The Corruption Of The Medieval Church In The Canterbury Tales

Looking at the medieval church and the corruption that consumes the church is easily identified by the information that is provided from Chaucer, Armstrong, Mand and Krista that help support facts of this time in history. Mostly seen in the Canterbury Tales Geoffrey Chaucer describes how corrupt people in the medieval church steal from and takes advantage of the people they are supposed to help. One way the church used its power to take advantage of the people was by making them pay for a pardon of their sins. Nevill, Coghill, explains that, “a church official authorized to sell people pardons for their sins” (p33.). This is taking advantage of someone because the priest is thought to serve the church and its people without charging them for forgiving them of their sins. The actions of the priest who changed their roles from service to government by taking money that is almost like a tax. This action caused another way that the priest took advantage of the people. Armstrong says, “simply put, the corruption of the great spiritual body leadership, throughout their meddling in the secular power of government”. In the beginning of the paragraph Armstrong shows the reader …show more content…
Armstrong states, “surely, the disgraced empires of money grinding televangelist empires and authoritarian mega churches is built on the sway of a single charismatic leaders notwithstanding, nothing in today’s churches parallels the corruption of the medieval papacy”. Even today we understand that churches are not a place of all honorable practices, but we can rest assured that the churches are nothing like the medieval days. Armstrong explained that not only were the money collection schemes an issue, but that there was problem with other moneymaking systems. The priests of the church were allowed to work outside of the church to make