BELFAST RB BOOKLET 2020 - Flipbook - Page 24
Ci t y of Belf ast Grand Bl ack Chapt er - Dem onst rat i on Bookl et 2020
'NO! IT WASN'T A BIG LAMBEG'
The Victorian scholar and historian, James
Anthony Froude (middle) is attributed in having
termed the quote .. 'the Reformation was brought
about by the people, led by Martin Luther,
refusing any longer to believe a lie.'
If the Roman Catholic Church was generally Sinn Fein and the party's inextricably
corrupt and wicked well before that era of linked murderous, military associates.
change, it was most certainly eclipsed by the
The main usage of the indulgences sold by
papacy itself and even in Britain the con trick Johann Tetzel was to help fund and construct
to remove cash from parishioners was Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome.
rampant.
In order to summon local people on to
At Bexley in Kent there was a crucifix that the streets, Tetzel's aides reportedly beat
priests told their congregations, depicted the loudly on a drum; so when they emerged
'face of Christ' and if a mere copper coin was from their dwellings to see what all the
made as an offering, the holy sacrament would noise was about, and once he told of the
only show a slight gravitational pull of the face, reason for his visit, since Tetzel was selling
however if the bright sheen of a golden coin a product many people wanted, at least
was offered then a full smile would be seen.
that's how he explained it, the cash soon
Gullible you might well add; but
began to pour into the coffers,.
certainly believed back then!
For people who believed, or were
The selling of indulgences during
conned, that the dead go to
the sixteenth century was another
'purgatory' which was a kind of short
practice uppermost in the papacy's
holding-place, before the next stop in
way on filling their bulging coffers
the afterlife, then indulgences were a
whilst at the same time preying on the
particularly attractive purchase.
fear and anxiety of their flock.
But would paying money for an
One such conman was a Dominican
indulgence actually help either a
friar named Johann Tetzel, the so-called
deceased relative or friend? Of course it
German Grand Commissioner for Indulgences would according to conman Tetzel’s
who went from town to town granting these assuring reply that he readily told his
official 'certificates' (top right) in exchange for victims .. 'as soon as a coin in the coffer
payment, that claimed to allow a remission of rings; the soul from purgatory springs.'
temporal punishment and by-pass purgatory
The fact that the forgiveness of sins could be
after death, due to their sinful ways and go bought and sold in the local marketplace was
straight on to heaven.
beyond comprehension to Martin Luther, so
Nowadays they would
when he heard that Tetzel
be similar to the 'letters
was coming to Wittenberg to
of comfort' handed out,
sell his pitch, Luther
by then Prime Minister,
reportedly said: 'I'll put a
Tony Blair and his
hole in his drum, all right.'
sidekick, NI Secretary of
However we can state
State Peter Hain, to
here without question, it
hundreds of wanted, on
wasn't a big Lambeg that
the run (OTR) republican
was involved alongside
killers as a sop to both
the indulgence' scam!
'Now the Lord is the Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is Liberty: 2nd Corinthians 3:17
IN MEMORY OF THE FALLEN - 22 - AND THE FUTURE OF THE LIVING