Thousands of years ago, a plague invaded the human world. The plague ' 'was know by the Great Pestilence, The Great plague, and the Black death ' '(Intro Doc). The plague attacked and kill around 25% and 45% of the societies it touch and/or encountered.The plague was made of three bacterial strains which created the three plagues called bubonic, pneumonic, and septimic. At this time of desesperation and agony in most homes religion such as Islam and Christianity became the most powerful force in the lives of people. The people of both religions had similar beliefs, but reacted differently.
Christianity was the dominant faith in Europe at the time when the plague arrived. The christiand believed that it was the end of the world and they were
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Islam was the dominant faith of the middle-eastern societies, the population reacted to the plague by drawing closer to their religion. The muslims believed that the plague was a blessing from god and that they should ' 'accept the divine act ' ' Therefore , ' 'prayer lifting the epidemic is abhorrent ' '(Doc 4). The plague that attacked muslims was more mortal than the European plague. This plague killed people faster. The muslims became more faithful due to the plague as it says in document 9 that ' '...the people fasted for three successive days...assembled in the Great Mosque...and spent the night in prayers...they all went out together ' '.The Middle eastern societies were more calm and more open to praying for their neighbors; there was no segregation. The muslims didn 't rebell and …show more content…
Both the Christians and muslims had similar beliefs. The death rate of both places was very similar the European death rate was from 31-33% , while the Eastern death rate was about 25-33%.Both Europeans and middle-easterns thought that the plague was caused by miasma ,shooting starts and sins like outrageous clothing, alcohol and prostitution.Both religions thought that by building fires and drinking American clay solutions they could prevent the plague. While the both have similar beliefs the two faiths did not act siimilarly. Based on document three the europeans ' 'abamdoned family members ' ' however the muslims became scared when they saw the effects of the plague , but at least they acted with mosre acceptance which drew them closer to their faith. In document four , you can clearly see the difference. While christians saw the plague as ' 'the just reward of our sins ' '. Muslims
Change in European Understanding of Plague in the 1348 versus 1352 Known as the “Black Death,” one of the most devastating plague pandemic wiped out approximately 30 to 60 percent of the European population, peaking in between 1348 and 1350 . It caused massive religious, social, and economic, upheaval in the European society causing great changes in the European culture and lifestyle1. Finally, when after three and a half years the first wave passed in 1351, it spared few regions causing devastation in towns, rural communities, families, and religious institutions . The plague was reportedly first introduced to Europe via the ports of Caffa and Sicily in 1347, when several Italian merchant ships returned from a trip to the Black Sea, one of the key links in trade with China .
This Primary Source is an excerpt from "The Cremation of Strasbourg Jewry, St. Valentine's Day, February 14, 1349—About the Great Plague and the Burning of the Jews" This document talks about how the Jews were blamed for the spread of the plague by putting poisons into water and wells. Because of this it was decided that all Jews would be burned to death and none would be allowed to enter specific cities for 200 years. Our primary source gives us an idea of what people thought started the plague. Many people blamed the Jews saying that they had killed christ and that they poisoned the water and the wells with the plague. The Black Plague allowed a new wave of Anti-Semitism to spread through Europe.
They both had many deaths. They also believe the plagues were punishments from the God for their sins. In the Black Plague, people were obessed with death. In the Justinian Plague, he put down the city in lockdown.
The blame lead to the Jewish nation being oppressed and world understanding that the Jewish nation will forever be the easiest to hold responsible. After the plague, Christians declared that very few Jews died from the plague, compared to the rest of the population. The Jewish law orders that Jews must wash their hands before eating and they must bathe before Shabbat. Jews are forbidden to recite a blessing with a stench, they must help the sick and must bury the dead. The rest of the world might have gone half their life without bathing and during the plague, the dead were left on the streets.
The reason the Jews weren’t getting the plague as much was because Jewish tradition made them wash their hands before they ate and other sanitation traditions the others weren’t doing, like bathing every week for the Sabbath. Aside from the living being washed, the Jews also had a more sanitary
The epidemic affected Europe culturally, as the citizens developed an excessive reliance on religion as an answer for their tragedy. Additionally, the Black Death shifted the people’s social perspectives; they lost compassion for the sick and indulged in selfish desires. Finally, the pestilence altered the Europeans’ mental state, as their appreciation of life itself diminished, since the rapid spread of the plague caused torrential death rates across Europe. In response to the Black Death, the people of Europe became passionately pious, for they viewed their misfortune as a punishment from God and, thus, believed the only way to bring about continental happiness was through religion.
While Smallpox caused a disruption of faith upon the natives, the plague caused a disruption of faith upon the Catholics. During the time of smallpox, the natives were dying in incredibly large numbers and none of their medicine men could save them. This undeniably changed their spirituality. They were convinced that the European’s God was better, since the Europeans were not dying, and they began to attend Catholic churches. Quite the opposite during the plague, the Catholics were the ones questioning their faith this time around.
Christians devoted themselves to the church, giving up every aspect of their life for God. People converted to Christianity because of the dark times; a religion made them feel safe in hopes of getting to a better place to escape their hard lives (Doc 10). During the medieval period, an epidemic called the Bubonic Plague killed one-third of Europe's population. The people were so unsanitary that is spread easily, but they blamed it on the Jews alleged revenge plans against them (Doc 6). Conditions in Europe during the 800’s were full of fear and unceasing terror.
The Christians thought the Lord was punishing them with the disease, and that when the Lord was enraged to embrace in acts of penance, so that you do not stray from the right path and parish. The Christians pray to their Lord and ask what they should do? A great number of saintly sisters of the Hotel Dieu, who did not fear to die, nursed the sick in all sweetness and humility, with no thought of honor, a number too often renewed by death, rest in peace with Christ, as we may piously believe. People began to think the Jews were guilty for the disease. The Muslims looked at praying for the disease to go away in disgust, because they believe the plague is a blessing from God.
The Black Death The two faiths, Christianity and Islamic, approach the black death in similar ways religiously, medically, and in dealing with the Jews. Religiously the faiths saw the plague as a curse. The Muslims thought of the black plague as a blessing from god. (Document 4, 6, 8) the Muslims and the Christians have their own opinions of what they think the Black Death is.
The Christians and Muslims were both struck by the Black Death. I will be answering the question “How different were Christian and Muslim responses.” I will also be writing the Christian response. Next, I will be writing about the Muslim response. Finally I will be writing about the Jewish reformation and the scientific inquiry.
The Black Death had a big impact on European religion. Because people could not understand the plague, they strongly believed that the plague was a punishment sent by God. The church claimed that God was punishing people because of the sins they have committed. They organized religious marches and told people to pray to get rid of the horrible disease. However, around 1348, Christians started accusing the Jews of bringing and spreading the plague to Europe.
Most of the known world was devoured by the most notorious epidemic in history. In the 1351 , the infamous Black Death began to chew up and spit out Europe along with Asia and Africa as if being a victim of the Black Death once wasn’t horrific enough, The Great Pestilence hit Europe for the second time in the 18th century, along side that, in the 20th century Asia and Africa were revisited by The Great Plague. According to the background essay, “In five short years, the plague killed between 25 and 45% of the population it encountered.” During the time of the gruesome Black Death, two religions were widely practiced in this region of the world, Christianity and Islam. These were two religions with some different views and reasoning for this merciless period of terror and death.
During the mid-fourteenth century, a plague hit Europe. Initially spreading through rats and subsequently fleas, it killed at least one-third of the population of Europe and continued intermittently until the 18th century. There was no known cure at the time, and the bacteria spread very quickly and would kill an infected person within two days, which led to structural public policies, religious, and medical changes in Europe. The plague had an enormous social effect, killing much of the population and encouraging new health reforms, it also had religious effects by attracting the attention of the Catholic Church, and lastly, it affected the trade around Europe, limiting the transportation of goods. As a response to the plague that took place
The survivors could not wrap their heads around the amount of innocent lives that were taken, and the devastation left behind by the plague. The pandemic changed people’s lives forever, and for many changed what they believed in. No matter what religion a person followed, he/she was searching for answers. Christians and Muslims had very different views on why God would inflict such devastation on his people, but they both agreed on the idea the God’s hand played the ultimate role in the disaster. Christians responded to the devastation by claiming God inflicted the plague to rid the world of sin, whereas Muslims believed God