World Affairs Board - View Single Post - Geographic Catalysts for Secularization in Western Europe

Ray · 02-09-2007, 01:37 AM

The Church was a stabilising factor in the medieval times.

The masses were ignorant and poor and were in the 'grip' of the feudal chieftains. The Church was the only social instrument where the masses found solace of equality (even if the pews maintained the hierarchical difference). The communion with God was on the same plane.

Therefore, the Church played an important role in mind control.

It is a fact that the Human psychology prompts individuals to 'prevail' upon others with their point of view. Having indoctrinated some, the more aggressive becomes the leader and the remainder becomes the group of like minded individuals sharing a common point of view. This group then tries to influence others on a variety of issue and like minded groups having many commonality like language, region etc etc, formed a nation pursuing a common agenda for national improvement. The competitive spirit and the desire to dominate of man led to influencing other nations and when impossible to do so, resorted to physical violence to subjugate. As a nation, such physical violence to subjugate was called war.

Initially, it was the leader of the group or Nation (called the King) who decided the fate of the Nation.

However, the indomitable spirit of domination permeated society and the Church realised the potential of using society to enhance their power (hold over society) and thus became the second power centre running the nation. To give a semblance of quality with the temporal rulers, they assigned themselves with the title, 'Princes of the Church', God being the King. This also reduced the supreme position of the actual King and relegated him below God - the powerful and supreme icon that not even the King could contest.

To ensure through a sleight of hand, the all powerful status of the Church over all mankind, it devised the instruments of Inquisition and Excommunication. This ensured total subjugation of the people. Fear of being shunned by society is a very powerful instrument in mind control.

Having totally made itself supreme, the Church simultaneously commenced acquiring of trappings of power i.e. land and money since discernible 'status' awes the mind of those who observe (and in this case the common man) . Through these methods the Church in actuality became more powerful than the temporal leaders or Kings. The inevitable jockeying for supremacy between the temporal and spiritual leaders was bound to come. The Crusades was but an example of the Church manipulating events to establish itself above all. The Crusades had less to do with the Moslems than with Roman-Byzantine rivalry. The Byzantine model had always been that each bishop, or patriarch, was independent and equal. The Roman model was that the bishop of Rome, the Pope, was supreme. An uneasy alliance kept the Church together until 1064, when the eastern Churches flatly refused to submit to the Pope. This split is called the Great Schism. The Church of Rome had become too powerful, corrupt and dictatorial and hence the indomitable spirit of man as an individual rebelled. While the common man had not the power or influence to rebel, it was left to the ‘leaders of society’ to be in the vanguard and since the temporal leaders could not do so for the fear of the wrath of God (religion and spiritual damnation had become so all powerful that none dared challenge the Church or the Pope [Infallibility of the Pope]), internal dissensions and rebellion came from within. Martin Luther was a leading challenger which finally brought in another sect of Christianity. It would be interesting to know that he was temperamental, peevish, egomaniacal, and argumentative, but possessed a single-mindedness and tenacity of purpose.

The Freedom of the Christian," is the theological and ideological core of Luther's thinking; the fundamental term of value, that centre around which every other aspect of his thought rotates, is the concept of Freiheit, "freedom," or "liberty." This led to secularism, concept of freedom, and eventually with the turn of time it gave rise to the notion of "individual freedom," and later "political freedom," and even later "economic freedom." Thus, Luther was a catalyst for the Reformation.

02-09-2007, 01:37 AM	#7 (permalink)
Ray Postmaster General *Military Professional* Join Date: 08-20-03 Posts: 27,251 Country:	The Church was a stabilising factor in the medieval times. The masses were ignorant and poor and were in the 'grip' of the feudal chieftains. The Church was the only social instrument where the masses found solace of equality (even if the pews maintained the hierarchical difference). The communion with God was on the same plane. Therefore, the Church played an important role in mind control. It is a fact that the Human psychology prompts individuals to 'prevail' upon others with their point of view. Having indoctrinated some, the more aggressive becomes the leader and the remainder becomes the group of like minded individuals sharing a common point of view. This group then tries to influence others on a variety of issue and like minded groups having many commonality like language, region etc etc, formed a nation pursuing a common agenda for national improvement. The competitive spirit and the desire to dominate of man led to influencing other nations and when impossible to do so, resorted to physical violence to subjugate. As a nation, such physical violence to subjugate was called war. Initially, it was the leader of the group or Nation (called the King) who decided the fate of the Nation. However, the indomitable spirit of domination permeated society and the Church realised the potential of using society to enhance their power (hold over society) and thus became the second power centre running the nation. To give a semblance of quality with the temporal rulers, they assigned themselves with the title, 'Princes of the Church', God being the King. This also reduced the supreme position of the actual King and relegated him below God - the powerful and supreme icon that not even the King could contest. To ensure through a sleight of hand, the all powerful status of the Church over all mankind, it devised the instruments of Inquisition and Excommunication. This ensured total subjugation of the people. Fear of being shunned by society is a very powerful instrument in mind control. Having totally made itself supreme, the Church simultaneously commenced acquiring of trappings of power i.e. land and money since discernible 'status' awes the mind of those who observe (and in this case the common man) . Through these methods the Church in actuality became more powerful than the temporal leaders or Kings. The inevitable jockeying for supremacy between the temporal and spiritual leaders was bound to come. The Crusades was but an example of the Church manipulating events to establish itself above all. The Crusades had less to do with the Moslems than with Roman-Byzantine rivalry. The Byzantine model had always been that each bishop, or patriarch, was independent and equal. The Roman model was that the bishop of Rome, the Pope, was supreme. An uneasy alliance kept the Church together until 1064, when the eastern Churches flatly refused to submit to the Pope. This split is called the Great Schism. The Church of Rome had become too powerful, corrupt and dictatorial and hence the indomitable spirit of man as an individual rebelled. While the common man had not the power or influence to rebel, it was left to the ‘leaders of society’ to be in the vanguard and since the temporal leaders could not do so for the fear of the wrath of God (religion and spiritual damnation had become so all powerful that none dared challenge the Church or the Pope [Infallibility of the Pope]), internal dissensions and rebellion came from within. Martin Luther was a leading challenger which finally brought in another sect of Christianity. It would be interesting to know that he was temperamental, peevish, egomaniacal, and argumentative, but possessed a single-mindedness and tenacity of purpose. The Freedom of the Christian," is the theological and ideological core of Luther's thinking; the fundamental term of value, that centre around which every other aspect of his thought rotates, is the concept of Freiheit, "freedom," or "liberty." This led to secularism, concept of freedom, and eventually with the turn of time it gave rise to the notion of "individual freedom," and later "political freedom," and even later "economic freedom." Thus, Luther was a catalyst for the Reformation. __________________ "Some have learnt many Tricks of sly Evasion, Instead of Truth they use Equivocation, And eke it out with mental Reservation, Which is to good Men an Abomination." I don't have to attend every argument I'm invited to. HAKUNA MATATA Last edited by Ray : 02-09-2007 at 01:48 AM.