Henry the Monk and Heresy

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer first notes that when examining the reasons why Henry was accused of heresy, looking at how one defines a heretic is absolutely crucial, because to establish why Henry was accused of being a heretic and if in fact Henry was a heretic are intertwined. The writer looks at different definitions of a heretic and chooses to define a heretic, as a challenger to orthodoxy, or a publicly shared belief system. The writer believes that Henry was accused of heresy not only for his religious beliefs, but more importantly because of the implications they had on the established social order of the time. The writer concludes that heretics were redefined as enemies of society and consequently repressed, as Henry was.

From the Paper:

"This was due to the fact that the Bishop was absent in Rome for a time and upon his return saw that Henry had thrown the clergy out of the city, which was indeed a heretical action.
Henry's heresy was that of an evangelical nature, being based on the Bible, particularly the Gospels and the Book of Acts in the New Testament. Henry, like many others wanted to imitate the early church and establish the Apostolic ideal.
"Consequently, Henry fell foul of the established church for criticising the clergy and for insisting on the right of the lay people to preach and to read the Bible. Coupled with this were his notions that it was not a prescription of the gospel to go to a priest for penance, instead emphasising the individuals responsibility to the beliefs attributed to him, the rejection of prayers for the dead and the affirmation of salvation for infants who died unbaptised, thus dispelling the fundamental Catholic viewpoint surrounding the notion of 'original sin'."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Malcolm Lambert, 'Medieval Heresy, Popular Movements from the Gregorian Reform to the Reformation', (3rd ed.), (Blackwell Publishers Ltd, 2002)
• Wakefield and Evans, 'Heresies of the High Middle Ages', (New York, 1991)
• E. Peters, 'Heresy and Authority in Medieval Europe', (Philadelphia, 1980)
• Peter Biller and Anne Hudson, 'Heresy and Literacy, 1000-1530', (Cambridge University Press, 1994).

More papers on Henry the Monk and Heresy:

• Analytical Essay # 57596 : "The Monk and The Friar"
• Analytical Essay # 113946 : "Asser the Monk and the Life of King Alfred"
• Book Review # 94959 : "'The Monk'"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: