From the seventh to fourteenth century, during the middle ages, a western Christian community of nations developed in Europe. The knowledge that the monasteries had kept alive now helped feed great intellectual advances. New schools and universities came into existence, fostering rich developments in philosophy and theology.
On a less happy note, during the middle ages there was a growing division between the Western Church (now the Catholic Church based in Rome), and the Church in the east (often called the Orthodox Church).
By 1054, this had developed into a 'schism' (or breaking point) that to this day has not been completely healed.
The Church's tremendous religious energy was also misdirected into some horrific displays of intolerance. The Crusades against Islam, the use of the Inquisition to combat heresies and the insane hunt for witches are all part of a grievous chapter in Church history.
Fortunately, at a time when the church needed to hear a corrective voice, God raised up people like St Francis of Assisi and St Dominic who founded religious communities that showed that the witness of one's life has more far-reaching influence than violence and force. For the Franciscans that meant a lifestyle of poverty - for the Dominicans, the power of teaching God's Word.
Catholics Though the Ages
