Clerics and War in the First Millennium
Christianity had, from its earliest days, an uneasy relationship with violence. Christ preached turning the other cheek to one’s enemy, but he also drove moneychangers forcibly out of Temple. While many Christians subscribed a prescriptive condemnation clerics who actively fought or engaged in military battles and campaigns, there were always ignored these prescripts took on such roles, greater lesser relish depending cleric question. This chapter surveys most important texts, trends, laws church as they pertained activity use arms by over first thousand years Christianity. The goal is illuminate creation set rules for behavior clerics, tacit understanding that reality clerical was far different. What will be shown that, while force never openly accepted within canonical tradition, much more ambivalence it broader cultural discourse than has normally been considered. debate whether violence licit Christians, let alone well under way period prior acceptance Constantine. After adoption Roman Empire, had become legitimated (though this did not necessarily have extend clerics). Early councils, fact, legislated against participation warfare, though dissolution Roman, later Carolingian, power, nevertheless larger role defending their regions carving noble holdings, both which often involved power.