The Militia of Jesus Christ ( it, Milizia di Gesù Cristo) was a military order in Lombardy during the

High Middle Ages The High Middle Ages, or High Medieval Period, was the period of European history that lasted from AD 1000 to 1300. The High Middle Ages were preceded by the Early Middle Ages and were followed by the Late Middle Ages, which ended around AD ...

. It was founded at

Parma Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, music, art, prosciutto (ham), cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 inhabitants, Parma is the second mos ...

Bartholomew Bartholomew (Aramaic: ; grc, Βαρθολομαῖος, translit=Bartholomaîos; la, Bartholomaeus; arm, Բարթողիմէոս; cop, ⲃⲁⲣⲑⲟⲗⲟⲙⲉⲟⲥ; he, בר-תולמי, translit=bar-Tôlmay; ar, بَرثُولَماو� ...

Bishop of Vicenza The Diocese of Vicenza ( la, Dioecesis Vicentina) is a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Italy.

, a Dominican, in 1233 and approved by

Pope Gregory IX Pope Gregory IX ( la, Gregorius IX; born Ugolino di Conti; c. 1145 or before 1170 – 22 August 1241) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 March 1227 until his death in 1241. He is known for issuing the '' Decre ...

, who gave it a rule in 1234 and placed under the jurisdiction of the Dominicans.Though

Lateran IV The Fourth Council of the Lateran or Lateran IV was convoked by Pope Innocent III in April 1213 and opened at the Lateran Palace in Rome on 11 November 1215. Due to the great length of time between the Council's convocation and meeting, many bi ...

had prohibited the formulation of new religious rules, Gregory recognised the Militia as an association of laymen completely obedient to their master general and their military life. Its chief purpose was to combat heresy, like

Catharism Catharism (; from the grc, καθαροί, katharoi, "the pure ones") was a Christian dualist or Gnostic movement between the 12th and 14th centuries which thrived in Southern Europe, particularly in northern Italy and southern France. Foll ...

and

Waldensianism The Waldensians (also known as Waldenses (), Vallenses, Valdesi or Vaudois) are adherents of a church tradition that began as an ascetic movement within Western Christianity before the Reformation. Originally known as the "Poor Men of Lyon" ...

, and to strengthen the bond between the Roman Church and the local nobility. In imitation of the

Order of Santiago The Order of Santiago (; es, Orden de Santiago ), is a religious and military order founded in the 12th century. It owes its name to the Patron Saint of Spain, "Santiago" (St. James the Greater). Its initial objective was to protect the pilgri ...

, members of the Militia did not take a

vow of chastity Chastity, also known as purity, is a virtue related to temperance. Someone who is ''chaste'' refrains either from sexual activity considered immoral or any sexual activity, according to their state of life. In some contexts, for example when ma ...

, nor did they live communally or in poverty.Vincent, 953–54. The membership in turn was divided into two classes: the high-born urban nobility and the bourgeoisie. The urban nature of the militia meant an emphasis on helping the weak and disadvantaged in the cities. Members were required to perform

confession A confession is a statement – made by a person or by a group of persons – acknowledging some personal fact that the person (or the group) would ostensibly prefer to keep hidden. The term presumes that the speaker is providing information th ...

thrice annually (at

Easter Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

, and

Pentecost Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christian holiday which takes place on the 50th day (the seventh Sunday) after Easter Sunday. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and other followers o ...

) and acts of liturgical devotion daily or hourly. There were monthly meetings for the

biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

instruction of the membership, conducted by Dominican

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders founded in the twelfth or thirteenth century; the term distinguishes the mendicants' itinerant apostolic character, exercised broadly under the jurisdiction of a superior general, from the o ...

s. The knights of the order even wore the white tunic and black cloak of the Dominicans. The head officer of the Militia was the master general, who decided in what military operations members could participate when called upon by either the pope or the local bishop. The Militia was active chiefly in the vicinity of Parma, but disappears from the record after 1261, when a new order, the

Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary The Order of the Blessed Virgin MarySometimes the "Blessed" is omitted; "Order of the Glorious Saint Mary" is a variant. ( it, Frati della Beata Gloriosa Vergine Maria; la, Ordo Militiae Mariae Gloriosae), also called the Order of Saint Mary of th ...

, takes over its role. There is some confusion between the Militia founded in Lombardy in 1233 and the institution called the Militia of the Faith of Jesus Christ, a penitential order, founded by Dominic himself to combat the Cathars in southern France at the height of the

Albigensian Crusade The Albigensian Crusade or the Cathar Crusade (; 1209–1229) was a military and ideological campaign initiated by Pope Innocent III to eliminate Catharism in Languedoc, southern France. The Crusade was prosecuted primarily by the French crow ...

. It should also not be confused with a modern "revival" called th
Militia Jesu Christi
which sees itself as the continuation of Dominic's foundation, but without official ecclesiastical approval.

Bibliography

*Crawford, Paul (2004). "Military Orders in Italy." ''Medieval Italy: An Encyclopedia'', ed. Christopher Kleinhenz (New Jersey: Routledge University Press), pp. 720–22. . *Vincent, Catherine (2001). "Militia of Jesus Christ." ''Encyclopedia of the Middle Ages'' (New Jersey: Routledge University Press), pp. 953–54. .

Notes

{{reflist 1233 establishments in Europe Military orders (monastic society) Catholic orders of chivalry Dominican Order History of Catholicism in Italy