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History of the Cathars
History of the Cathars | Sean Martin
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Catharism was the most successful heresy of the Middle Ages. Flourishing principally in the Languedoc and Italy, the Cathars taught that the world is evil and must be transcended through a simple life of prayer, work, fasting and non-violence. They believed themselves to be the heirs of the true heritage of Christianity going back to apostolic times, and completely rejected the Catholic Church and all its trappings, regarding it as the Church of Satan; Cathar services and ceremonies, by contrast, were held in fields, barns and in people's homes. Finding support from the nobility in the fractious political situation in southern France, the Cathars also found widespread popularity among peasants and artisans. And again unlike the Church, the Cathars respected women, and women played a major role in the movement. Alarmed at the success of Catharism, the Church founded the Inquisition and launched the Albigensian Crusade to exterminate the heresy. While previous Crusades had been directed against Muslims in the Middle East, the Albigensian Crusade was the first Crusade to be directed against fellow Christians, and was also the first European genocide. With the fall of the Cathar fortress of Montsegur in 1244, Catharism was largely obliterated, although the faith survived into the early 14th century. Today, the mystique surrounding the Cathars is as strong as ever, and Sean Martin recounts their story and the myths associated with them in this lively and gripping book.
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catiewithac
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There aren‘t many histories of the Cathar heresy, but this is a good place to start. It‘s a more than adequate exploration of the Albigensian Crusade and early inquisitions sponsored by the papacy.

Bklover I hadn‘t heard of this but it sounds fascinating! 2y
catiewithac @Bklover The Albigensian Crusade was against people in southern France in the 13th century. The Catholic Church has NEVER apologized for this genocide. 2y
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catiewithac
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I didn‘t need to start reading another book…but I couldn‘t resist! Why do paperbacks printed in the UK smell so much better than US ones?!? #smellingbooks