Understanding the Inquisition Gilbert Lawrence: My main qualm against those 'scholars and authors' in the 21st century is at least make the intellectual effort to categorize the cause and effect of the actions of the 16-17 century. This is instead of using the catch-all phrase of "inquisition and heresy and blasphemy" for the 'all and sundry' as was done in centuries gone, where the vocabulary and the concepts were limited. In the case of the French physician was it the usual / sodanchem inquisition, Heresy ani Blasphemy or was it justice for professional misconduct? Some may say 'big difference', while others may say 'same difference'.
Tariq: Your qualm is possibly justified, but your leave me in a quandary when you do not offer to us, what you think was the Inquisition. Scholars and historians today, have used the label "Inquisition" to cover the varied atrocities in Goa. If you think they are wrong, please tell me why and which atrocities should be covered under the label "Inquisition". Gilbert responds: Thanks for your concurrence of my qualm. Inquisition is the term universally used to describe a period in Church history and reflect the events in Europe in the dark ages. Again as you and many rightly suggest, inquisition is a 'black spot on the Catholic Church'. I am not here to defend those events in Europe, mainly because I have not studied the events in Europe. As you, like others have referred, the European and the Goan inquisition continues to be mainly linked with the Catholic Church in Goa. Very likely you and most Goans do not know the king of Portugal and the Portuguese leaders (the various Governors) under whose reign the inquisition was introduced in Portugal or in Goa. But you and others know and often mention that the leaders of the Catholic Church were major players. And of course if you don't know, jusht connect the inquisition to SFX. =:) The same linkage of the Church is seen in the many web pages on the "Inquisition in Goa", with barely a mention of the colonial Portuguese and their governors. So personally I would like to see the TRUE "Heresy and Blasphemy" issues linked to the inquisition and all the other atrocities of the Portuguese Government be called something else or at least 'COLONIAL ATROCITIES'. Thus native Goans of today will not be the inheritors of the events of the 16th and 17th century as is often portrayed in the Western, some Goan and in the BJP and RSS websites or writings. In fact most native Goan Catholics (except for the landed gentry) were as much a victims of colonial atrocities as the Hindus and other groups. Native Goan Catholics were also the victims of the "true Inquisition" if I can lay my hands on such a case. I hope at least Goan historians will make the effort to draw the IMPORTANT DISTINCTION instead of just parroting what we read in the western writings. If Goans work together, we can achieve in making that distinction, just as we recently succeeded in ending the tradition of describing Goans with the term Luso-Indians. Gilbert. ########################################################################## # Send submissions for Goanet to [EMAIL PROTECTED] # # PLEASE remember to stay on-topic (related to Goa), and avoid top-posts # # More details on Goanet at http://joingoanet.shorturl.com/ # # Please keep your discussion/tone polite, to reflect respect to others # ##########################################################################
