Let's make it clear that there is a very sharp distinction in the minds of Italians between RELIGION and FAITH on one side, and the institution that administers and controls access to heaven (where every believer wants eventually to end up) on the other.
The INSTITUTION is the CHURCH. It has been intertwined with the CIVIL authority since emperor Constantine in the IV century included it in the power structure (still disputed by historians is whether he named it official state religion.)
My emphasis on the presence of Christianity in the history of Italians derives from the fact that the CHURCH is the only permanent institution, still in existence. Empires, states, city-states, popes, kings, emperors etc. were ephemeral and transient. Not the church. And it exercised profound influence on every aspect of life. As such, the "Church" is often feared and mistrusted as are the men who run it. This is attributed to the failings of human nature, however: the message is divine, the principles are sublime, but the men and their methods are repulsive.
This is exactly how Luther's reformation movement started. He rejected the kind of practice that had developed and the men who invented it, not the fundamental idea of redemption and salvation.
Play this YOUTUBE about the role of the church in the culture of Italians.
COMMENT: find a fact or hint that piqued your interest and that you would like to explore/research more in depth. Choose something original and truly meaningful to you. And if you don't find anything worthwhile, tell us why.
REPLY to a comment (written after yours) that really captured your interest.
Something that interests me is that I do not know of any others who have rebelled against their religion to such an extent, like Martin Luther did. I am sure that there have been those who have gone against the heads of different religions in the past but none come to mind that have made such an impact on history like Martin Luther.
ReplyDeleteWhat I find most interesting is what the church is really all about; power and money. I also find it interesting that a church, a place that is supposed to be welcoming, put walls around themselves, only allowing in "the best." This all sounds like crap to me and I don't trust it. Nonetheless, it is interesting to read about; especially reading about individuals who rebelled against the church.
ReplyDeleteI found this be interesting as well! One would think that the church would be more inclusive and welcoming especially if the same beliefs were being shared.
DeleteA concept I find interesting is the influence the Church organization has over the Italian people in modern day, despite all of the immoral and cruel actions it has done in the past. The Church, to this day, still holds a strong political and economical stance in Italian culture, which really surprised me.
ReplyDeleteI'm interested in how corrupt the men of the church were/are. I think that would be fun to examine and explore.
ReplyDeleteI'm interested in the concept of church affiliation giving special treatment to individuals when it comes to applying to certain state positions/bank jobs. Furthermore, I am quite surprised that nepotism doesn't play a part in the church - I was under the impression that imbedded in Italian Culture is the pivotal role of family. As such, I would have expected favors through connections and "Pisans" to play a part.
ReplyDeleteI was most moved by the point in the lecture where we learn that a town priest would be regarded as the ultimate authority for a job reference. This is an important demonstration of the influence of the Church in social and political Italian life.
DeleteI was also surprised that nepotism did not play a big role in the church as well. For some reason I believed that family would have a role. Of course not father and son, but Uncle passing down power to the nephew. I possibly thought the because of movies or shows I have seen. For example Nero was the nephew of a former King of the Roman Empire. While this is a different era, I thought this idea would be passed down.
DeleteAs someone who attended Catholic school for a majority of my life, I have always been interested in the power (and corruption) of the Catholic church even though I am not religious either. It is both fascinating and scary how much power the church has in Italian culture and how permanent it is and has been throughout history. Upon watching your video lecture, I learned that around 30/40 years ago, in small towns of Italy, employers for well-paying jobs such as working in a bank used to call the local priest for a character reference and would hire the applicant if the priest approved. I never knew this before. Something I never understood about the Roman Catholic Church and that I want to research further is how priests and nuns cannot marry or have children; this is meaningful to me because growing up in a Catholic school, this was never explained to me and I have always thought it to be a cruel restriction.
ReplyDeleteSomething that I was surprised by was the influence the church has over obtaining a job. It seems a bit outdated for a system like that to work. I understand that it may not have worked always, but I could never imagine that within my own life.I think after learning about the corruption that takes place within the church and how it leads to corruption within the civil government, made me realize that there is an unending cycle of corruption. Even with all the change that has taken place within the church (and even the civil state) there is always a form of corruption. I was also intrigued by the fact that the Vatican is its own state. I did not know that even people outside of the city of Rome, who are catholic, are considered citizens of the Vatican. It made me think that the Vatican state is a parallel to the Roman Empire.
ReplyDeleteThe church's power to dictate whether someone gets a job or not was surprising to me as well. It reminded me of present day South Korea as it is mandatory to attach a photo of oneself to their resume when applying for a job, and I was surprised to learn this. In present-day America, these practices are generally looked down upon as it’s illegal to ask for a photo in connection with a job application, as it could disclose race, ethnicity, etc. and act as an unlawful screening mechanism. I think it's safe to say that approval from the church for job acceptance seems like an unlawful screening mechanism as well, at least in present-day times
DeleteSomething I am interested in is the parallels in corruption between the church and the government. We often seperate the two (church vs. state) but they are still in the same category of a governing force with corruption.
ReplyDeleteYou have brought something to my attention that I have never considered. I would definitely be interested in examining the similarities and differences between the corruption of the church and the government. In the age we live in, there is a lot to discuss between the two.
DeleteI was interested to see how many people were actually against many actions of the church but still followed the rules of the church and lifestyle associated with being religious. Martin Luther was one of the few who spoke up about his view of the Church, and the fact that he was able to turn people away from the church, shows that people were subconsciously against some ideas associated with the Church.
ReplyDeleteI agree. This is how I felt upon watching The Name of the Rose. People were surely afraid to object to the church even though they weren't completely accepting of their actions.
DeleteWhat I found quite interesting was how the church is held so high that it has an impact on whether or not an individual can be hired at an institution such as a bank. I was completely unaware of this. I found it pretty shocking that the church and the priests' impression of someone can determine the fate of a person's professional life. I think this alone would be really interesting to delve deeper into.
ReplyDeleteThat's true too! It's crazy how the Church is such a big portion of society, economics and politics. They are able to control one's life and are able to control the way society functions.
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ReplyDeleteI thought it was interesting to contrast varying attitudes of the church as portrayed in The Name of the Rose and The Agony and the Ecstasy. The church can be so powerful as to not want one to laugh because one day they may laugh at the gospel. This seems so far-fetched to me because controlling ones actions (such as preventing their laughter) will not change the way they view the gospel. In my eyes, such restrictions would make Christians resent the church's teachings and powers more than respect it.
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