Institutions Wielded as Much Influence Over the

¶ … institutions wielded as much influence over the people of their age as the medieval Roman Catholic Church. This influence derived primarily from the church's enormous wealth, due to the requirement of its members to tithe ten percent of all monies earned to the church to avoid eternal damnation. The church used this wealth to buy up large tracts of land, an estimated 30% of Europe by the 14th century, thus holding the central power over the agriculturally-based economy of the times.

But the church's wealth went beyond material goods, as the clergy were often the only literate members of a community, and thus held the power that was gained through knowledge as well. The ability of its leaders to read and write was used to the ends of the institution and clergy often acted as important and powerful advisors to the political leaders of the community.

Overall, the church impacted practically every aspect of medieval life, having important influence on such basic components as West European unity and the overall culture of its citizens, the state of peace or war, agriculture, and education. The Roman Catholic Church achieved unity in part by calling the rather diverse collection of communities across Western Europe, such as the Frank, Saxon, and Gallo-Roman peoples, the one nation of Christendom. While there was enormous political diversity, the people were united under one common faith as Christians.

The central impact of the church continues down through the various levels of social organization from Christendom to the various countries to the cities, towns, and villages. An important link between the leaders of a country and the church was the ability of kings and other nobles to appoint some church officials, a power that was eventually given back to the Pope after a struggle. The role of religion at the village level is best represented by the physical presence of the church itself.

Often the only building of any permanence, the church played an important part in the day-to-day lives of the citizens, acting as the community center for activities such as meetings and markets as well as the site of worship. The abbot or bishop was an important figure in the village and the clergy were often the only ones who could read or write. In sum, it was the Age of Faith and the church and its leaders played a central leading role in the lives of the citizens.

Another important part of keeping the medieval society together was the church's efforts to promote peace. After the fall of the Roman Empire, the multiple invasions of various "barbarian" tribes set a tendency for all disputes to be settled by bloodshed. To counter this uncertainty, the church actively promoted the development of feudalism, where the winner of the war became a noble, taking the lands and defending the common people and the clergy in return for the right to rule and levy taxes.

Because the times of peace were much more productive, in terms of food and shelter, than times of war, it was in everyone's best interest to "love thy neighbor." So this became a primary message of the church. The major production of the people was growing and raising food. Several centuries of milder than normal weather in Europe had increased the population, so the need for food and shelter was at a premium.

Interestingly, the monasteries were often the site of agricultural experimentation, but poor communication and a superstitious need to stick to known methods reduced the use of the newly developed techniques. This role as agricultural scientists is one example of the function of the church as the depository of education and scholarship. The church had inherited the preservation of written words and other forms of knowledge from the traditions of the Roman Empire. Worship was performed.