Christianity and Islam in Spain, A.D. 756-1031Haines, Charles Reginald
Islamic
Christianity and Islam in Spain, A.D. 756-1031
Haines, Charles Reginald
Christian martyrs -- Spain; Christianity -- Spain; Islam -- Spain
[8] "Pseudo-Luit.", sec. 341. Cp. "Chron. Juliani," sec. 501.
"Viritanus coegit concilium Toleto ad inveniendum remedium ne
Muzarabes Toletani, imo totius Hispaniae, Saracenis conjuncti,
illorum caeremoniis communicarent."
Sometimes, however, the contact with Islam acted by way of contraries,
and Christian bigots, such as the monks often were, would cling to some
habit or rite of their own from a mere spirit of opposition to a reverse
custom among Moslems. Thus we know that the monks in the East became the
more passionately devoted to their image-worship, because Iconoclasm
savoured so much of Mohammedanism. In the same way, but with far more
objectionable results, the clergy in Spain did their best to impress the
people with the idea that cleanliness of apparel and person, far from
being next to godliness, was incompatible with it, and that baths were
the direct invention of the devil.[1] Later on we know that Philip II.,
the husband of our Queen Mary, had all public baths in his Spanish
dominions destroyed, on the ground that they were relics of
infidelity.[2]
Celibacy of the clergy, again, was strongly advocated as a contrast to
the polygamy of Mohammedans; and an abbot, Saulus, is mentioned with
horror as having a wife and children, one of whom afterwards succeeded
him, and also married.[3]
One of the last acts of a Gothic king had been to enforce the marriage
of the clergy, and though this act was repealed by Fruela I. (757-768)
in the North, yet concubinage became very common among the clergy;[4]
and it was perhaps to remedy a similar state of things that Witiza
wished to compel the clergy to have lawful wives.
[1] Miss Yonge, p. 67.
[2] Lane-Poole, "Story of the Moors," p. 136.
[3] Florez, "Esp. Sagr.," xviii. 326--"Conventus Episcoporum
pro restoratione monasterii." The children are called "Spinae
ac vepres, nec nominandi proles."
[4] Prescott, "Ferd. and Isab.," p. 16. From Samson, "Apol.,"
ii. cc. 2, 6, we learn that Christians had begun to imitate the
Moslems in having harems.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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