Church History Timeline: the 1000s

The first recorded pilgrimage to the Holy Lands was by Constantine's mother in the 320s. She directed the building of two churches, in Bethlehem over the supposed birthplace of Jesus (which was believed to be in a cave and the church is known as the Church of the Nativity) and the other near Jerusalem. (Other churches already existed in the area.) (The Church of the Nativity was damaged in 529 and rebuilt in 530.) Pilgrimages were so popular by the 500s that Pope Gregory I had a special hospice built especially for pilgrims to the Holy Land. As part of Charlemagne's European expansion, he ensured the safe passage of pilgrims to the Holy Land (called a “protectorate”). He had churches and monasteries built there. The frequency of pilgrimages increased until the year 1009, when Hakem, the Muslim religious leader (caliph) of Egypt ordered the destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre (where Jesus was buried) and other Christian buildings. In 1027 the Frankish protectorate ended with the rise of the Byzantine (Christian Orthodox) emperors (which meant that they now protected the Holy Land). Pilgrims continued to come to the Holy Land.

This was not a sudden decision by either man or either faith. For centuries eastern and western Christians had disagreed with each other over theological matters. This disruption will last until 1965 when Pope Paul VI and the Patriarch Athenagoras will meet at the Second Vatican Council. The excommunications were withdrawn at that point. Some of the issues which divided the two sides included the addition of the "filioque" clause to the Nicene Creed, the extent of the pope's authority, and the importance of the Patriarch within Christianity.

Within the feudal system, a large parcel of land would have, for example, one castle and one large church/cathedral. It was vital for the secular and church leaders to get along in order for the system to function well, and so over time the secular leaders increasingly picked the church leaders. This was known as "investiture," the giving or selling of a church office. This is the system that Pope Gregory VII tried to change.

A special indulgence was pronounced by the pope: “Whoever, out of pure devotion and not for the purpose of gaining honor or money, shall go to Jerusalem to liberate the Church of God, let that journey be counted in lieu of all penance.” So basically enduring the hardship of the journey of the Crusades equaled all penance for all sins; this was known as a plenary indulgence. This First Crusade consisted of two parts, the first wave and the second wave. In the first wave, Peter the Hermit left with thousands of untrained men and women almost immediately but most of them died along the way or in battles. The second wave consisted of trained knights and fighting men in four armies. While they experienced many defeats, they captured Jerusalem and so much territory that they divided it up into four Crusader states.