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Did you even bother to read the article? I thought not. The printing press was not invented until the 1450s and the Inquisition in Spain was all about Judaephobia, not suppression of heretical tracts.
Jack Chick must be what....450 years old?
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As a member of the Wicca religion, I often hear about the Inquisition and it's torture of Witches. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
This was not an issue about Witches, but a political effort to insure that the Catholic Church remained in control of the people.
Yes, as you just stated, prior to the invention of the printing press, many people started questioning what was being taught by the "official" Catholic Church. As a result of these questions, the Inquisition was created.
Once the printing press was invented, it became a crisis for the Catholic Church.
No longer were they the only people with the books and knowledge about God and Jesus. To their horror, anyone was able to read the actual words, if they had the education to read Latin.
Spain was at the focus of this religious battle. Not only would the ability to read the actual words of the Bible create problems, but it would place the authority of the King in question.
Remember, at that time, all Kings were authorized by God to rule their countries.
To question the what God had told the people, by reading the actual words in the Bible, was a very real danger to their authority to rule. This would be treason.
Like you, I did find this article most interesting and will consider it as valid data.
Right, and a scholar and lawyer I know, who is Jewish, but studied in Catholic Universities, credits the Spanish Inquisition, and not Old Testament Law with the lack of modern Jewish evangelism. Second, the Church of Rome has, historically, discouraged Catholics from owning Bibles and printed or wrote those Bibles in a language the populace (those who could read in their own language) couldn't understand. This effectively made church officials the exclusive source of religious information. Can't we say that the Roman Catholic Church has come along way, and stop saying the the Church is wholly immutable?
Actually, the Spanish Inquistion was originally focused on Muslims and nominally converted Muslims. Not surprising considering the Muslim invaders had coverted a fair percetnage of the population.