Catholic Church's Power During The Middle Ages

“Power”, former English prime minister Benjamin Disraeili once said, “has only one duty-to secure the social welfare of the People ''. Using their utmost power, the Catholic Church provided stability and security for those in society during medieval times. During the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church’s power over Western Europe became the dominant force due to their philosophical doctrine, multifaceted social strengths, and use of didactic art and theater to educate the illiterate masses. Through the establishment of Saint Augustine’s seven sacraments, the Church's doctrine was solidified, allowing for vital implementation into society. With the sacraments in place, the Church’s power over Western Europe grew exponentially, granting them non-secular

The sacraments, or rites of Christian initiation, were symbols of Catholic devotion that Augustine established in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. As symbols help express messages that cannot be put into words, the goal for the sacraments was to tangibly show Catholic devotion and faith, with the resulting effect being the physical and spiritual manifestation of God’s divine love. The seven sacraments created were baptism, confirmation, the Eucharist, penance, anointing of the dying, matrimony, and the ordination of priests. The most important of the sacraments were baptism and the Eucharist, or communion. Baptism is the formal entrance that one has to take to get into the Church, and is typically performed by pouring baptismal water over a child’s forehead three times. Eucharist is the practice in memorial of Jesus’ sacrifice taken by Christians that is performed by taking a piece of bread for Christ’s body and wine for his blood. Between all seven sacraments, the common thread is that they are all necessary in Catholicism to reach salvation. In addition, since the Church was the tangible remaining part of Christ, it was intended that the sacraments were performed through the Church by priests. Other sacraments such as confession and penance, the practices of admitting your sins and repenting to a priest, are prime examples of the priests’ integration in these acts. Due to this, the Church’s power over spirituality became absolute as it was made impossible to reach salvation without them. In 420 AD, Augustine wrote The Enchiridion, a book on Christian piety, that established the Church’s role in salvation, giving it the sole purpose to forgive sin. The authority given to priests in Augustine’s Enchiridion is heavily based on the lesson taught in the Gospel of Matthew. As said in Matthew