Christianity in the 14th and 15th Centuries – The Black Death
During the 14th century, a great plague known as the “Black Death” descended upon Europe. It began around 1347 and lasted for over a decade. The deadly plague spread all throughout Europe and decimated the population of Europe by at least a third. This did not only have great social, political, and economic consequences but it also had great impact on faith. In this period of struggle from the Black Death, people sought answers in different directions.
There were some people who attempted to find hope and meaning by looking to the past. This is called classicism. They tried to look back in this troubled era to some of the golden eras of western civilization and culture. This led to the cultural phenomenon known as the Renaissance, meaning “rebirth,” in the late middle ages of the 14th and 15th century.
Other people preferred to look to the future, thinking that the plague might be a sign of the end of the world. The fear of death spawned great apocalyptic writings and expectations, including that of the second coming of Christ. This apocalypticism was very prevalent in some places in Europe during that period.
Finally, there were some people who search for hope and meaning by focusing on looking within, to turn interiorly and more deeply to the Lord and to faith in this crisis. This is called mysticism, going into deeper spirituality. It was not enough for them to participate in the sacraments. In times of trials, economic and social disorganization and the Black Death, people needed to come into contact with God from within.
So, this was the era when mystics in different areas of Europe appeared. One of the notable movements of that period was called Devotio Moderna. It was a new form of spirituality of mainly lay people who wanted to live this spirituality by meditating on Scriptures and putting the Bible’s teaching into practice through charitable works, as well as emphasis on the intellectual life. Their real key focus was living an imitation of Christ. One of the greatest spiritual classics that came out of this Devotio Moderna was The Imitation of Christ by Thomas A’ Kempis. It is the second most published Christian work in history, next to the Bible. This medieval spirituality of the imitation of Christ in our daily lives had a great impact on Christian history.
This article was written by Joni Cheng.
Published on O Clarim, February 28, 2020