Synod of Verona condemns Cathars, and Waldensians as heretics 1184

On the 4th of November 1184, Pope Lucius III, in cooperation with Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa, issues a papal bull (ad abolendam), at the Synod of Verona condemning the Cathars, Waldensians, and others as heretics.1 The bull also exhorts bishops to and lords to deal harshly with adherents, and to turn the unrepentant over to the secular authorities, and stipulated various punishments that could be imposed.

The Cathars, preached a dualistic faith rejecting the material world and the sacraments,2 and the Waldensians, followers of Peter Waldo, emphasized apostolic poverty and lay preaching without clerical sanction. 

This collaboration between pope and emperor underscored the unity of spiritual and temporal authority in defending the faith, and thus became a milestone in the Church’s campaign against dissent, laying the groundwork for the later Inquisition.3  Its decrees reflected not only theological concerns but also a determination to preserve social and religious order in a time of growing unrest and reformist zeal.

• 1. Sumption, Jonathon The Albigensian Crusade London Faber and Faber 1999. p42.
• 2. Sumption, Jonathon The Albigensian Crusade London Faber and Faber 1999. Chapter II.
• 3. A Brief History of the Inquisition