08-13-2012, 11:08 AM
LoneWolf,
I still don't see historical evidence proving that the state was the effective deterrent against error. You are attributing to the state a power which rests in the Church and holy men working within it. Saints have been the greatest foes of error, not states. Even when there was formal action against heretics, it always manifested itself in actions of the Church (via inquisitions), and the state only piggybacked.
I re-state my original assertion that the state is not an effective deterrent against error. Christendom was not about states. Christendom was about unity through the true faith, not about state power.
I still don't see historical evidence proving that the state was the effective deterrent against error. You are attributing to the state a power which rests in the Church and holy men working within it. Saints have been the greatest foes of error, not states. Even when there was formal action against heretics, it always manifested itself in actions of the Church (via inquisitions), and the state only piggybacked.
I re-state my original assertion that the state is not an effective deterrent against error. Christendom was not about states. Christendom was about unity through the true faith, not about state power.