The Church

-the roman catholic church was one of the most unifying elements of the middle ages
- all classes of people were affected by the rulings of the church
-the clergy were the religious people of the middle ages
-the pope, as head of the church, had much influence over the king and total control of the clergy
-the church tried to create peace among the nobles with their authority
-their canon law was based on religious teachings and governed many aspects such as marriage and morals
-disobedience of the church law ended with severe penalties such as excommunication