What was Pope "Innocent" IV thinking when he signed the proclamation authorizing the Torture of Heretics?

Answer 1

ROFL @ Randall!!!

Answer 2

Hello,

In those days where the church and state were often combined, heresy was considered a clear and present danger to the social fabric of society just like communism was over the last 80 years and now radical Islamic fundamentalism is at present.

Check out about the debates of how to torture and intern enemies with regards to the US government, Guantonimo bay etc and you might note that we think in similar ways today at times as they did back in those days.

Cheers,

Michael Kelly

Answer 3

In the world of 1252 C.E., thieves, bandits and other accused criminals were tortured by the state (not the church) to extract testimony. Innocent said that heretics were worse than them but were not to be tortured as bad.

Pope Innocent IV stated in his papal bull "Ad exstirpanda" that as heretics are "murderers of souls as well as robbers of God’s sacraments and of the Christian faith, ... are to be coerced—as are thieves and bandits—into confessing their errors and accusing others, although one must stop short of danger to life or limb."

The Papal Bull authorized the state to use of limited torture for eliciting confessions from heretics. The limit placed upon torture was citra membri diminutionem et mortis periculum -- meaning, it was not to cause the loss of life or limb or imperil life. Torture was not regarded as a mode of punishment, but purely as a means of eliciting the truth.

Torture was to applied only once, and not then unless the accused were uncertain in his statements, and seemed already virtually convicted by manifold and weighty proofs.

In general, torture was to be deferred as long as possible, and recourse to it was permitted in only when all other expedients were exhausted.

I am not trying to justify torture. But it is unfair to judge history outside of context. Just as Abraham lived in a time where human sacrifice and child sacrifice was common, Pope Innocent IV lived in a time where torture was a common tool of investigators.

For the record, today the Catholic Church teaches against torture and is actively trying to stop torture:

The Catechism of the Catholic Church states:

Torture which uses physical or moral violence to extract confessions, punish the guilty, frighten opponents, or satisfy hatred is contrary to respect for the person and for human dignity.

Pope John Paul II on June 27, 2004: Pope: Torture is 'intolerable' violation of human rights: http://www.the-tidings.com/2004/0702/torture.htm and http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=30476

Pope Benedict XVI on December 13, 2005: Pope says torture shouldn't be used against terror: http://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2005-12-13-pope_x.htm and http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/content/news_syndication/article_051213torture.shtml

US Conference of Catholic Bishops: Urge Senate and House Conferees to Reject Torture: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/international/landminestorture.shtml

For more information, see Catechism of the Catholic Church, sections 2297: http://www.nccbuscc.org/catechism/text/pt3sect2chpt2art5.htm#2297

With love in Christ.

Answer 4

Probably a lot like what Pope Innocent the 3rd thought when he had his army march through europe and slaughter everyone who did not kneel fast enough.

Answer 5

He was not thinking with the mind of Christ, which true Christians are to operate out of, but as a Catholic he was thinking unBiblically, and acting consistent with the world in which he found himself, which is just the opposite of what Romas 12:2 commands.

This is because the perpetuated Petrine papacy of Rome is not Biblical, nor is equating church tradition to be equal to sacred Tradition (the Bible). nor their exaltation of the Teaching Magisterum as the ultimate authority on earth.

The papacy much flows out of the Roman empire in which the Romans church found herself, and whose carnal means she took upon (thus the Inquisitions), and it is ultimately by autocratic, circular reasoning that she defends herself (according to our interpretation, only our interpretation can be correct). Rome extrapolates a perpetuated Petrine papacy out of Mt. 16:13-19 (even though it's latest Catechism allows the Rock to be Christ, which it is), yet in contrast to other major doctrines, no where do we find any explicit support for such an interpretation, nor any true inference that would establish such.

A thorough search of the rest of the New Testament yields not even one single command for all the churches to submit to Peter as supreme pope, nor one example of him reigning as such (James gives the final decision in Acts 15), nor does
Peter, "an apostle" and "a servant", refer to himself as such. And most critically, nowhere is there any provision set down for a successor to Peter. Instead, God is still building His church using men who like Peter, effectually confess faith in the Rock, even Christ, and upon such truth is the church grounded.

Meanwhile, Scripture itself teaches that the Bible is the ultimate authority (Sola Scriptura"), not the church (Sola Ecclecia), which owes it's existence to the Word of God. The Bible only commends one class of revelation as wholly breathed, that being Scripture, which alone is commended as the authority for doctrine, "for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness" (2Tim. 3:16). Making any other authority equal to it is in essence adding to the closed canon of Scripture, and those who do shall end up suffering the punishment foretold therein (Rev. 22:18, 19).

Finally, the ultimate error of Rome is that of fostering dependence upon her supposed powers, as well as one's own merits, for salvation, rather than coming before God as a sinner, destitute of any merit whereby we may escape Hell and gain Heaven, and thus cast all our faith upon Christ and His blood for justification and regeneration (Rm. 3:9 - 5:8; Eph. 1:13; Titus 3:5).

And having turned from sin to Him, be baptized under water (Acts 8:37) and walk in newness of life (Rm. 6). And so glorify God alone!!

Answer 6

I bet he was thinking: "Let's get rid of the heretics!"

Answer 7

Empire,Empire, Empire!

Answer 8

He was thinking:"Hey I got the cool hat, I can do anything!"