Much of the scandal and misunderstanding against the Inquisition is rooted in grossly exaggerated numbers and ideas. Many of these myths were recently brought to light by the non-catholic BBC in a documentary called The Myth of the Spanish Inquisition.
Ave Maria!
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Its time the distortions against the history of the Catholic Church ended. Thank you Father.
Yes, it only dealt with professed Catholics, and yet, at the time there was no other kind of Christian to BE! So heretical Christians, ie protestants and schismatics, ie orthodox, were caught in the net.
While it was just and proper to examine those Catholics that began to teach contrary to the professed Faith, it was improper to then allow the state to take debilitating action against them.
That’s right, and that relationship with the state turns the Church into an arm of the state which was the point all along. As is always the case for Church and State in matters such as these, including the protestant ref, there are political dimensions to the suppression. But it is an error of orthodoxy to convert the political decision into a religious one.
What about concordats with fascists and nazis?
Why does the pope continue to have the title of ‘Grand Inquisitor”?
The BBC is the propaganda arm of the Vatican and Rothschild. Rothschild is the Vatican banker. The Vatican invented propaganda in 1627, remember?
The Inquisition was created through papal bull, right?
Tell us how the mere men who were both prosecutor and judge in these ‘courts’ administered this policy sir.
Why were people made to confess and recant their true Christian faith to these inquisitors?
In the dead of night.
Why is the pope called the VICAR? (vicarious = in place of)
“Firstly when the faith is in question, there must be no delay; but at the slightest suspicion, rigorous measures must be resorted to with all speed. Secondly, no consideration is to be shown to any prince or prelate, however high his station. Thirdly, extreme severity is rather to be exercised against those who attempt to shield themselves under the protection of any potentate, and fourthly, no man must lower himself by showing toleration toward heretics of any kind.”
– Cardinal Giovanni Caraffa, a zealot for the purity of Catholicism
Yes, the problem with trying to reply to this claim is that it requires a thousand pages. Congrats on compressing it as much as possible.
Mike, We have Concordats, not just with “Fascists and Nazis,” but with democracies and communist governments, such as China. These agreements exist with a large number of countries, to protect the Catholics of those counties.
The BBC does NOTHING for the Vatican.
Try watching the film of the Inquisition here. They were some of the most just courts in existence at the time. Would you like to provide an example of a more just court of the time?
These people were not “made to confess and recant their true Christian faith” since that would be found in the Catholic Church.
The Pope is called the Vicar of Christ because the word vicar simply stands for one who vicariously stands in for another person. A vicar is someone to whom a job is delegated. The three strands of biblical imagery—rock, steward, and shepherd—show in three different ways that Jesus intended Peter to exercise his ministry and authority here on earth—in other words, to act as his vicar.
As to Cardinal Carafa, he was no hero of the Church, and almost brought about the fall of the Papal States and the sacking of Rome by Spain.
Simply put, you’ve provided nothing that counters Father’s position on this.
explain ‘auto de fe’ too sir.
also, ‘water boarding’ is an old catholic torture, updated for the modern inquisition. Isn’t the owner of Blackwater a Catholic? Why yes he is.
So is the writer of the PATRIOT ACT
Mike,
You anti-Catholic biogtry makes you unable to honestly look at history within its context. You simply accept the anti-Catholic propaganda, with out a truly critical understanding of the real history. The Friar here is relating the information researched by the BBC. The BBC is no friend of the Catholic Church. No one can excuse the excesses of the Spainish Inquisition. But many of them were the consequences of the Spanish State activities rather than direct activities of the Church. Once again no excuse for the excesses, but you do not have a clear and unbiased view of the History of the Church. Concordats with fascists and nazis: The Vatican sought concordats with numerous nations, including the United States, to insure the governments proper respect for the various activities of the Church and her faithful ranging from public worship, to education, to Civil Rights. In many cases, but NOT in Germany’s and Italy’s, it permitted the governments imput into the selection of Bishops. The Concordat with Germany had been under negoiation for many years BEFORE the Nazis take over. It was anti-Catholic bigotry, like yours, that prevented a Concordat with the United States from even being negoiated successfully. Such continuing bigotry is one of the reasons that the USA did not have diplomatic relations with the Vatican City State for over 100 years!
In context, once again, at the same time as the Concordat with Germany; Stalin was literally straving to death nearly 10 million Ukrainians; but the “New York Times” received a Pulitzer Prize for articles denying this Holocaust. But the fact seem to allude those who know everything.
facts are anti-Catholic?
Queries are anti-Catholic?
The ‘propaganda’ is pro-Catholic, even Protestantism is under the pope these days, so your point about BBC is mute.
Catholics love labels it seems.
No Catholic should attempt to redeem the Church for the Spanish inquisition. This is the equivalent of a sinner attempting to justify the sin rather than seek forgiveness for it, It’s also a failure to read your history. And it’s a failure to read your own catechism. Dude you need to read your Augustine: The CIty of God.
Mike, your questions are easily and honestly answered by many sources if you simply Google them. But instead, your intention is to throw them out there to confuse uninformed readers who might stumble upon this blog and not otherwise do the research, and who might assume that you know what you are talking about. You do not.
The Reichskonkordat of 1933 was an agreement between the Holy See and Nazi government that guaranteed the rights of the Roman Catholic Church to exist in Germany under a Nazi regime. The Nazis persecuted and slaughtered thousands of Catholics along with Jews in the holocaust. The intention of the Reichskonkordat was not to give legitimacy to the Nazis but only to prevent even greater evils from being unleashed against the Church and Catholics.
The Pope still has the authority to seek out and stop heresies within the Church. But his title is NOT nor was “Grand Inquisitor.” Before he became pope, Cardinal Ratziner was “Prefect of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith.”
The BBC a propaganda arm of the Vatican? In anti-papist England? You’ve got to be kidding…”
There is no “true” Christian faith other than that which originated and still exists in the Catholic Church. The error of Protestantism is self-evident in the 33,000+ protestant denominations that exist today. St. Peter warned about individuals interpreting the scriptures on their own; and St. Paul said that the Church was the “…pillar and foundation of the truth.”
Vicar = a person who acts in place of another
In other words, since Christ has ascended to Heaven, he appointed St. Peter and his successors to act on His behalf, not replace Him completely.
Paul said no such thing, the church wasn’t formed yet. It wasn’t formed until Nicea.
The Pope has no authority over God, yet he claims it.
The Catholic church is Luciferian doctrine
The Pope is anti-biblical and has no bearing on anything, he just assumes it
The papal title ‘Grand Inquisitor’ still stands, he has many
I don’t think a ‘concordat with nazis’ is a Godly act, do you?
The Jesuit Society says fascism is the best political system for Catholics
Do you agree?
The church and the pope claim dominion over the planet and declares other churches to be non-churhces.
They also claim to control salvation for every soul on Earth
“We declare, say, define, and proclaim to every human creature that they by necessity for salvation are entirely subject to the Roman Pontiff.”
– Dominus Iesus (September 5th 2000)
This is TEMPORAL as well.
Scripture keeps getting edited by the church, so why should I pay attention?
Commandment 3 comes to mind, something about idolatry?
How can the church edit God’s word?
‘Fascism is the regime that corresponds most closely to the concepts of the Church of Rome’
— La Civilta Cattolica, house organ of the Jesuits
Early Catholic Christians (30-33 AD) was attacked by enemies until this time…
WISDOM 8:22 – I will tell you what Wisdom is, and how she came to be. I will not keep anything secret. I will trace her history from the beginning and make knowledge of her open to all. I will not ignore any part of the truth.
WISDOM 8:8 – Do you want to have wide experience? Wisdom knows the lesson of history and can anticipate the future. She knows how to interpret what people say and how to solve problems. She knows the miracles that God will perform, and how the movements of history will develop.
***** the first complete Bible was compiled and made by Saint Jerome by the authority of the Roman Catholic Church on 405 AD. He translated the hebrew, greek and aramaic language into latin which was the common international language at that time.
KINGDOM OF THE PRIEST
MATTHEW 16: 18-19 – And so I tell you, Peter: you are a rock, and on this rock foundation Iwill build my church, and not even death will ever be able to overcome it. I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of heaven; what you prohibit on earth will be prohibited in heaven, and what you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven.
MATTHEW 28:18-20 – Jesus drew near and said to them,” I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Go, then, to all peoples everywhere and make them my disciples: baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them to obey everything I have commanded you. And I will be with you always, to the end of the age.”
REVELATION 5:10 – You have made them a KINGDOM OF PRIESTs to serve our GOD, and they shall rule on earth.”
REVELATION 1: 5-6 – and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the first to be raised from death and who is also the ruler of the kings of the world. He loves us, and by his sacrificial death he has freed us from our sins and MADE US A KINGDOM OF PRIESTS to serve his God and Father. To Jesus Christ be the glory and power forever and ever! Amen.
HEBREWS 3:1 – My Christian friends, who also have been called by God! Think of Jesus, whom God sent to be the HIGH PRIEST of the faith we profess.
****************************NOT ALL APOSTLES IS JUDAS ISCARIOT*****************
“Paul said no such thing, the church wasn’t formed yet. It wasn’t formed until Nicea.”
Sorry, Mike, but in the Bible, St. Paul does in fact write that “…it is the Church [not the Scriptures] that is the pinnacle and foundation of the truth (1 Tim. 3:15) and the final arbiter on questions of the Christian faith (Matt. 18:17). It is through the teaching authority and Apostolic Tradition (2 Thess. 2:15; 3:6; 1 Cor. 11:2) of this Church, who is guided by the Holy Spirit (John 14:16,26; 16:13), that we know of the divine inspiration of the Scriptures, and the manifold wisdom of God. (cf. Ephesians 3:10).
“The Pope has no authority over God, yet he claims it.”
When has a Pope claimed authority over God? That is a lie and absurd. For biblical support for the papacy in general and the primacy of Peter, I’ll simply refer you to http://www.scripturecatholic.com/primacy_of_peter.html.
“I don’t think a ‘concordat with nazis’ is a Godly act, do you?”
Did you read my last post? There’s nothing unGodly about self-preservation and protection of the innocent in the face of impending and overpowering evil.
“The Jesuit Society says fascism is the best political system for Catholics
Do you agree?”
Can you please provide a specific proof of that statement? You like to make generalizations without citations. From what I could google, that statement was made in 1931 (before WWII) by a single Jesuit, but not on behalf of the entire SOJ. At the time, it was also not known of the atrocities that the Italian Fascists were committing in cooperation with the Nazis. “Non Abbiamo Bisogno” (Italian for “We do not need”) is a Roman Catholic Church encyclical published in June 1931 by Pope Pius XI, protesting against the Mussolini’s closing of Italian Catholic Action and Catholic Youth organizations. Pius wrote that Mussolini’s regime was anti-Catholic, and the encyclical was clearly anti-fascist in stance. In the Acts of the Apostles, the early church and apostles were apparently socialists (Acts 2:42-45). Are you inferring that it is only possible to be a good Christian under a democratic government? I’ve got news for you, Heaven will be a monarchy under our Lord, Jesus Christ, not a democracy.
“The church and the pope claim dominion over the planet and declares other churches to be non-churhces. They also claim to control salvation for every soul on Earth
“We declare, say, define, and proclaim to every human creature that they by necessity for salvation are entirely subject to the Roman Pontiff.”
The last quote you refer to is by Pope Boniface VIII who died in 1303, 214 years before Martin Luther ever presented his 95 Theses in 1517 to begin the Protestant Reformation. Put in historical context (something you like to ignore), that statement was made to address the various heresies circulating at the time. I’d suggest you look to Vatican II statements, read the correct understanding of them, and then read–even much more recently–the writings of Pope John Paul II regarding salvation through other Christian religions. In Mark 9:40, Jesus said, “Anyone who is not against us is with us.” As Catholics, we consider protestants to be “with us,” even if we believe some of your interpretations are in error. You and I are both part of the Body of Christ in His Church, because Christ can have only one body, and we both are for Him, not against.
“Scripture keeps getting edited by the church, so why should I pay attention?
Commandment 3 comes to mind, something about idolatry?
How can the church edit God’s word?”
The Bible was compiled about 405 A.D. Then after 1,100 years of the Church using it as being inspired by God, Protestant churches began omitting entire books and verses if they contradicted their theologies. The Catholic Church has never edited or abridged God’s word. Yes, there have been instances in modern times when our ability to understand and interpret ancient texts from their original languages into our vernacular has improved (ex, with the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls and Rosetta stone), but the core teachings of Christ have never been altered.
Regarding the 10 Commandments, they are found in three different places in the Bible (Exodus 20 and Exodous 34 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21), and each book words them with slight variations. Latin Catholics and Protestants simply list them differently. It is incredible that such a pernicious lie could be so easily spread and believed, especially since the truth could easily be determined by just looking into the matter. Please see http://www.fisheaters.com/10commandments.html for a very thorough explanation.
Excellent post, Steve! I pray it doesn’t fall upon deaf ears.
(correction on my reply to Mike WISDOM 8:22 it should be WISDOM 6:22)
EPHESIANS 4:18 – and whose minds are in the dark. They have no part in the life that God gives, for they are completely ignorant and stubborn.
(correction on my reply to Mike WISDOM 8:22 it should be WISDOM 6:22)
JUDE 1:17-19 But remember, my friends, what you were told in the past by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. They said to you, ” when the last days come, people will appear who will make fun of you, people who follow their own godless desires.” These are the people who cause divisions, who are controlled by their natural desires, who do not have the Spirit.