Here's the Wikipedia article about the Cathars: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathars http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathars
---In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, <jr_esq@...> wrote: Barry, According to Wikipedia, the Cathars were practicing a religion that was not part of the Roman Catholic doctrine. In those days, religious differences were settled by war. I'm curious to know if there are still secret sects who practice Catharism in southern France or elsewhere in Europe today. Writers, like Dan Brown, could probably sell many books about this subject. ---In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, <turquoiseb@...> wrote: --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com mailto:FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, wrote: > > Share, > > I believe it would take another Vatican Council to consider the question of priesthood for women. This council will only happen if the entire church leadership perceives that women can fill the priestly duties that are needed in the parishes. If the supply of quality men who want to be priests dwindles, the church leaders will have to consider accepting women as priests. I will merely interject an interesting (at least to me) point of history. The Albigensian Crusade, more aptly named The Systematic Extermination Of A Competing Christian Sect We're Going To Call 'Heretics' Because It Sounds Better Than 'We're Afraid Of Them', is blamed by the majority of historians on the Cathars' rejection of certain fundamental ideas of Roman dogma. They believed -- and practiced -- 'heresy'. A more real reason is that the Cathar religion was growing by leaps and bounds in the areas of Europe in which it had arisen, at a time when many people were leaving the Roman Church and its coffers were dwindling. Can't have that. So they called the Cathars 'heretics' and eliminated the competition. But one of the minor points of dogma that probably frightened the Roman Church the most was that the Cathars exemplified almost total parity between men and women. Women were allowed to hold property in their own names, in the 1200s, in what is now the south of France. That didn't happen officially in what is now France until De Gaulle. Worse, the Cathar priesthood was open equally to men and women. There were equal numbers of men and women priests. Really, really, really can't have that. Just sayin'... > ---In fairfieldlife@yahoogroups.com mailto:fairfieldlife@yahoogroups.com, > sharelong60@ wrote: > > John, it's about time! As for the Catholic Church, I wonder who would protest more, the clergy in power or the conservative laity, including nuns. > > ---In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com mailto:FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, > jr_esq@ wrote: > > This appears to be the trend among Protestant Christian churches. But one wonders if the Catholic Church would ever accept women as priests. > > http://news.yahoo.com/church-england-paves-way-women-bishops-2014-142619\ http://news.yahoo.com/church-england-paves-way-women-bishops-2014-142619\ 228.html >
