1

December 10-21, 2012

A.P. World History: Document Based Question Essay
Corruption of the Christian Church during the Middle Ages

I. DIRECTIONS: The following question is based on the Documents provided and the
historical background. Certain documents have been edited for the development of
the activity.
II. QUESTION:
To what extent and in what ways have the religious authorities of the Christian
Church abused their power in a corrupt way from 600-1700
CE
?

III. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND:
The Christian Church, as the institution that promotes the word of God, has proven
itself to be corrupt and unfair over certain periods of history. Members of the
institution have satisfied their ambition in controlling majority of the aspects of the
peoples life by getting rich through the sale of indulgences, selecting their political
figures in different states, etcThe darkest period of the Church occurred through the
200 years between the reign of Pope Nicolas I (858-867) and the reign of Pope
Gregory VI (1045-1046). Bribery, bloodshed, corruption, and immorality were the
main characteristics that distinguished this dark period (Walker, 2008). It is worthy to
mention that as Christianity spread throughout Europe, the Churchs importance
increased as well since it was the institution that promoted the religion; hence the
authority of the clergy was too vast in almost all the aspects a society.


IV. DOCUMENTS
Document 1
Source: Gregory VII, Second Banning and Dethronement of Henry IV, March 7, 1080.
St. Peter, chief of the apostles, and thou St. Paul, teacher of the nations, deign, I beg, to incline your ears to me and
mercifully to hear me. Do ye who are the disciples and lovers of truth aid me to tell the truth to ye without any of the
falsehood which we together detest: to the end that my brothers may better acquiesce with me and may know and
learn that, after God and his mother the evervirgin Mary, it is in ye I trust when I resist the wicked and unholy but
lend aid to your faithful followers. For ye know that I did not willingly take holy orders. And unwillingly I went with
my master Gregory beyond the mountains; but more unwillingly I returned with my master pope Leo to your
especial church, in which I served ye as always. Then, greatly against my will, with much grieving and groaning
and wailing I was placed upon your throne, although thoroughly unworthy. I say these things thus because I did not
choose ye but ye chose me and did place upon me the very heavy burden of your church. And because ye did order
me to go up into a high mountain and call out and proclaim to the people of God their crimes and to the sons of the
earth their sins, the members of the devil have commenced to rise up against me and have presumed, even unto
blood, to lay their hands upon me. For the kings of the earth stood by, and the secular and ecclesiastical princes;
the men of the palace, also, and the common herd came together against the Lord and against ye His anointed,
saying: "Let us break their chains and cast off their yoke from us." And they have in many ways attempted to rise up
against me in order to utterly confound me with death or with exile.

Document 2
Source: Martin Luther, 95 Theses, October 31, 1517.
2


19. Nor does it seem proved that souls in purgatory, at least not all of them, are certain and assured of their own
salvation, even if we ourselves may be entirely certain of it.
20. Therefore the pope, when he uses the words "plenary remission of all penalties," does not actually mean "all
penalties," but only those imposed by himself.
21. Thus those indulgence preachers are in error who say that a man is absolved from every penalty and saved by
papal indulgences.
34. For the graces of indulgences are concerned only with the penalties of sacramental satisfaction established by
man.
35. They who teach that contrition is not necessary on the part of those who intend to buy souls out of purgatory or
to buy confessional privileges preach unchristian doctrines.
37. Any true Christian, whether living or dead, participates in all the blessings of Christ and the church; and this is
granted him by God, eve without indulgence letters.
84. Again, "What is this new piety of God and the pope that for a consideration of money they permit a man who is
impious and their enemy to buy out of purgatory the pious soul of a friend of God and do not rather, because of the
need of that pious and beloved soul, free it for pure love's sake?"
86. Again, "Why does not the pope, whose wealth is today greater than the wealth of the richest Crassus, build this
one basilica of St. Peter with his own money rather than with the money of poor believers?"
89. "Since the pope seeks the salvation of souls rather than money by his indulgences, why does he suspend the
indulgences and pardons previously granted when they have equal efficacy?"

Document 3
Source: Giovanni Battista Falda, The Pleasure Garden and Pavilion of Pope Pius IV at the Vatican Palace,
published c.1665-69.






Document 4
Source: Matthew, The Bible: New Testament, c. 1
st
Century C.E.

Matthew 10: 8
8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy,[a] drive out demons. Freely you have received;
freely give.
3


Document 5
Source: Herman, Paul, and Johan Limbourg, TrsRiches Heures du Duc de Berry (The Very Rich Hours of the Duke
of Berry), c. 1412-1416.


Document 6
Source: Francesco Petrarca (humanist scholar and poet), Letter Criticizing the Avignon Papacy, c. 1340-1353.

...Now I am living in France, in the Babylon of the West. The sun in its travels sees nothing more hideous than this
place on the shores of the wild Rhone, which suggests the hellish streams of Cocytus and Acheron. Here reign the
successors of the poor fishermen of Galilee; they have strangely forgotten their origin. I am astounded, as I recall
their predecessors, to see these men loaded with gold and clad in purple, boasting of the spoils of princes and
nations; to see luxurious palaces and heights crowned with fortifications, instead of a boat turned downward for
shelter.
We no longer find the simple nets which were once used to gain a frugal sustenance from the lake of Galilee, and
with which, having labored all night an caught nothing, they took, at daybreak, a multitude of fishes, in the name of
Jesus. One is stupefied nowadays to hear the lying tongues, and to see worthless parchments turned by a leaden seal
into nets which are used, in Christ's name, but by the arts of Belial, to catch hordes of unwary Christians. These
fish, too, are dressed and laid on the burning coals of anxiety before they fill the insatiable maw of their captors.

Instead of holy solitude we find a criminal host and crowds of the most infamous satellites; instead of soberness,
licentious banquets; instead of pious pilgrimages, preternatural and foul sloth; instead of the bare feet of the
apostles, the snowy coursers of brigands fly past us, the horses decked in gold and fed on gold, soon to be shod with
gold, if the Lord does not check this slavish luxury. In short, we seem to be among the kings of the Persians or
Parthians, before whom we must fall down and worship, and who cannot be approached except presents be offered.
O ye unkempt and emaciated old men, is it for this you labored? Is it for this that you have sown the field of the Lord
and watered it with your holy blood? But let us leave the subject.

I have been so depressed and overcome that the heaviness of my soul has passed into bodily affliction, so that I am
really ill and can only give voice to sighs and groans.





Document 7
Source: Frederick, Letter of Frederick to the kings of Christendom, 1246
The ancients called happy those who learned caution from the danger of others...as wax receives its impression
from a seal, so the character of human life is shaped by example. ...those who are considered clerics, grown fat on
the alms of princes, now oppress princes' sons.... What is implied by our maltreatment is made plain by the
4

presumption of Pope Innocent IV for, having summoned a council--he has declared to pronounce a sentence of
deposition against us who were neither summoned nor proved guilty of any deceit or wickedness, which sentence he
could not enact without grievious prejudice to all kings. You and all kings of particular regions have everything to
fear from the effrontery of such a prince of priests when he sets out to depose us who have been divinely honored by
the imperial diadem and solemly elected by the princes with the approval of the whole church at a time when faith
and religion were flourishing....



V. DBQ ESSAY

Throughout certain periods of historymostly from the 600s until the 1700s, the
Christian Church has been a corrupt institution that promoted injustices, violence, immorality,
and abuses among others; disregarding the codes set by God through his messiah and son Jesus
Christ or through the Bible. Members of the Church have selfishly benefitted economically,
socially and politically by abusing their power, instead of working as the servants of God and
promoting his values. This dark period has diminished the institutions prestige and value by
leaving a permanent stain of corruption in the Churchs history.
Centuries after the creation of the Church as an institution, religious authorities pertaining
to it realized the vast amount of power they had and the advantages they could take from that
condition. Ambition for economic wealth was one of the most important motives that made the
clergy accept corruption as a method of obtaining their objective. As shown in Document 2,
Martin Luthers 95 Theses, he, the leader of the Protestant Reformation criticizes the papacy
because the popes promoted the sale of indulgences as a method of redemption of sins and
salvation. The popes realized that by giving a false method of salvation to the Christians, they
would immediately accept and purchase the sale of indulgences since the religion promotes its
followers to act according to the values set by God in order to reach salvation, and humans
commit sins so they have the need to purify themselves. Adherents of Christianity believed that
the purchase of an indulgence was a way of assuring their redemption and having a ticket
5

directly to heaven after death. They believed such a lie since the highest human authority on
Earth, the popewhich is supposed to communicate the values of Godstated that paying to the
clergy was a method of salvation, so the people thought that if the communicator of God said
such thing was because God told him to say that, hence they must act according to what God
promotes. In the same way, the pope took advantage of his power and enriched the clergy
through the sales of indulgences by giving false and corrupt solutions to salvation. The authors
point of view in the document is revealing, questioning, and convincing since through his
evidence he wants to prove and question the corruption of the Church due to the sale of
indulgences. Also in Bruno of Segnis Pamphlet on Simoniacs, the author mentions how corrupt
the Church was during Leos papacy and how clergy members only took into account money
when they approved who entered the institution. Secular people bought their titles in the Church
to the religious authorities (simony), and were accepted disregarding their commitment to
Christianity. Besides of being a clear source reflecting corruption, the pamphlet shows the
negative effect of the simoniacs in the Church since admitting ordinary peopleonly because of
their moneyto preach the word of God diminishes the institutions value and plausibility.
Segnis perspective is extensive and informative; he narrates about the effects simoniacs had on
the Church and how corrupt it was. Contradicting the papacy, Document 4, The Bible, stated
through the disciple Matthew the words of Jesus when he was giving a speech to his disciples
saying that freely theyve received the teachings and freely they should give to the followers.
However, the Church authorities did exactly the opposite to what the holy book of Christianity
says: they received power from the institution and instead of serving God by teaching his values
and purging the sinners soul of the adherents through non-lucrative actions, they charged
followers with documents that falsely ensured their redemption. In the passage, Matthews tone
is straightforward and teaching since he is directly writing the words of the religions messiah
during his teachings in Earth without adding his own opinion of the subject.
6

Similarly in Document 6, Letter Criticizing the Avignon Papacy, Petrarch criticizes the
popes in France due to the vastness of their luxuries and immoralities committed. Corruption
from the Churchs members is proven again since they turned their territories into luxurious
castles and had a really comfortable life style (contradicting again to Christianitys principles
since in the Philippians writings (2: 3-11) of the Bible it is said that Jesus was a form of God and
turned himself into a servant to show humbleness). However, the Church was so ambitious from
its power that it disregarded the ethics of the religion. Besides, Petrarchs document mentions
that the clergy used Jesus name as an explanation for their actions and richness (sin according to
the Bible), clearly reflecting how they only cared in benefiting and satisfying their ambitious
needs and how they took advantage of the power the name of the messiah had in order to
influence and convince the people of their actions. The authors point of view in this document is
surprised majorly since he is astonished and depressed to see the abuses performed by what was
supposed to be an honest and fair institution. Document 3, the illustration of Pope Pius IVs
palace, gives more evidence of corruption of the Church. Through the drawing the viewer
perceives the vastness of his building besides of seeing the amount of servants and luxuries he
had, contradicting again to the message of God of humility. Battista Falda, the author, shows a
perspective of greatness since through his illustration he wants to emphasize the power and
richness of the Pope. Connecting all the above documents, economic corruption was the main
aspect the Church reflected since the clergy disregarded the ideologies of God and acted
according to their own benefit due to the enormity of their power.
On the other hand, the Church also abused in political affairs to benefit themselves from
their selected and approved rulers. As the population from different countries started to convert
to Christianity, the Churchs supremacy increased as well since it was and is the institution in
charge of promoting the word of God. This gave even more power to the clergy since their
prestige and authority was noticeable among the kings and rest of the people. As stated in
Document 7, Letter of Frederick to the kings of Christendom, the author informs to the other
7

rulers from the area that they should be careful of the Pope since he accused and sentenced
Frederick and his officials of crimes they didnt commit. This reflects the amount of power and
influence that the papacyin this case Pope Innocent IV had since if he didnt approve or
favored a certain ruler he would do anything, even appeal to corruption, to dethrone his enemy
and to crown his favored. The authors point of view is concise since through his short letter he
wants to warn the other kings of the popes influence on court. Similarly, in Document 1,
Gregory VIIs Second Banning and Dethronement of Henry IV, the author clearly gives evidence
through his narration of the influence of the Church by selecting him as a member with
complicated and even threatening tasks against his own will, demonstrating the authority of the
institution in political affairs. The Church chose him to accompany his master, promote
Christianity, and to be placed in the throne of the institutioneverything against his will since
they had the control to select someone who they like and give a task to him (their supremacy was
enormous in societies since Christianity continued spreading). The tone of the author was
concerning due to the fear of getting killed by the devil worshipers; but also supplicating the
mercy of the Church since such a strong body of power could easily protect him.
Besides of controlling and abusing economic and political aspects, the Church also had a
strong influence on the social ones: either from having its member in the high-class of a society
or controlling the novels and teachings given to the people. As shown in the pictorial Document
3, Pope Pius IVs castle, the viewer is able to identify dozens of serfs and workers that served the
highest religious authority. This reflects the difference of social status between a religious
member and a peasant, since all those workerswho didnt receive a salary, or if they did, it was
minimumhad to give the pope majority of it due to taxes, ending with almost nothing for them
and maintaining in the lowest socio-economic class. As mentioned previously in the economy
abuse paragraph, Battista Faldas point of view is really clear, reflecting the magnitude of the
richness and extravagance Pope Pius IV enjoyed off. Similarly, in Document 5, the illustration of
the Limbourg brothers indicates the elite social position the clergy had, since as shown, they
8

were enjoying a luxurious and expensive event in tribute to the Duke of Berry, which occupied a
superior level of the social pyramid due to his noble title. Only high-class individuals could
afford to get pleasure from high-class social events. The authors point of view in the image is
direct and detailed since through little details they show the richness of the elite social class,
which is the original purpose of the illustration. On the other hand, the Church also got involved
in educational aspects. The Council of Trent: Rules on Prohibited Books, is a document that also
shows the influence the Church had even intervene in literature to prohibit books they disliked.
The papacy prohibited books from authors such as Luther or Calvin, books that contained
obscene content, books of magic, etc Condemning all these books proves the supremacy of the
Church by having the ability to control which books were given to the people. This also violates
the freedom of expression from the authors who wrote non-approved books, reflecting the
power and influence in social aspects of a society. The Councils point of view is detailed and
long, since through those characteristics the reader is able to understand the dozens of types of
books the Church condemned.
Finally, through all the evidence shown, it can be concluded that the Church abused its
power in a corrupt, ambitious, and too controlling way. They took advantage from the lack of
literacy of the population as well as to the fear and respect to God of believers. Through these
methods, they were able to elevate their richness, hence their social status, and control political
and social aspects of a society. Even though the Pope John Paul II apologized publically in the
year 2000 for the corrupt and violent actions of the Church such as for the Crusades or the
Inquisition, the horrors committed by the sacred institution would never be forgotten, leaving a
dark stain in the Churchs history.



9



BIBLIOGRAPHY (APA Format)
Document 1:
-Halsall, P. (1996). Gregory VII: Second Banning and Dethronement of Henry IV (March 7,
1080). Retrieved December 17, 2012, from http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/g7-ban2.asp.
-Document 7:
Halsall, P. (1998). Frederick II (r. 1215-1250): Dispute with the Church, 1245-1246. Retrieved
December 18, 2012, from http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/1245FrederickII.asp.
-Document 6:
Halsall, P. (1998). Petrarch: Letter Criticizing the Avignon Papacy. Retrieved December 17,
2012 from http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/14Cpetrarch-pope.asp.
-Halsall, P. (1999). Bruno of Segni: A Pamphlet on Simoniacs, late 11th Century. Retrieved
December 16, 2012 from http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/11brunosegni-simony.asp.
-Halsall, P. (1999). Council of Trent: Rules on Prohibited Books. Retrieved December 17, 2012
from http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/trent-booksrules.asp.
-Document 4:
Holy Bible, New International Version. (2011). Matthew 10:8. Retrieved December 13, 2012,
from http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+10%3A8&version=NIV.
-Document 3:
Look and Learn. (2012). The Pleasure Garden and Pavilion of Pope Pius IV at the Vatican
Palace. Retrieved December 11, 2012, from http://www.lookandlearn.com/history-
images/XB172931/The-pleasure-garden-and-Pavilion-of-Pope-Pius-IV-at-the-Vatican-
Palace?img=0&search=Palace+of+Vatican.
-Document 2:
Van Cleef, B. (1992). 95 Theses Martin Luther nailed on the church door at Wittenburg.
Retrieved December 12, 2012, from http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/luther95.txt.
-Walker, M. (2008). Corruption of the Church in the Middle Ages. Retrieved December 10, 2012
from http://ezinearticles.com/?Corruption-of-the-Church-in-the-Middle-Ages&id=969734.
-Document 5:
Wikipedia. (2012). Trs Riches Heures du Duc de Berry. Retrieved December 12, 2012, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tr%C3%A8s_Riches_Heures_du_Duc_de_Berry.