Medieval
Church History
The Context of Medieval
Church History 12
2013. 1st Semester.
Lee Sun Ho
1
Course Syllabus
Medieval
Church History
2
Course Syllabus
Medieval
Church History
3
Course Syllabus
Medieval
Church History
4
Course Syllabus
Medieval
Church History
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References, Reports
Medieval
Church History
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Text Books
A history of the Christian Church
Finshed
The Middle Ages to the Close of the Investiture Controversy
4-3. The Franks and the Papacy
 4-4. Charlemagne
 4-5. Ecclesiastical Institutions
 4-6. Collapsing Empire and Rising Papacy
 4-7. Papal Decline and Renewal by the
Medieval
Revived Empire

Church History
7
Text Books
A history of the Christian Church
Finshed
The Middle Ages to the Close of the Investiture Controversy

4-8. Reform Movements

4-9. The Reform Party Secures the Papacy

4-10. The Papacy Breaks with the Empire
Medieval
Church History
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Text Books
A history of the Christian Church
Finshed
The Middle Ages to the Close of the Investiture Controversy
4-11. Hildebrand and Henry IV
 4-12. The Struggle Ends in Compromise
 4-13. The Greek Church after the Picture
Controversy
 4-14. The Spread of the Church

Medieval
Church History
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Text Books
A history of the Christian Church
Process
The Late Middle Ages
5-1. The Crusades
 5-2. New Religious Movement
 5-3. Antichurchly Sects. Cathari and
Waldeneses. The Inquisition
 5-4. The Dominicans and Franciscans
Medieval
 5-5. Early Scholasticism

Church History
10
Text Books
A history of the Christian Church
Process
The Late Middle Ages
5-6. The Universities
 5-7. High Scholasticism and Its Theology
 5-8. The Mystics
 5-9. Mission and Defeats
 5-10. The Papacy at Its Height and Its
Medieval
Decline

Church History
11
Text Books
A history of the Christian Church
Process
The Late Middle Ages
5-11. The Papacy in Avignon, Criticism.
The Schism
 5-12. Wyclif and Huss
 5-13. The Reforming Councils
 5-14. The Italian Renaissance and Its
Popes
Medieval

Church History
12
Text Books
A history of the Christian Church
Process
The Late Middle Ages

5-15. The New National Powers

5-16. Renaissance and Other Influences
North of Alps
Medieval
Church History
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Text Books
The Medieval Church
Finshed
1. Christianity after the Fall of Rome
2. The Expansion of Christianity
3. The Church in the Ninth and Tenth Centuries
4. Recovery in the West
5. The Church and the Nation State
Medieval
Church History
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Text Books
The Medieval Church
Process
6. Renaissance in Theology and Learning
7. Organization, Worship, Piety, and Society
8. Decline and Vitality
9. A Conflict of Authorities
10. A Tome of Ferment
Medieval
Church History
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Finshed
References, Reports
Dominicans

Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologic
a, vol. 12(la. 84-89).
Medieval
Church History
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Finshed
References, Reports
Franciscans

Bonaventura, The Minds Road to God.
Medieval
Church History
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Finshed
References, Reports

E. Gilson, Reason and Revelation in
Middle Ages.
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Church History
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Process
References, Reports

Tauler, Johannes, The Sermons and
Conferences of John Tauler.
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Church History
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Finshed
References, Movies
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Church History
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Thomas Aquinas(1225-1274)
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Thomas Aquinas(1225-1274)

Thomas Aquinas, also Thomas of Aquin or A
quino, was an Italian Dominican priest, and an i
mmensely influential philosopher and theologian i
n the tradition of scholasticism, within which he is
also known as the "Dumb Ox", "Angelic Doctor", "
Doctor Communis", and "Doctor Universalis".

"Aquinas" is the demonym of Aquino: Thomas ca
me from one of the noblest families of the Kingdo
m of Naples; his parents held the titles "Count of A
quino" and "Countess of Teano." Medieval
Church History
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Thomas Aquinas(1225-1274)

He was the foremost classical proponent of n
atural theology, and the father of Thomism.

His influence on Western thought is consider
able, and much of modern philosophy was co
nceived in development or refutation of his id
eas, particularly in the areas of ethics, natural
law, metaphysics, and political theory.
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Church History
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Thomas Aquinas(1225-1274)

Thomas is held in the Roman Catholic Church to b
e the model teacher for those studying for the pries
thood, and indeed the highest expression of both n
atural reason and speculative theology.

The study of his works, according to papal and ma
gisterial documents, is a core of the required progr
am of study for those seeking ordination as priests
or deacons, as well as for those in religious formati
on and for other students of the sacred disciplines
(Catholic philosophy, theology, history, liturgy, an
d canon law).
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Thomas Aquinas(1225-1274)

The works for which he is best-known are the Sum
ma theologiae and the Summa Contra Gentiles.

One of the 35 Doctors of the Church, he is consider
ed the Church's greatest theologian and philosoph
er.

Pope Benedict XV declared: "This (Dominican) Or
der ... acquired new luster when the Church declar
ed the teaching of Thomas to be her own and that
Doctor, honored with the special praises of the Pon
tiffs, the master and patron of Catholic
schools."
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Thomas Aquinas(1225-1274)
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Thomas Aquinas(1225-1274)
Five Proofs For The Existence of God
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Summa Theologica
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Summa Theologica

The Summa Theologiæ (written 1265–127
4 and also known as the Summa Theologic
a or simply the Summa) is the best-known
work of Thomas Aquinas (c.1225–1274).

Although unfinished, the Summa is "one of th
e classics of the history of philosophy and one
of the most influential works of Western liter
ature."
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Summa Theologica

It is intended as an instructional guide for mo
derate theologians, and a compendium of all
of the main theological teachings of the Catho
lic Church.

It presents the reasoning for almost all points
of Christian theology in the West.

The Summa's topics follow a cycle: the existe
nce of God; Creation, Man; Man's purpose; C
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hrist; the Sacraments; and back
to God.
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Summa Theologica

Among non-scholars the Summa is perhaps most famo
us for its five arguments for the existence of God know
n as the "five ways" (Latin: quinque viae). The five way
s occupy one and a half pages of the Summa's approxi
mately three thousand five hundred pages.

Throughout the Summa Aquinas cites Christian, Musli
m, Hebrew, and Pagan sources including but not limite
d to Christian Sacred Scripture, Aristotle, Augustine of
Hippo, Avicenna, Averroes, Al-Ghazali, Boethius, John
of Damascus, Paul the Apostle, Dionysius the Areopagi
te, Maimonides, Anselm, Plato, Cicero, and Eriugena.
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Summa Theologica

The Summa is a more structured and expanded versio
n of Aquinas's earlier Summa contra Gentiles, though
these works were written for different purposes,

the Summa Theologiæ to explain the Christian faith to
beginning theology students, and the Summa contra G
entiles to explain the Christian faith and defend it in h
ostile situations,

with arguments adapted to the intended circumstance
s of its use, each article refuting a certain belief of a spe
cific heresy.
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Summa Theologica

Aquinas conceived the Summa specifically as a wo
rk suited to beginning students:

"Because a doctor of catholic truth ought not only t
o teach the proficient, but to him pertains also to i
nstruct beginners. as the Apostle says in 1 Corinthi
ans 3: 1-2, as to infants in Christ, I gave you milk t
o drink, not meat, our proposed intention in this w
ork is to convey those things that pertain to the Ch
ristian religion, in a way that is fitting to the instru
ction of beginners."
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Summa Theologica

It was while teaching at the Santa Sabina studium
provinciale, the forerunner of the Santa Maria sop
ra Minerva studium generale and College of Saint
Thomas which in the 20th century would become t
he Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas,
Angelicum, that Aquinas began to compose the Su
mma.

He completed the Prima Pars in its entirety and ci
rculated it in Italy before departing to take up his s
econd regency as professor at the University of Par
is (1269–1272).
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Summa Theologica

The Summa is composed of three major parts, each of which deals w
ith a major subsection of Christian theology.

First Part (in Latin, Prima Pars): God's existence and nature; the c
reation of the world; angels; the nature of man

Second Part:
First part of the Second Part (Prima Secundae, often abbreviated Pa
rt I-II): general principles of morality (including a theory of law)
Second part of the Second Part (Secunda Secundae, or Part II-II): m
orality in particular, including individual virtues and vices



Third Part (Tertia Pars): the person and work of Christ, who is the
way of man to God; the sacraments; the end of the world. Aquinas le
ft this part unfinished.
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Summa Theologica

Each part contains several questions, each of which revolves a
round a more specific subtopic; one such question is "Of Chris
t's Manner of Life."

Each question contains several articles phrased as interrogativ
e statements dealing with specific issues, such as "Whether Ch
rist should have led a life of poverty in this world?" The Summ
a has a standard format for each article.

A series of objections to the (yet to be stated) conclusion are gi
ven; one such objection, for example, is that "Christ should ha
ve embraced the most eligible form of life...which is a mean be
tween riches and poverty."
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Summa Theologica

A short counter-statement, beginning with the phrase
"sed contra" ("on the contrary"), is then given; this stat
ement almost always references authoritative literatur
e, such as the Bible or Aristotle. In this instance, Aquin
as begins, "It is written (in Matthew 8:20): 'The Son of
Man hath not where to lay His head'".

The actual argument is then made; this is generally a cl
arification of the issue. For example, Aquinas states th
at "it was fitting for Christ to lead a life of poverty in th
is world" for four distinct reasons, each of which is exp
ounded in some detail.
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Summa Theologica

Individual replies to the preceding objections
are then given, if necessary.

These replies range from one sentence to seve
ral paragraphs in length.

Aquinas's reply to the above objection is that
"those who wish to live virtuously need to avo
id abundance of riches and beggary, ...but vol
untary poverty is not open to this danger: and
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such was the poverty chosen by
Christ."
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Summa Theologica

This method of exposition is derived from
Averroes, to whom Aquinas refers respectf
ully as "the Commentator."
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Avignon Papacy
(Avignonese Captivity, 1309-1378)
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Avignon Papacy
(Avignonese Captivity, 1309-1378)

The Avignon Papacy was the period fro
m 1309 to 1378, during which seven succes
sive popes resided in Avignon, in modernday France, rather than in Rome.

This situation arose from the conflict betw
een the Papacy and the French crown.
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Avignon Papacy
(Avignonese Captivity, 1309-1378)

Following the strife between Boniface VIII and Philip I
V of France, and the death of his successor Benedict XI
after only eight months in office, a deadlocked conclav
e finally elected Clement V, a Frenchman, as Pope in 1
305.

Clement declined to move to Rome, remaining in Fran
ce, and in 1309 moved his court to the papal enclave at
Avignon, where it remained for the next 67 years.

This absence from Rome is sometimes referred
to as the "Babylonian Captivity of the Papacy".
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Avignon Papacy
(Avignonese Captivity, 1309-1378)

A total of seven popes reigned at Avignon;
all were French, and they increasingly fell
under the influence of the French Crown.

Finally, on September 13, 1376, Gregory XI
abandoned Avignon and moved his court t
o Rome (arriving on January 17, 1377), offi
cially ending the Avignon Papacy.
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Avignon Papacy
(Avignonese Captivity, 1309-1378)

Despite this return,

in 1378 the breakdown in relations b
etween the cardinals and Gregory's s
uccessor, Urban VI, gave rise to the
Western Schism.
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Avignon Papacy
(Avignonese Captivity, 1309-1378)

This started a second line of Avignon popes, n
ow regarded as illegitimate. The last Avignon
pope, Benedict XIII, lost most of his support i
n 1398, including that of France; following fiv
e years of siege by the French, he fled (March
11, 1403) to Perpignan.

The schism ended in 1417 at the Council of
Constance after only two popes had reigned
in opposition to the Papacy inMedieval
Rome.
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Avignon Papacy
(Avignonese Captivity, 1309-1378)
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Avignon Papacy
(Avignonese Captivity, 1309-1378)
The Decline Process of Pope’s Power
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Western Schism(1378-1417)
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

The Western Schism or Papal Schism wa
s a split within the Catholic Church from 1378
to 1417.

Two men simultaneously claimed to be the tr
ue pope.

Driven by politics rather than any theological
disagreement, the schism was ended by the
Council of Constance (1414–1418).
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

The simultaneous claims to the papal chair
of two different men hurt the reputation of
the office.

The Western Schism is sometimes called t
he Great Schism, although this term is al
so applied to the East–West Schism of 105
4.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)
Nationalism
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

The Schism in the Western Roman Church re
sulted from the return of the papacy to Rome
under Gregory XI on January 17, 1377, ending
the Avignon Papacy, which had developed a r
eputation of corruption that estranged major
parts of Western Christendom.

This reputation can be attributed to perceptio
ns of predominant French influence and to th
e papal curia's efforts to extend its powers of
patronage and increase its revenues.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

After Pope Gregory XI died (in 1378), the
Romans rioted to ensure the election of a
Roman for pope. In 1378 the cardinals elec
ted a Neapolitan when no viable Roman ca
ndidates presented themselves.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

Pope Urban VI, born Bartolomeo Prignano
, the Archbishop of Bari, was elected. Urba
n had been a respected administrator in th
e papal chancery at Avignon, but as pope h
e proved suspicious, reformist, and prone t
o violent outbursts of temper.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

Many of the cardinals who had elected him
soon regretted their decision: the majority
removed themselves from Rome to Anagni
, where, even though Urban was still reigni
ng, they elected Robert of Geneva as a rival
pope on September 20 of the same year.

Robert took the name Pope Clement VII a
nd reestablished a papal court
in Avignon.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

The second election threw the Church into
turmoil.

There had been antipopes—rival claimants
to the papacy—before, but most of them ha
d been appointed by various rival factions;
in this case, a single group of leaders of the
Church had created both the pope and the
antipope.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

Sustained by such national and factional ri
valries throughout Catholic Christianity, th
e schism continued after the deaths of bot
h initial claimants;

Boniface IX, crowned at Rome in 1389, an
d Benedict XIII, who reigned in Avignon fr
om 1394, maintained their rival courts.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

When Boniface died in 1404, the eight car
dinals of the Roman conclave offered to ref
rain from electing a new pope if Benedict
would resign;

but when his legates refused on his behalf,
the Roman party then proceeded to elect P
ope Innocent VII.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

In the intense partisanship characteristic of the Mi
ddle Ages, the schism engendered a fanatical hatre
d noted by Johan Huizinga:

when the town of Bruges went over to the "obedien
ce" of Avignon, a great number of people left to foll
ow their trade in a city of Urbanist allegiance;
"in 1382, the oriflamme, which might only be unfu
rled in a holy cause, was taken up against the Flem
ings, because they were Urbanists, that is, infidels"
.
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
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Western Schism(1378-1417)
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

Efforts were made to end the Schism throu
gh force or diplomacy.

The French crown even tried to coerce Ben
edict XIII, whom it nominally supported, i
nto resigning.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

None of these remedies worked. The suggesti
on that a church council should resolve the Sc
hism, first made in 1378, was not adopted at f
irst because canon law required that a pope c
all a council.

Eventually theologians like Pierre d'Ailly and
Jean Gerson, as well as canon lawyers like Fr
ancesco Zabarella, adopted arguments that eq
uity permitted the Church to act for its own w
elfare in defiance of the letter Medieval
of the law.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

Eventually the cardinals of both factions se
cured an agreement that Benedict and Pop
e Gregory XII would meet at Savona.

They balked at the last moment, and both
colleges of cardinals abandoned their pope
s.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

A church council was held at Pisa in 1409 und
er the auspices of the cardinals to try solving t
he dispute, but it added to the problem by ele
cting another incumbent, Alexander V.

He reigned briefly from June 26, 1409, to his
death in 1410, when he was succeeded by Joh
n XXIII, who won some but not universal sup
port.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

Finally, a council was convened by Pisan pope Joh
n XXIII in 1414 at Constance to resolve the issue.

This was endorsed by Gregory XII, Innocent VII's
successor in Rome, thus ensuring the legitimacy of
any election.
The council, advised by the theologian Jean Gerso
n, secured the resignations of John XXIII and Gre
gory XII, who resigned in 1415, while excommunic
ating the claimant who refused to step down, Avig
non Pope Benedict XIII.
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
67
Western Schism(1378-1417)

The Council then elected Pope Martin V, essentially en
ding the schism.

Nonetheless, the Kingdom of Aragon did not recognize
Martin V and continued to recognize Benedict XIII.

Archbishops loyal to Benedict XIII subsequently electe
d Antipope Benedict XIV (Bernard Garnier) and three
followers simultaneously elected Antipope Clement VI
II, but the Western Schism was by then practically ove
r. (Clement VIII resigned in 1429 and apparently recog
nized Martin V.)
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

The line of Roman popes is now recognize
d as the legitimate line, but confusion on t
his point continued until the 19th century.

Pope Pius II decreed that no appeal could
be made from pope to council; this left no
way to undo a papal election by anyone bu
t the elected pope.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

No such crisis has arisen since the 15th cen
tury, and so there has been no need to revi
sit this decision.

The alternate papal claimants have becom
e known in history as antipopes.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)

Those of Avignon were dismissed by Rome
early on, but the Pisan popes were include
d in the Annuario Pontificio as popes well
into the 20th century.

Thus the Borgia pope Alexander VI took hi
s regnal name in sequence after the Pisan
Alexander V.
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Western Schism(1378-1417)
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Western Schism(1378-1417)
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Q&A
Other questions will be accepted through YSCEC
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