THE TRADITIONAL FAITH DEFENDS BRAKES ON GAIN...

"MONEY, THE ROOT OF ALL EVIL..." 

Alms, an essential part of Catholicism: The poor are like Jesus and the wealthy get points for Salvation when they help them.

Distributing alms (thought to be Saint Gilles) Flanders, end 15th century / zoom

        A Bishop Distributing Bread to the Poor by Willem van Herp, Flemish, mid-17th century / zoom

          The Fight between Carnaval and Lent (detail) by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, 1559 / zoom

Other ways in which it limits gain:

• Belief in Purgatory leads to financing masses for the dead and leaving one's resources to the Church.

Virgin of Carmel Saving Souls in Purgatory, Circle of Diego Quispe Tito, 17th century / zoom

•  Forbidding lending at interest reinforces royal economic control. Bypassing the rule is possible but difficult. For major projects, one must turn to kings, as Columbus and Magellan turn to Spain's Ferdinand and Isabella. 

Columbus at the court of Barcelona, 1893 / zoom

Building and decorating sanctuaries disperses huge sums. 

Take the superb 16th-century churches of the trade-route junction at Troyes:

Adapted from a Pinterest map / zoom

Medieval churches:

All photos except the last from TripAdvisor: please click here and here for photos from 10 Troyes churches.

Renovation in the first part of the 16th century, before the civil wars break out. 

For the change in style, please click back.

Claude Abron

Contesting the Church 
means contesting deeply rooted barriers to gain.

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The new faith shatters them