We're all familiar with the popular idea of the Spanish Inquisition, which for centuries has been depicted as a monstrous tyranny imposed upon Spain by sinister Church and state officials. Bent on wiping out heresy, the Inquisition, we were told, arbitrarily arrested innocent Spaniards accused of heresy and browbeat them during endless and unjust interrogations, often torturing the accused to secure meaningless confessions.

cobwebs of lies and myths - that racist distortion of the Spanish national character and and Hispanic culture. On June 9th, 1995, the BBC documentary, The Myth Of The Spanish Inquisition was aired on Ancient Mysteries. TV often trashes the Church, but not this time. Spanish scholars using computerized searches through the actual records left by the officers of the Inquisition are showing that the Inquisition had neither the power nor the desire to put Spain under its control.

Two books useful for Catholics who want to learn about the real Inquisition of history are Characters Of The Inquisition by William T Walsh, and Catholicism And Fundamentalism by Karl Keating. Both authors are Catholic but neither whitewashes the Spanish Inquisition. There <were> abuses: instances of cruelty, persecution, and personal vengeance. It would be strange if there were no abuses in a human institution that lasted so long. The BBC documentary says torture was used, but it could not last more than 15 minutes and could never be used twice on the same person. Walsh says that for torture to be used, a doctor had to be present, and at his command it had to be stopped. And there were other safeguards.

In any case, no Catholic should ever whitewash the Inquisition. We must honestly acknowledge that three Popes-Sixtus IV, Innocent VIII, and Alexander VI-tried to moderate the undue severity of the early Spanish Inquisition. We must also face this question: Why should anyone ever be put in prison or put to death for believing heresy? That is not the way of the Gospel, nor the path of reason. Walsh pointedly says that no Catholic today wants a return to the Inquisition. Nor do we want cover-ups of the past, for as Leo XIII said, "The Church has no need of any man's lie."

2) the Roman Inquisition, begun in 1542, which was "the least active and the most benign." 3) And the Spanish Inquisition, which he says had "the worst record." The Roman tribunal tried Galileo, who was not tortured but put under house arrest and later died in his own bed, after enjoying a papal pension!

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Others have argued that much of the Spanish Inquisition was the result of Religious Pogram, such as Robert Lockwood in his 2001 article Black Legend The Spanish Inquisition that appeared in the Catalyst.

Regarding how much of the Black Legend was actually a more a result of politics than religion, Edward O'Brien in his article A New Look At The Spanish Inquisition notes that "In the 16th century, Catholic Spain was the great continental power. Her Protestant enemies were jealous of Spain and many resorted to lies to help bring down Spanish power and control. Spaniards were described by Northern Europeans as dark, cruel, greedy, treacherous, ignorant, and narrow. The Inquisition was fiercely attacked with gross exaggeration. Thus, a combination of political rivalry, contempt for the Catholic faith, and anti-Spanish racism created a distorted image of the Inquisition."

See all: Spanish Inquisition

See all: Spanish Inquisition

See all: Spanish Inquisition

See all: Spanish Inquisition

• Spanish Inquisition
Often used in same terms as that of the Black Legend. That said, there was indeed a Spanish Inquisition.
3/17/2008 5:30:44 PM - -76.30.20.161

Spanish Inquisition