Clergy. “Those who pray”
The most honorable place in the medieval society of Europe was occupied by the clergy. It was formed in the early Middle Ages, when Europe became Christian. The main duty of the clergy was to perform worship and church ordinances.
The clergy were not homogeneous. It was divided into categories – spiritual dignities, from the highest to the lowest. There was also a division of the clergy into “white” and “black.” Monks were forbidden from the very beginning to marry, the Latin “white” clergy this prohibition spread in the 11th century.
Priests and monks became representatives of various social groups, from younger sons of feudal lords to peasant children.
Dedicated to the priests bishop, who took care that the initiate had a “title” – a guaranteed profit. “The title” was given to the priest by a local feudal lord, therefore, by the eleventh century. the clergy greatly depended on the secular nobility.
Priests lived “in peace”, that is, among laymen, and monks – most often in monasteries. It was believed that the monks perform a greater spiritual feat and that their prayers reach God better. To become a monk, it was first necessary to pass the test by physical work and obedience. The novices could still return to secular life, but after the consecration they were forever in spiritual order.
The founders of the monasteries were mainly kings and secular grandees. They gave the monasteries land, but for this they appropriated the right to appoint elders over monks – abbots, who were considered their servants. The monks used the panic fear of laymen before the inevitable punishment after death and persuaded them to sacrifice their property to the monasteries “to save the soul.” Therefore, monasteries in medieval Europe owned a lot of land and peasants.
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