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WI: Surviving Catharism

N

napoleon IV

Moo Deng Xiaoping
Location
Washington, Douglass Commonwealth
Pronouns
he/him
Catharism was a Gnostic heresy that was primarily active in Southern France and Northern Italy between the 1100s and 1300s. They believed that the material world was evil and that a person would be continually reincarnated until they renounced material things, and also believed that the material world was created by an evil demiurge (which is a separate being from God). They rejected all Catholic sacraments, allowed women to take leadership roles, and believed in vegetarian and pacifism. The Catholic Church was threatened by this sect and persecuted it, culminating in the Albigensian Crusade of 1209-1229. After this the Cathar movement declined until it disappeared in the 14th century.

Given the amount of persecution they endured it would be difficult for them to survive. One way I could see it happening is if a group of Cathars moved to a really remote area where the Catholic Church would have trouble reaching them, and perhaps later moving to the Americas. How would their survival effect culture and Christianity?
 
I know the basics of Catharism, but some of the things mentioned here caused me to go back and take a second look. All I can say is “Who the Hell brought Buddhism to Medieval France?!”
 
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