The Encyclopedia of World Religions

Isaac S 217

the early 1200s local princes and bishops were responsible for discovering and punishing here tics. In the early 1200s, however, the Pope estab lished his own inquisition. Those in charge were often D OMINICAN friars who reported directly to the Pope. This inquisition was active especially in northern Italy and southern France. It was directed especially against heretics known as Cathari and W ALDENSIANS . By the 1400s it was also investigating charges of WITCHCRAFT . During the 1400s Christians managed to con quer all of Spain. (Spain had been largely Mus lim since the late 600s.) In order to Christianize the territory, the conquerors required all Jews and Muslims to leave, even though many families had lived in Spain for centuries. To ensure that every one living in Spain was Christian, the rulers, in cooperation with the Pope, established the Span ish inquisition. This inquisition was particularly interested in persecuting maranos and moriscos — Jews and Muslims, respectively, who pretended to practice Christianity in order to avoid being forced to leave. The inquisitors were notorious for their bru tality. A prime example is the first grand inquisitor of Spain, Tomas de Torquemada (1420–98). There were, however, some restraints. A few overly zeal ous inquisitors lost their positions and even wound up in prison. The inquisitions required those who repented of heresy to attend masses, make PILGRIM AGE , wear yellow crosses, or spend time in prison— sometimes for the rest of their lives. They turned over to the secular government those who refused to repent or who lapsed after repenting. The gov ernment burned these offenders at the stake. J OAN OF A RC , John Hus, Giordano Bruno, and Savonarola are among those who lost their lives in the inquisitions. The scientist Galileo received a lesser sentence. Even Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the J ESUITS , had to appear twice before the inqui sition.

has bar and, in liberal congregations, bat mitzvah ( see BAR / BAT MITZVAH ). C HRISTIANITY has confirma tion or, for some Protestants, BAPTISM . Upper caste Hindu boys undergo several rituals, especially the upanayana. In this ceremony they receive a sacred thread and begin to study the sacred texts known as the V EDA . The traditional initiation ritual for Hindu girls was marriage ( see MARRIAGE AND RELI GION ). That is because according to Hindu tradition a girl should be married before she begins to have menstrual periods. This practice is much less com mon today. Religions initiate people on other occasions, too. M ONKS AND NUNS undergo an initiation to join their orders. In some Buddhist countries, young people traditionally become adults when they take monastic vows for a limited period of time. In the ancient Mediterranean world, people were initiated into special “mystery societies.” The most famous example is the mysteries of Eleusis in Greece ( see MYSTERY RELIGIONS ). People sometimes receive religious office through initia tion. The best example is probably the traditional healer known as the shaman ( see SHAMANISM ). Communities are usually said to “ordain” rather than initiate priests ( see ORDINATION ). The distinc tion is somewhat artificial. Initiations often follow the structure of RITES OF PASSAGE . They usually involve instruction to enable persons to fulfill their new roles. Boys who under went labi initiation among the Gbaya in the Camer oons learned by doing. They lived on their own in the forest for several years. Other religions impart “book learning.” Hebrew instruction precedes bar and bat mitzvah; religion classes precede confir mation. Some initiations, such as CIRCUMCISION or the removal of hair, alter the body as well as the mind. inquisition, the A religious court established by the Roman Catholic Church in the early 1200s to try and convict heretics. Heretics are people who are members of the church by BAPTISM but who do not believe and practice C HRISTIAN ITY according to the church’s teachings. Until

Isaac In the B IBLE , the son of A BRAHAM and S ARAH and the father of J ACOB . With his father Abraham and his son Jacob, Isaac is one of the