Christian Living According to Two Medieval Literatures

In both the Song of Roland and the Little Flowers of St. Francis, we find a few thoughts about the typical way of Christian living.  Both agree that the person in charge is God, although, the Little Flowers, also thinks of St. Francis as almost an equal to God, after Francis’ own death.  Therefore, a typical Christian should realize that the Person in charge is God and he or she should live their Christian lives for God and God alone.

Wyclif and the Great Western Schism

John Wyclif was a Christian, but he had a few different beliefs from that of the Christian belief system.  He believed that high priests and popes no longer or did not ever need to be in existence.  The Great Western Schism helped John Wyclif in his teachings and beliefs against popes, as the Western Schism was started by two popes, Pope Clement VII and Urban VI.

How Do We Gain Eternal Life?

How do we gain/have eternal life?  Simple, we can find this out reading our Bibles.  However, let’s say that we live in the 1300s and Bible haven’t been published yet.  So, where do we go to find out how we can gain/get eternal life?  Let’s look in a book, called Little Flowers.

Martyrs and Hell

Polycarp, Perpetua, Felicity, and Augustus were all martyrs, people who were persecuted or killed for keeping their faith and trust in their beliefs and choosing not to believe in the persecutors’ beliefs.  Polycarp and the rest were all killed because they were Christians and they stood firmly on the ground for their beliefs, not accepting the killers’ religion.  However, the martyrs used doctrines of Hell to try to convert the killers.

The Church and the Gregorian Reform

In the tenth- and eleventh- centuries, the Church become under what is known as Lay Control.  Lay Control is when authority takes control over some business, agency, etc.  In this case, the local lords controlled the Church.  This led the Church to become a part in the feudal system.  Then all of this signals Pope Leo IX to take a stand and do something.  Later in the eleventh-century, we then see St. Gregory VII, whom the Gregorian Reform was named after, in a fight with the emperor of Germany, Henry IV.  And finally, Christendom and its meaning.