Fact vs. Fiction
Today, we view heresy as a "difference of opinion." In the Middle Ages, it was viewed as treason and a danger to society, akin to terrorism. If a heretic led souls to eternal hell, that was considered worse than a murderer who only killed the body.
The Inquisition is the first thing thrown at a Catholic in an argument, and most Catholics have never read a page of the actual scholarship on it. Catholic/Christian Pro gives you in-depth Bible studies on judgment, mercy and the wheat and the weeds of Matthew 13, audio devotionals on conscience and repentance, guided prayers, worship playlists and offline access. Buy it once and keep it for life.
Get Pro for $49 $49 one-time. Lifetime access, no subscription. 30-day money-back guarantee.Contrary to the "Black Legend," the Inquisition was actually a step forward in legal justice. It introduced due process, the right to a defense lawyer, and the requirement of evidence. Most secular courts of the time were far more brutal.
The Black Legend came out of sixteenth-century political conflict and it still does that work today, and a Catholic who answers it by denying that torture and executions happened loses the argument and deserves to. Pro gives you in-depth Bible studies on judgment and mercy in Scripture, audio devotionals on conscience and the Church's own repentance, guided prayers, worship playlists and offline access, so you can hold the history honestly.
Get Pro for $49 $49 one-time. Lifetime access, no subscription. 30-day money-back guarantee.The Church itself did not execute anyone. If a person was found guilty of obstinate heresy and refused to repent, they were "relaxed to the secular arm" (the state), which carried out the punishment. While we rightly condemn the use of torture and execution today, we must judge the past by the standards of its time, not ours.
The next time the Inquisition comes up at a family table you will have about two minutes and no time to look anything up. Pro gives you in-depth Bible studies on judgment, mercy and conscience, audio devotionals on the Church's history of repentance and reform, guided prayers, worship playlists and offline access so the material is there without a signal. Mass and confession cost nothing and always will. Pro is study material and audio. Learn this now, not the evening you need it.
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