The Influence Of Smallpox: Disruption Of Religion

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 Black Plague, a disease many would agree was both one of the most devastating and poignant events to occur in European History. A time of persecution and suffering, many had to endure the effects that the Black Plague brought with it. Amidst the consequences suffered by those carrying the disease, came the ramifications that those who were not directly affected experienced. A few ramifications were self-evident, such as trade, others were concealed within the fear that the population had lost so much already, they could no longer afford to lose anything else, whether that be dignity or pride. The plague caused many to question their religious outlook, the lack of knowledge caused false cures to develop and affected the interactions throughout Europe.

The bacteria spread mostly around Italy and Spain. Prior to the plague, the people of Western Europe fully believed attending church and praying to God would keep them safe from harm. However, during the spread of the plague, the people’s prayers were going unanswered. Families lost loved ones. This caused people to lose complete faith in the Pope, God and the Roman Catholic Church.

The responses to the Black Death were vastly different from Christian and Muslim points of view. Although there were some similarities, most things varied based on how the religion itself thought of this disease. Death rates were still high and the disease was a very dangerous one. It killed up one-third to one-half of the world 's population at that point in time.

Wright 5 Jayla WrightJared DiamondEnglish 428 February 2018 The Epidemic of SmallPox One of the most scariest diseases, if not the scariest disease, was smallpox. Smallpox was a game change in the 1500’s.

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.

The reactions from the Christians and the Muslims to the greatly feared disease, known as the Black Death or the Great Plague were different in several ways. The first Plague was documented from 541 to 544 CE. Known as the Plague of Justinian. The Plague came in three different ways: bubonic, pneumonic, and septicemic. With bubonic being the most common.

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

During the Black Plague, the Muslims didn’t look to their God for answered to the death that was laid upon them, but they accepted it. In fact, praying the plague away is abominable, because it is a blessing from God; at the least, a Muslim should eagerly accept the divine act. (Document 4) …. Although the Muslims

The Colonial period was started in the 18th century based on the political, social and economical reasons in the thirteen colonies. The colonists began colonization of America by refusing the nobilities and monarchies of Great Britain. During that period, an epidemic disease called smallpox was spread devastatingly and frequently. Smallpox was an enormously contagious disease caused by a specific type of virus variola which spread into the thirteen American colonies. The disease was new in the country, and it took place in Boston, Massachussetts first, and spreading the virus made a severe threat all over. It began with infection mainly in the blood vessels of the human skin and mouth, and resulted in different kinds of symptoms for turning

During the thirteenth century, a disease known as the Black Death spread from Asia to Europe at an alarming speed. It travelled through the trade routes, in the form of infected fleas carried from town to town on rats causing catastrophic loses of population . The Black Death consisted of two forms of the disease; the pneumonic plague, and the bubonic plague . Since it was unknown as to what caused the disease at the time, their responses to the plague’s outbreak were almost entirely futile. Since religion was a big factor in nearly everybody’s lives, the records of the Black Death that we do have are heavily influenced by religion, and as such, their views strongly swayed things like treatments and medicine that were used against the plague.

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.

The Black Death was an occurrence that struck the Middle East and Europe, wreaked disturbance, and caused individuals to question their religion. Spreading to many parts, it killed off nearly 25-45% of the population it encountered (Doc C). The plague peaked from 1346 to 1351 and not solely affected a lot of individuals, however the loyalty of some Christian and Islam followers (Doc B). Christians and Muslims would each communicate God for solutions, however with separate demeanor's. The manner every non secular cluster reacted to the plague differed, likewise as what they believed were the causes and what they did to stop obtaining affected.

One of the biggest summer nuisance would be the mosquito, but more specifically the Ades aegypti mosquito. The Aedes aegypti is the vector for yellow fever and the cause of the numerous deaths. In her book The American Plague: The Untold Story of Yellow Fever, The Epidemic the Shaped Our History, Molly Caldwell Crosby presents the idea that the mosquito is not just the only reason an epidemic occurred in the 18th century. This story accounts for the disease that broke out across the world and nearly destroyed almost all of North America’s population, which some believe could have been avoided by simple quarantine analysis and sanitary methods.