Some historians have forgiven the rats. But myths often transcend evidence, dont they? Id already discounted that idea. As a noble hailing from the prestigious noble family of Conti di Segni, Ugolino is still related to other popes such as Innocent III, Alexander IV, and Innocent XIII. People banged drums and kept the sparrow in the air not permitting them to land until they died of exhaustion! However, it was also a piece of papal legislation that was notable in another way, for the Vox was the first papal bull to associate the cat with witchcraft. With this thought in mind, I spent two years at CIA, where I was a supervisor in the Public Communications Branch at the Office of Public Affairs. How then could he have impacted the good people of the 1300s? For Conrad in his quest for heretics around Mainz and Hildesheim claimed to have uncovered a Luciferian cult. Cat burning became a favorite medieval pastime in France, where cats were suspended over fires in cages or doused and set alight- even chased on fire through the streets by cat chasers. (2010, February 4). Which brings us back to Pope Innocent VIIIs 1484 declaration that the cat was the devils favourite animal and idol of all witches., The cat was the devils favourite animal and idol of all witches. Pope Innocent VIII. The truth of the plague variations that wiped out Europe is, they were the results of a perfect storm. That misguided stereotype is why witches are still depicted with black cats to this day. Lead bulla of Gregory IX. One of these was the sparrow! For years there was a debate if the Black Death and the Bubonic Plague were the same, adding speculation to the rat spreading theory. Does the dwindling population of cats indirectly cause the infamous Black Death? Then, there is the fact that cats just arent good ratters-, which is why dogs; especially terriers are employed to catch rodents. Want more crazy cat facts? This info on Pope Gregory the ASSWHOLE is just another scandal caused by a Pope. After food, clothing and medicine, the fourth item is cosmetics and the fifth is pets, he said, referring to a study on where most peoples income goes. Yeah you have a good point there! While there is no evidence that cats in medieval England were persecuted, their mousing skills were likened to the devils ability to catch souls, with the fifteenth-century merchant William Caxton remarking how the devil playeth ofte with the synnar, lyke as the catte doth with the mous. Some historians believe that the persecutions across Europe so depleted cat numbers that mouse- and rat-catching by cats diminished- one of the reasons why the Bubonic Plague took such a deadly hold in Europe during the fourteenth century. Pope Gregory IX (1147-1241) was probably the world's worst cat hater or at least he did the most damage to cats. This cruel practice continued until 1817 although the Kattenstoet continues to this day- involving stuffed cats instead. He said they ate too much grain and it was the responsibility of every person to kill a sparrow if they saw one and they were not to give up until they achieved it !!.. I do support single mothers though, especially those willing to give me 2 for 1 lapdance specials, but I digress. February 8, 2013. Did Pope Gregory's comfort with the law cause him to overstep his station as the pope? They were hunted into extinction ! There were probably several strains of plague spreading through Europe. Indeed the belief that the torture or killing of cats could break spells continued across northern Europe. Sweet Home Alabama Lyrics: What Does Muscle Shoals Has Got the Swampers Mean? The Popes were all lecherous greedy thieves seeking nothing but power for themselves & their families. Denmarks Fastelavn held at the start of lent was based on the premise that for spring to begin, evil had to be banished. Elsewhere in Europe, the legacy of cat killings passed into folk practices. Cats breed quickly, know how to survive on their own, and are hard to catch. So theres a lot of weak info out there about the backwards things that Medieval people were wont to do. This seems to add up for the modern reader. While in power, Pope Gregory IX declared that cats were to be associated with devil worship and had them exterminated. Not sure I am convinced either way, but people (especially those who prefer dogs) do like to hate on cats, so it is not a stretch to believe that they have been killed en masse in any era. It was also a time when, people many believe, Pope Gregory IX hated on cats. Lets see if the math adds up. Eventually, the ItalianRenaissance would put this so far in the rearview, all we could think about wasfrilly collars. Cats that I know are devoted to their humans my dog runs off as soon as the door is open, my cat sits on my knee, engages in conversation with me, stays closeby our home, and kills lots of mice, bringing them to me rather than eating them cats keep down rodent populations for farmers and humans who store and eat grain etc definitely as handy as dogs. Queen Elizabeth I celebrated her coronation with the burning of a cat-stuffed effigy. There are two types of people in this world: cat people, and not cat people. It wasn't until Pope Gregory IX came to power in the 1200s that black cats became a symbol of bad luck. (2016, May 4). Ugolino chooses the name Gregory IX, as he assumed the office at the monastery of St. Gregory ad Septem Solia and fully embracing the papal supremacy policy following the footsteps of Gregory VII and Innocent III. Retrieved from https://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=141316, ONeill, Tim. He has a brother named Adenulphus who later on in life served as the rector of Anagni, while Ugolino himself was educated in Paris and per known tradition, Bologna. Firstly, they are greeted by an abnormally large frog or toad, whose behind they must kiss and then a man of fearful pallor and thinness whose task was to suck out every last remnant of faith in the Catholic Church from their soul. The mass murder of cats was not the only cause of the Black Plague, but it removed a crucial natural predator of the flea-carrying rats that spread the disease. To learn more about me and my digital travels, visit myTwitterpage. While I cannot say for certain that things didnt happen this way, there appear to be holes. THE RELIGIOUS SECTOR ARE OUT OF THEIR MINDS W/ THEIR POOR REASONING OF ENCOURAGING BIG FAMILIES. Yet, in 2014 Pope Francis sparked an uproar by telling a girl whos cat who had died that she would be reunited Gods creatures in Paradise except for cats, who end up in hell. These new, heretical beliefs varied. Is the Vox in Rama authentic? But, was it because of cats andrats? The novice then feasted with the rest of the congregation, after which they assembled to pay homage to a black cat which emerged from a kind of statue which normally stands in the place where these meetings are held., The whole coven was required to kiss the cats behind, and once they had done this, a wild sexual orgy occurred. Cats dont generally take on rats. Neither does rogue operative, Jason Bourne. The Remains of Dead US Presidents Will Be Sent Into Space, The Man Who Surgically Brought Back Unicorns. Also, in 1182, to aid the churchs vendetta against the Cathars, the French theologian Alain de Lille falsely claimed that the sect took its name from the cat instead of the real source, the Greek katharoi or pious ones. While there were no immediate effects of the unjust cathunt, Europe will be affected in the years to come, with the rise of the Bubonic Plague. Thank you for your cooperation.You can sign-up to the Membership any time to remove the adds and enjoy the content with no interruptions, 2 popes and a plague are to blame for burning felines at the stake. At first glance, these rites, with their orgies and obscenities seem to be deliberately far-fetched. And though its unlikely that historys most pro-natural environment pope will encourage cat bonfires, he does suggest we take a step away from the dog ice cream and cat outfits in the pet aisle. Was considering writing a song about the folly of feline flaying, now Im not so sure. Kitty cats are not everyones flavor of pudding, but they serve an important role in many urban areas, especially in the developing nations outside the western world. I was among the attendees of this event, and can attest that it was a doozy. Gregory was a reluctant pontiff- and not just because of his age. So, Im not so sure cats stop the plague. First the novice, then the master, then each one of the order who are worthy and perfect, kiss the cat on its buttocks. The proverbial compendium of collective human knowledge at that point was certainly shorter and harder to access than it is now, but people back then still used their brains. why did pope gregory think that cats were evil? Learn how cats first spread around the world. A LION; I will wager $500 we can debate this and I will win with 100 literate judges NOT taught as toddlers the pope or priest can send them TO HELL. Further down the line, his influence grew larger and larger, and by 1217 he was named the papal legate and Honorius chief representative in Liguria and Tuscany. you suck; F-; see edict ex cathadre by a subsequent POPE reversing greggy 9s cat condemnation- also, Y-Perstis fleas only and I mean ONLY like rats; why? As I learned at the Profs and Pints event, cats persist as a marker of femininity in the media and our language of pop culture. By rough estimates, as many as 200 million people died. STOP W/ THE BABIES ALREADY. Both, however, rendered the Catholic Church redundant. So why not witches? The cats play into the picture as they would have normally been instrumental in cutting down the rat populations. Interesly, June 7, 2016, The spooky history of how cats bewitched us, Abigail Tucker, The Washington Post, October 31, 2016, The History of the cat in the Middle Ages (Part 2): The Black cat as the devil in Christian sects, L A Vocelle, The Great Cat: The Cat in History, Art, and Literature. Following years brought the great plaque of insects! People can make all manner of animals do what we likewe can teach oxen to plow, dogs to fetch game, elephants to paint, and ravens to hold grudges.2 But you cant make a cat do anything. As one might have predicted, thereafter, mass slaughters of cats blanked Europe. Elsewhere in Europe, the legacy of cat killings passed into folk practices. However, history shows that the Black Death, which ravaged Europe in the mid 1300s, was actually caused by rats and the fleas on them. (Accessed 2018, June 1). Cats are awesome rodent hunters. When an animal is removed from the ecosystem (especially out of fear) it usually causes a chain reaction. "The whole story is one of those pseudo historical urban myths that keeps getting repeated despite the fact it's complete nonsense. https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/histories/eight-witchcraft-myths/. Cats are natural hunters. As we are. He was born Ugolino di Conti but took the name Gregory when he becamethe pope. This timeline stretched from 1346 to 1353, a little more than a century after Gregory. Cats, especially black cats, were now seen as evil and representatives of the . They both carry fleas, only the mice never jump in my lap and bunt their head-glands all over my jeans. as a dvm (research quickly with phd, now DO, but still love animals) I agree about cat fanatics but this loser has all wrong about the need for cats to kill the Y Pestis flea vector rats; also, that species of flea does not infest on cats or dogs- their anticoagulant is perfect match for RATTUS NORweigica, and humans; not even mice suit them; his map of plague is laughingly inaccurate. The Churchs feline foibles didnt stop with Gregory, however. Reply . He believed that cats were evil creatures because they were related to Satan. Exterminating cats during the black plague epidemic in the 14th century: Cat owners were often accused of witchcraft, and often murdered along with their pets. In the 13th Century a wave of anti-cat sentiment swept through Europe, with religious leaders labeling cats as evil and diabolical, including Pope Gregory IX who did so in 1232 AD. Based on these confessions, in 1233 Pope Gregory IX issued an official papal decree declaring that Satan was half-cat and sometimes took the form of cat. The nauseating details of the cult initiation process plunge Europe into a manhunt of felines a cathunt. The fleas just love cat blood so much more than ours. For he had inherited the problem of heresies which were blossoming across thirteenth century Christian Europe and challenging the universal church. (dogma defined as the established belief or doctrine held by a religion, ideology, or any kind of organization: it is authoritative and not to be disputed, doubted, or diverged from). Gregory IX. Encyclopedia of World Biography, Encyclopedia.com. The disease was ravaging Asia before it ever made its way to Europe. Wildcat7 Youd rather see an animal domesticated for thousands of years in the wild doing what they are meant to do than indoors as pets? There is little real evidence for this. February 8, 2013. And it gets repeated because it feels right to many people - it makes our ancestors look stupid and so make. Gregory's missionary zeal among the Franks and the Anglo-Saxons in England was the first step in a process that would culminate with Charlemagne's coronation in Rome on Christmas Day in AD 800.. At the same time Benedictine monks led by Augustine were sent to Kent to convert the pagan King Ethelbert and his people, other missionaries from . If the Black Death was airborne, then rats had nothing to do with it, exonerating Gregory. Next the myth of toxoplasmosis! By 1198 under the reign of his cousin, Pope Innocent III, Ugolino was named the cardinal deacon of St. Eustachius and quickly rose as one of the most prominent cardinals. Cat burning and other forms of cat hating have survived the centuries since. During these witch trials, a woman even testified in court that cats spoke to her, and threatened to hurt her if she didnt abuse children in the town. While the papal bull was sent to several rulers such as Emperor Frederick II and King Henry of Germany, the central prominent figure that assumes that task very seriously is one Konrad von Marburg. What effects did it have? If you survived, you lost many people you loved. There is little real evidence for this. Many of these rodents had fleas that carried diseases including the Black Plague. Fleas tend to prefer cat blood. Gregory IX approved the Northern Crusades of the Teutonic Order, the purpose of which was the baptism of the Baltic pagan peoples, and which led to the attempts of the Catholic colonialists to seize the lands of Pskov and Novgorod principalities. THE HUMAN POPULATION NEEDS TO BE CUT BACK BECAUSE OF THEIR EVIL NATURE. The Obscene Kiss, Wood engraving from the 1608 edition of the Compendium Maleficarum. Oh and I like dogs but dog people kind of irritate as they always say or think negative stuff about cats, like cats are arseholes. Finally, even if cat numbers were vastly reduced, they were not wiped out. Henry was acquitted when he appealed to the bishop of Mainz and later that year Marburg himself was mysteriously murdered- probably at Henrys behest. The cat throwing. I AGREE. Over many centuries, Egyptians found that a cat was the one creature that could make the world safe, according to Purina. Wikimedia Commons. 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