The War on Heresy

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We have not forgotten the Albigensian Crusade, nor its prequel in the heresy campaigns of the twelfth century, but in this fascinating study, the veteran medieval historian R. I. Moore argues with the zeal of a convert that we may have radically misunderstood them. And on that proposition, much in Western medieval history turns...The great virtue of this major recasting of Western history over three centuries is that it sounds right. It sums up more than a decade's worth of growing doubts among many medieval historians about the reality of Cathar dualism. It takes due note of the untidiness of historical developments, and the almost limitless capacity of human beings to believe and internalize the most risible nonsense if it suits them. Yet the rigor of Moore's arguments is a consoling reminder that humans can also be rational beings, capable of empathy with the long-dead, sympathetically comprehending why people have embraced nonsense, and listening carefully to faint voices through a hubbub of misleading background noise. Moreover, we can do so with the consciousness that such a task is a matter of morality, a pursuit of truth and justice, which is among the highest callings we can embrace. R. I. Moore's case is meticulously as well as boldly argued, though medieval historians (some of whom will not like his book one bit) would want more footnotes than a work aimed at the general reader provides. No doubt footnotes will sprout mightily in the debate provoked by this study; and after it all, we will have a renewed picture of medieval Europe. -- Diarmaid MacCulloch Times Literary Supplement 20120704