How did the Inquisition impact modern Christianity?

Question

Related Question

How did the Crusades impact modern Christianity?

• How did the Inquisition impact modern day Christianity own sense of morality and spirituality?
• What do these things mean to a person of faith?

The Inquisition, Inquisitio Haereticae Pravitatis (inquiry on heretical perversity), was the "fight against heretics" by several institutions within the justice-system of the Roman Catholic Church. It started in the 12th century, with the introduction of torture in the persecution of heresy. Inquisition practices were used also on offences against canon law other than heresy. (Wikipedia)

Answer 1

I'm addressing all of the inquisitions, not merely the Spanish Inquisition here. Several were perpetrated by kings, not the Catholic Church.

I agree with the other answers that state that the Inquisition is a stain and an evil that should never have happened. None of what I'm posting here should be taken in any way that detracts from @James Black's answer, or @Apocatastasis. I'm merely listing some impacts not listed in their answers.

Impacts include:

• A tendency to view Church authority with skepticism, particularly when we smell an abuse of power
  • For me, personally, this is why I tend to lean on the words of Scripture, which never changes, as opposed to religious teachings of any one denomination.
• A cadre of anti-theists, who object to Christianity, among other reasons, on the basis of the fact that the Inquisition happened. Examples: 1 2
• A rise in atheism, anti-theism, antireligion, and other beliefs based on the assumption that since the Inquisition(s) were perpetrated by "Christians" that Christianity supports such atrocities. (see previous references)
  • It doesn't. At least not if you believe that Jesus taught that we are to love our enemies as well as our neighbors
  • I also personally think that just because these officials were self-described Christians, their actions show that they had no idea what it means to be a Christian.
• Christians that are stronger in their views of the importance of God's commandment to love our neighbors (and our enemies) because we have such a stellar (if horrific) example of how not to treat those who disagree with us. examples: 1 2
• Christians and non-Christians alike that are better educated and on guard against such abuses, because as long as human nature is what it it, it could happen again if we're not vigilant. example: 1
  • Unfortunately, this isn't the majority. Just like all other generations, we think we're so much more enlightened than they were in the past. We're not. The Germans refused to believe what the Nazis were doing because they thought it couldn't happen in their society. If we can't learn the lesson that people are corrupt and it can happen as soon as we let our guard down, it will happen. Time and time again.

Also, if my understanding of the history and timelines is correct, then at least some of the Inquisitions happened before or during the Protestant Reformation.

• Medieval Inquisition - 1184
• Spanish Inquisition - 1480
• Protestant Reformation - 1517

Since the Reformation was as much about rebelling against abuses by the Church (See several of the points, including but not limited to #10, 24, 27... here) as it was about differences in doctrine, you might be able to argue that the widespread existence of protestant denominations is at least partially due to the Inquisition. Certainly, Church-sponsored torture and murder of those who simply believe differently are examples of corruption and abuse of power. If not a direct cause, the Inquisitions certainly would have added fuel to the fire.

Answer 2

The impact on the Spanish Inquisition on Christianity is more of an example when people use religion as a way to gain more political power. Unfortunately we see this same behavior, the justification of following God's will in various parts of the world, such as the problems in Nigeria and the atrocities in the Sudan.

When leaders, or political activists seek to gain power, and the ministers provide the religious backing, by stating this is God's will, then we have abuses such as in Guantanamo prisons, as American's torture and denigrate people of other religions.

But we also have some people in Europe and the US that continue to talk about killing Muslims because of their religion, when the goal is financial gain, under the cover of religion.

So, the Spanish Inquisition was a very dark period, and should never have happened, but as long as Christians idly stand by and don't stand up for those that believe differently, showing God's Love to the world by our willingness to die for those that may hate us, or those that are different than we are, we are all guilty of the atrocities committed, and even listening to ministers espouse such hatred, and saying nothing is just as bad as doing the action, as words not only damage our relationships with others, but also what we say, or listen to and say nothing, reflects on whether Christ is truly within us.

For a brief talk about the politics behind the Inquisition:

http://www.worldfuturefund.org/wffmaster/Reading/Religion/inquisition.htm

For an essay on Words healing or hurting: http://www.orthodoxytoday.org/view/words-can-heal-or-hurt

Here are a couple of quotes on what we say:

Proverbs 10:18-19 (NKJV):

¹⁸Whoever hides hatred has lying lips, And whoever spreads slander is a fool. ¹⁹In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, But he who restrains his lips is wise.

Psalm 141:3 (NKJV):

Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; Keep watch over the door of my lips.

Answer 3

Understanding the inquisition only in the cristianity (or spanish context) is a biased and reduced conception. Nowadays, when the concept of laicism has evolved sufficent to create a neat distinction between religious identity and national membership in Western societies the Inquisition is seen as a mounstruosity, but in old ages that distiction was more diffuse. Religous identity was important enough to determine national loyalty. Heresy was also a betrayal to the nation. Also, prosecution for religious disense was not private of spanish. We must remember the execution of Michael Servet by the calvinist. Muslims had a mechanism similar. Another important fact is the gross exaggeration of the Inquisition victims. Only by the reigns of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I in England more catholics died that heretics were burned by the spanish inquisition in his hole existence. The jails of the Inquisition were better that the civil ones.