Who burnt more at stake: church or secular?

[Augustus]

Considering the church turned witches over to secular authorities, trying to say the Church isn't responsible is like trying to say Hitler wasn't actually responsible for Holocaust or the slaughtering of millions because he turned it over to someone else.

Also, it wasn't only witches who were being burned.

Whole sects were deemed heretical by the church (Cathars, etc) basically greenlighting killing their members. The church often didn't carry out the punishments themselves as burning people alive probably wasn't what Jesus would do. So they left it to the other courts.

 

[Shad]

According to some sources I have heard, the secular courts burned more and were harsher than the church through the "burning times". What do you think. Short quote from link below.....

"c) Secular Governments

Secular governments did most of the killing in the Burning Times. Lucky Witches were tried by the Church -- the truly damned had to appear before a secular court. Non-religious courts had the worst acquittal rates. Local tribunals were often virtual slaughterhouses, killing up to 90% of the accused. National courts (run by professional judges) killed around 30%. By comparison, religious courts often killed less than 1% of the people they tried. Secular courts also tried far more Witches than religious ones did. Most of the great Witch crazes were carried out by secular officials."

http://www.summerlands.com/crossroads/remembrance/burning.htm#Common Questions about the Burning Times

During that era the lines between Secular and Church were blurred. Secular governments did not exist during this era as government exist now. Church leaders were members of government, judges, lawyers, etc since the Church was one of the only ways one could become educated without having the family funds to do so. More so the education was different from the typical warrior persona the nobility endorsed and functioned as administrators. The nobility did not function as administrators but as quasi-kingdoms with loyalty to a shared overlord, The Crown. The Church was the one to codify witchcraft was linked with Satanic practices, it passed bills, issued orders and even appointed the leaders of various witch hunter. The one in Germany was started by the Papacy with a Papacy appointed leader. The Church fueled the flames of mass hysteria for centuries.

 

[outhouse]

Church leaders were members of government

Exactly. Religion was not removed from power. It was not defined as secular today.


Somebody was trying to defend theism by using that word, would be my guess.

 

[genesis9]

OP Burnt at stake OR burnt as steak? Oh I get it I re-read it . was just having me steak sandwich at the time! Nope I was NOT being flippant

 

[Shad]

Exactly. Religion was not removed from power. It was not defined as secular today.


Somebody was trying to defend theism by using that word, would be my guess.

I believe it was due an anachronism of the modern idea of secular.