of heaven, which I have forbidden, and it is told you and you hear of it;
then you shall inquire diligently, and if it is true and certain that such an
abominable thing has been done in Israel, then you shall bring forth to
your gates that man or woman who has done this evil thing, and you shall
stone that man or woman to death with stones. On the evidence of two
witnesses or of three witnesses he that is to die shall be put to death; a
person shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness” (Deut.
17:2-6).
To understand the various Catholic inquisitions, it is necessary to place
them in their historic contexts. It is still universally recognized that the
State has the right to protect itself and its citizens from external and internal
enemies that seek to either undermine or destroy it. Therefore, no
reasonable person questions the need for any State to maintain an
appropriate army, police force, or civil emergency force. Nor is it
questioned when a State erects and maintains a just court system to enforce
the law of the land in order the secure public order and protect the common
good. Parliaments often erect special tribunals or committees of
investigation. All of these are forms of inquisition.
Medieval European societies were Christian societies. They were, despite
their deficiencies, wonderful fruits of the redemption of Our Lord Jesus
Christ. To quote Pope Leo XIII, the Medieval age was “a time when the
philosophy of the Gospel governed the states ... The influence of Christian
wisdom and its divine virtue penetrated the laws, institutions and the
customs of the people. Then the religion instituted by Jesus Christ ...
flourished everywhere, thanks to the favour of princes ... Then the
Priesthood and the Empire were united by a happy concord.”¹
Therefore, unlike today, Medieval European states were not indifferent to
religion, but, like individuals, possessed a religion themselves. They saw it
as their duty to promote the common good by supporting the true religion
of God both within and without their borders. In such societies, to promote
a religion contrary to the State religion was considered not only an offense
against God but also treason against the State. The creeds of certain
heretical groups, if put into practice, would have undone the whole feudal
and hierarchical fabric of society. Laws were put into place prohibiting
proselytism and propaganda in favor of such religions and these laws were
1
Immortale Dei, 1885.
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