CONSIDER THE HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE OF RELIGION 3 Abuses (corruption) in the Catholic Church


The wealth and power of the Church led to many abuses. The main abuses in the Church were:


(i) Nepotism: Many relations of nobles, cardinals and bishops were appointed to church offices or positions. This was called nepotism.


(ii) Simony: This was the buying and selling of church positions. Pope Alexander VI bought his election as pope by providing more church positions for the cardinals who elected him.


(iii)Pluralism: Some cardinals and bishops had more than one diocese (the area under the control of a bishop). This was called pluralism. Each extra diocese provided more income or money for them.


(iv) Absenteeism: Cardinals and bishops who had more than one diocese could only live in one of them, so they were absent from the others. This was called absenteeism. They neglected their duties in absentee dioceses.


(v) Bad organisation: The Catholic Church was badly organised: l Popes, cardinals and bishops behaved like princes. Some built great palaces such as Cardinal Wolsey’s building of Hampton Court Palace in England. l Priests were often uneducated. They could not read the Bible or preach.


4 The power of the kings and princes


Kings were uniting their countries under their own rule. They had brought independent lords under control, and now they wanted to control the power and influence of the Catholic Church.


5 The printing press


The printing press had reached every major town in Europe. Criticism of the Catholic Church was spread quickly through books and pamphlets.


Assessing Your Learning


1. How did religion play an important part in people’s lives? 2. Where did the Reformation begin?


3. When relations of nobles, cardinals and bishops were appointed to church offices or positions, this was called (i) Pluralism (ii) Nepotism.


4. When Pope Alexander VI bought his election as pope, this was called (i) Simony (ii) Absenteeism.


5. Who supported the kings in trying to control the Catholic Church? 6. How did the printing press influence the causes of the Reformation?


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