''Vox in Rama'' (" A voice in Ramah") is a

decretal Decretals ( la, litterae decretales) are letters of a pope that formulate decisions in ecclesiastical law of the Catholic Church.McGurk. ''Dictionary of Medieval Terms''. p. 10 They are generally given in answer to consultations but are sometimes ...

sent 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 ...

in June 1233 condemning the heresy of

Luciferianism Luciferianism is a belief system that venerates the essential characteristics that are affixed to Lucifer, the name of various mythological and religious figures associated with the planet Venus. The tradition usually reveres Lucifer not as the ...

said to be rife in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, and authorizing the preaching of a

crusade The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were i ...

against it.Thomas W. Smith
"The Use of the Bible in the Arengae of Pope Gregory IX's Crusade Calls"
in Elizabeth Lapina and Nicholas Morton (eds.), ''The Uses of the Bible in Crusader Sources'' (Brill, 2017), pp. 206–235. Copies of the letter were sent to Emperor Frederick II, King

Henry (VII) of Germany Henry (VII) (1211 – 12? February 1242), a member of the Hohenstaufen dynasty, was King of Sicily from 1212 until 1217 and King of Germany (formally '' Rex Romanorum'') from 1220 until 1235, as son and co-ruler of Emperor Frederick II. He was t ...

, Archbishop Siegfried III of Mainz, his suffragans, Bishop Conrad II of Hildesheim and the preacher

Konrad von Marburg Konrad von Marburg (sometimes anglicised as Conrad of Marburg) (1180 – 30 July 1233) was a medieval German priest and nobleman. Life Konrad's early life is not well known, he may be of aristocratic descent, and he was described by contemporar ...

. The copies are dated to 11, 13 and 14 June. ''Vox in Rama'' was one of a series of calls Gregory IX issued for crusades against heretics. ''Lucis eterne'' (29 October 1232) called for a crusade against the Stedinger. ''O altitudo divitiarum'' (10 June 1233) had the same object as ''Vox in Rama'', but was sent to Konrad von Marburg alone. ''Miserias et erumpnas'' (13 February 1234) authorised the

Bosnian Crusade The Bosnian Crusade was fought against unspecified heretics from 1235 until 1241. It was, essentially, a Hungarian war of conquest against the Banate of Bosnia sanctioned as a crusade. Led by the Hungarian prince Coloman, the crusaders succeede ...

Background

In 1233 Gregory IX established the Papal Inquisition to regularize the persecution of

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...

.Vizzier, Anne r., "Gregory IX", ''Dictionary of World Biography'', Vol. 2, Frank Northen Magill, Alison Aves ed., Routledge, 1998
The Papal Inquisition was intended to bring order to what had become the haphazard episcopal inquisitions, originally established by

Lucius III Pope Lucius III (c. 1097 – 25 November 1185), born Ubaldo Allucingoli, reigned from 1 September 1181 to his death in 1185. Born of an aristocratic family of Lucca, prior to being elected pope, he had a long career as a papal diplomat. His pa ...

in 1184. Gregory's aim was to bring order and legality to the process of dealing with heresy, since there had been tendencies by mobs of townspeople to burn alleged heretics without much of a trial. In 1231 Pope Gregory IX appointed a number of Papal Inquisitors (''Inquisitores haereticae pravitatis''), mostly Dominicans and

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

s, for the various regions of France, Italy and parts of Germany. The aim was to introduce due process and objective investigation into the beliefs of those accused to the often erratic and unjust persecution of heresy on the part of local ecclesiastical and secular jurisdictions. Thomas Madden
"The Real Inquisition"
''National Review'', June 18, 2004. The 13th century was a time of great superstition and saw the start of the "demonisation of heretics" by the Church, attributing their lack of belief in the Catholic faith to the devil. Barber claims that it was during this time that there was a great zeal for the sending out of inquisitors by the

pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

and local bishops with the aim of seeking out potential

heretics Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...

. In 1233, Konrad von Marburg began an inquisition in Mainz at the behest of either the Pope or the

archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

. Allegedly through torture and terror, Konrad reported he had uncovered a satanic cult which worshiped devils in the forms of a demonic man and of a diabolical black cat. The inquisition of Konrad was controversial: shortly after Konrad arrived in Mainz, a papal official called Bernard wrote to Gregory stating that Konrad had been forcing innocent people to confess by threatening them with burning at the stake if they refused to do so. Shortly thereafter, Konrad was assassinated, possibly by the servants of

Henry II, Count of Sayn Henry III "the Great" (? – 1246) was the count of Sayn (1202–1246), a county located near the Sieg River in northern Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Henry III shared the first year of his reign with his uncle, count Henry II, as he and his fathe ...

, whom Konrad had accused of fostering heresy. The issue of the ''Vox in Rama'' bull was a response to Konrad's allegations, urging Siegfried III and King Henry, representing the ecclesiastical and temporal authorities respectively, to seek out and destroy the heretics.

The bull describes in detail the initiation rites of the sect, claiming that the potential initiate is first approached by a mysterious

toad Toad is a common name for certain frogs, especially of the family Bufonidae, that are characterized by dry, leathery skin, short legs, and large bumps covering the parotoid glands. A distinction between frogs and toads is not made in scientif ...

as large as a dog. Shortly afterwards an emaciated pale man would appear, whom the initiate would kiss and thereby forget all memory of the Catholic faith. Members of the sect would then meet for a meal. When the meal had ended, the sect would arise and a statue of a black cat would come to life, walking backwards with its tail erect. First the new initiate and then the master of the sect would kiss the cat on the buttocks. After the ritual was completed, the bull claims that the candles in the room would be extinguished and the sect would engage in wild orgies which were sometimes homosexual in nature. Once the candles are re-lit, a man from a dark corner of the room “comes forth from the loins upward, shining like the sun. His lower part is shaggy like a cat.” After a brief

litany Litany, in Christian worship and some forms of Judaic worship, is a form of prayer used in services and processions, and consisting of a number of petitions. The word comes through Latin ''litania'' from Ancient Greek λιτανεία (''litan ...

-like dialogue between the cat and the cult members, the meeting ends.Carl Rodenberg, ''Epistolae saeculi XIII e regestis pontificum Romanorum selectae'', MGH, Berlin, Weidmann, 1883, p. 432. Gregory also claims that the sect committed various crimes against the Eucharist: In conclusion, Gregory condemns the practice and calls upon the religious and secular authorities in the

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, pro ...

to take action against the cult's participants. The initial text line is taken from the Bible (Jeremiah, 31:15).

Text

* Carl Rodenberg, ''Epistolae saeculi XIII e regestis pontificum Romanorum selectae'', MGH, Berlin, Weidmann, 1883, p. 432.
APOSCRIPTA Database - Lettres des papes, n. 3644, online

References

{{reflist, 30em

Sources

* Malcolm Lambert, ''The Cathars'', Wiley-Blackwell, 1998. * Robert I. Moore, ''The War on Heresy. Faith and Power in Medieval Europe'', London, Profile Books, 2012, p. 275-278. 13th-century papal bulls 13th-century Christian texts Middle Ages Christian texts 13th-century documents 1233 in Europe Demonology Mythography European witchcraft Catholic theology and doctrine Documents of Pope Gregory IX Letters (message)

Background

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References

Sources