Albigensians

The Albigensians or Cathars as they have been called, were among one of the great people of God in history.  

They were concentrated in southern France in general, although they lived beyond that geographical region.  

As with all of those Christians who live outside the institutional religious system, they challenged the many excesses that existed in their day. Usually they challenged them simply by not participating in their activities and not living life the way they did.  

One of the truly amazing testimonies that existed concerning these Christians was that where they lived was possibly the most flourishing area on the earth at that time. A great many of those that were called 'catholic' freely interacted with these believers and regarded them very favorably. They had them in such high regard that many became part of what God was doing in them. While the average man or woman were deeply touched by their sincere devotion to Christ, the religious leaders hated them. They didn't want Christ to be head of His church, rather they decided that if they weren't over the people of God, then nobody would be.  

They are made to look weird spiritually because they emphasis the indwelling work of the Spirit of God within them first and primarily.  

Some historians have went so far to justify the crusade that Innocent the III promulgated against them because they say that if they had been allowed to continue on in their ways, they would have destroyed civilization as we know it today.  

An interesting, exciting fact about this though is that historians also say that they mingled with all Christians and their was a tremendous unity among the believers in the towns that they lived in. The religious leaders hated this. They hated it so much that they destroyed the civic leaders of that day in order to stomp out this way of life. It was one of the most brutal suppressions of a people in all of history.  

The numbers of deaths of men, women, and children is staggering to say the least. The brutality is beyond comprehension. When Christ reveals Himself in a people, everything hates that image that is being formed in the earth.  

The Albigensians had the typical lie of Manichaeism applied to them. What they really did was to reject the horrors, tyranny, and sin that the corrupt ‘official’ church had entered into.  What is amazing about all of this is that modern-day Europe is paying the price. If you follow the history of persecution by the religious system, you will find that the social order in the centuries following was swallowed up by the enemies of Christ.

The Donatists being eventually overrun by the Muslims and now (2003) in about a 100 –200 years from this date, Europe will probably become Muslim. God is not mocked!  It never ceases to amaze me that a people that simply want to follow Christ outside all of the false pageantry and ritualism are among the most hated people in the world.  

The Albigensians were among these people. For some reason people are afraid of the reality of Christ. They want symbols and shadows rather than experiential, practical truth of Christ.  

The Albigensians showed us in their generation that there will always be a people that will not submit to the tyranny of symbolism.  

The thing that is hated so much is that there is the testimony of another world; one that is greater than this one. For example in Hebrews we are told that we have not come to a mountain like Israel did when they were so afraid that they begged that nothing more would be spoken to them. They couldn’t handle the command that even if an animal were to touch the mountain it would be stoned.  Rather it goes on to tell us that we have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. We have come to the church of the firstborn, those who are part of it have their names written in heaven. We have come to God and Jesus.
 
This is what the testimony of the early church and those outside the religious system have always testified to. The days of types and shadows are over, now we are to enter into what these pointed to. And what they pointed to was the truth and reality that was fulfilled and is fulfilled in Christ.  

The rejection and genocide of the Albigensians was a rejection and genocide of Christ. Today those who are the heirs of those who did it are beginning to pay the price.  

As for us, we must continue on in the great example that these beloved believers have passed on to us.