrocities to hold onto them. Time and time again, the Popes of the postclassical period went to great extremes to secure the Church’s position in the world. Both the Crusades and the Inquisition are examples of this. D...
Catherine of Siena was born in Italy in 1347 at a time when political and religious changes were affecting the hierarchy of the Catholic Church. Dedicating her life to the Holy Spirit from a very young age, Catherine pursued a life of purity and simplicity that served as a background to her great literary work, The Dialogue of the Divine Providence . Her work focuses on the importance of prayer and its transcendent power in human life.
Roles of the Catholic Church in Western civilization has been scrambled with the times past and development of Western society. Regardless of the fact that the West is no longer entirely Catholic, the Catholic tradition is still strong in Western countries. The church has been a very important foundation of public facilities like schooling, Western art, culture and philosophy; and influential player in religion. In many ways it has wanted to have an impact on Western approaches to pros and cons in numerous areas. It has over many periods of time, spread the teachings of Jesus within the Western World and remains a foundation of continuousness connecting recent Western culture to old Western culture.-
The prestige of papacy has faltered many times during the History of the Roman Catholic Church. One of the largest issues with papacy prior to the time of reformation was the influence of France on the church. Throughout history countries or monarchies have often fought for power and influence over the church and state. For a period of time, the papacy left residency in Rome and moved to Avignon, France due to France’s strength influence of the popes of the time. The results of this residency would affect both the church and all people in the surrounding areas. Not only that, but the effects lasted well on past the residency eventually leading to the Great Schism. In order to understand the effect of Avignon papacy it is important to
During the Crusades, the Pope’s aspiration for power originated from political reasons. In 1095, there were many problems in the Christian land the Pope couldn’t do much about. For example, there was a great deal of fighting between knights and nobles, and the Pope had very little power (Visual, NA). When the Church tried to reform it by ordering a truce, it did not work. So when the Pope saw the holy land was controlled by Muslims that did not allow them to go there, he decided to use that as a way to restore order in the Church (Crusades, NA). He knew it would solve the problems he was faced with because it would send all the fighting knights away to war, and if they captured Jerusalem he would have control over the most sought out land, giving him power (Crusades, NA). He knew that many knights won’t want to leave the land when they can claim the land that another knight left when they went to war. So to ensure more knights’ participation, he promises remissions from all sins committed. However, the Pope knew he must convince more people than just knight to win Jerusalem and that reason is what Urban states in his speech. “Or rather the Lord, beseech you as Chris...
She examines 6 popes between 1470-1530 who she claims lead in a way similar to politicians. They lost touch with the common people both emotionally and intellectually. A little known cleric led the revolution challenging papacy that culminated in the reformation of the church. In that context, Barbara outlines that the popes were venal, immoral, and their power politics was calamitous. The faithful were distressed by their leadership, which ignored all the protests and the signs that a revolt was coming. In the end, the papal constituency lost almost half of its followers to Protestants. Barbara says that these people were driven by the greed and the urge to create a family empire that would outlive them. This chapter sums up the essence of folly in these major failures, lack of a fixed policy, over extravagance, and the illusion that their rule was
The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved February 21, 2010 from New Advent: http://www.newadvent.org
In this paper we are going to discuss the life, work and teachings of Saint Teresa of Avila, Doctor of the Catholic Church. St. Teresa was an important figure in the Church for her reforms of the Carmelite Order. Teresa’s reforms caused a fracture of the Order and formed the Order of Discalced Carmelites, which believes in the old ways of the Carmelite Order. St. Teresa is also well known for her three books.
Women in the Catholic Church take on many roles, from parishioner to laywoman to nuns. Women parishioners help prepare for the mass. They can be lectors, choir members, CCD instructors, etc. Laywomen “…are the Catholic women traditionally permitted certain ministerial responsibilities (Wessinger, 244).” They work in churches, schools, prisons, etc. Nuns dedicate their lives to religious devotion. They take three vows; poverty, chasity, and obedience. They are to live simple lifestyles. They live their lives teaching others and helping others.
The Roman Catholic Church had complete influence over the lives of everyone in medieval society including their beliefs and values. The Church’s fame in power and wealth had provided them with the ability to make their own laws and follow their own social hierarchy. With strong political strength in hand, the Church could even determine holidays and festivals. It gained significant force in the arts, education, religion, politics as well as their capability to alter the feudal structure through their wealth and power.
Quietism was spread by Miguel De Molino words and teachings in the seventeenth century Spain. The audience of this book is those who are looking for a connection with God and to understand what it means to have a releationship with God. This book allows historians to better understand the controversies within Catholicism during the seventeenth century. Historians need to be wary of the biases attracted to this book because there is many different viewpoints coming from the 22st century and on how female were viewed in the Middle