THE FOUR HUNDREDS
During
this era, the indissolubility of marriage was re-emphasized. Thus,
the easy access to annulments these days are in direct opposition to
the ancient practice of the Catholic Church (Council of Carthage,
407).
The
monks, who used to be the light and life of the Church, became the
source of scandals. St. Jerome, a champion of monastic life, spoke
vehemently against such monks. So the Council of Chalcedon in 451
reiterated the behavior expected of monks. Aside from the quest for
holiness that they had vowed, they were not to interfere in secular
affairs and observe the ancient practice prohibiting marriage. A
large number of the Eastern monks left the Catholic Church.
It
was during this era that the Blessed Virgin Mary, though recognized
as the greatest among the saints, took her proper place in both the
liturgy of the East and West...up to the present.
At
this time, too, the Church held sway over most of Europe and the
Middle East. They had the leisure of discussing what they did not
understand...which was disastrous. Not understanding what they were
discussing, many fell into heresies. Then there were the barbarians
that crossed Christendom.
But
slowly, the barbarians became Christians. The Pope replaced the
Emperor as Pontifex Maximus. Rome became the center of a new
civilization. By the next century, the year 500, Europe would be
united by the Catholic Church and every important city of the Empire
would be known as a Bishop's See.
(updated
03-12-02) |