 Most people in Europe were Christians.  During the Middle Ages many people looked to the church for comfort and guidance.  The church possessed land, wealth and power.

 Pope: Head of the church--based at Vatican city. He is infallible in matters of faith and morals.  Cardinal: Appointed by the pope. They advise the pope and elect a new pope.  Archbishop: An archbishop is a bishop of a main district, also called an archdiocese.  Bishop: Teacher of church doctrine and a priest of sacred worship.  Priest: Administers most of the sacraments, including the Eucharist (Communion), baptism, and marriage.  Monks & Nuns: Lived in Isolated communities. Learned Latin and copied religious texts.

 The power of the Pope to remove (banish) a person from the church and thus from salvation.

 Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV built power by appointing key people to church positions.  In 1075 Pope Gregory VII said that only church officials could appoint other church officials.

 Henry ignored the pope and wrote him a letter:  Jan 24, 1076 Henry, king…through the holy ordination of God, to Hildebrand, at present not pope but false monk, Thou, therefore, damned by this curse and by the judgment of all our bishops and by our own, descend and relinquish the apostolic chair which thou has usurped … I Henry, king by the grace of God, do say unto thee, together with all our bishops: Descend, descend, to be damned throughout the ages.

 PGVII excommunicated him.  Henry asks for forgiveness at Canossa  He stands in the snow half-naked for 3 days and is forgiven  Henry goes home and names an antipope  Henry gets excommunicated a 2 nd time

 King Phillip IV of France taxed the clergy of France.  Pope Boniface VIII disagreed and issued a papal bull stating that popes could judge kings.  Phillip states that the pope was a heretic, murderer, and a devil worshiper.  Before he could be excommunicated Phillip had Boniface kidnapped.