{4}Christine, spoke, "My lady, I realize that women have accomplished many good things and that even if evil women have done evil, it seems to me, nevertheless, that the benefits accrued and still accruing because of good women-particularly the wise and literary ones and those educated in the natural sciences whom I mentioned above-outweigh the evil. Therefore, I am amazed by the opinion of some men who claim that they do not want their daughters, wives, or kinswomen to be educated because their mores would be ruined as a result." She responded, Here you can clearly see that not all opinions of men are based on reason and that these men are wrong…How could anyone think or believe that whoever follows good teaching or doctrine is the worse for it? Such an opinion cannot be expressed or maintained. . . . {6}Thus, not all men (and especially the wisest) share the opinion that it is bad for women to be educated. But it is very true that many foolish men have claimed this because it displeased them that women knew more than they did.

Women are imperfect creatures, and consequently have less dignity than men, and that they are not capable of the virtues that men are capable of. . . . Very learned men have written that, since nature always intends and plans to make things most perfect, she would constantly bring forth men if she could; and that when a woman is born, it is a defect or mistake of nature, and contrary to what she would wish to do: . . . Thus, a woman can be said to be a creature produced by chance and accident. …We ought not on that account to despise them, or fail to show them the respect which is their due. But to esteem them to be more than what they are seems a manifest error to me.

“No one shall have the right to use a writing from our lord, the King, or our lady, the Queen, or any other lord or lady, or any other person, whether by persuasion or intimidation, to compel a Jewess to accept a Jew, or to compel a Jew to accept a Jewess, in betrothal or marriage. Whoever transgresses this ordinance shall be declared anathema and excommunicate, his bread the bread of Samaritans, and his wine the wine of libations, he shall not be buried among Jews, and he shall pay a fine of five thousand maravedis according to the order of the Rabbi of the Court. …We ordain that no marriage shall be performed except in the presence of ten adult Israelites one of them being a relative of the bride. If the father or the brother of the bride is in the neighborhood they must be present to give their consent. The minister of the Congregation must recite the benedictions of the marriage. Whoever will transgress this law, shall be declared anathema and excommunicate and incapacitated to act as witness. He shall receive one hundred lashes and pay a fine of ten thousand maravedi as the Rabbi of the Court will order. No one is permitted to act as a witness to a marriage that is not performed in accordance with the above mentioned ordinance, even though the bride has become engaged to the man with the consent of her father.”

The Regulations of Avignon, 1243 “Likewise we declare that Jews or whores shall not dare to touch with their hands either bread or fruit put out for sale, and that if they should do this they must buy what they have touched.”

Jacob von Konigshofen, “The Cremation of the Strasbourg Jews”, 1349 “In the year 1349 there occurred the greatest epidemic that ever happened. Death went from one end of the earth to the other…And from what this epidemic came, all wise teachers and physicians could only say that it was God’s will...In the matter of this plague the Jews throughout the world were reviled and accused in all lands of having caused it through the poison which they are said to have put into the water and the wells—that is what they were accused of—and for this reason the Jews were burnt all the way from the Mediterranean into Germany…and everything that was owed to the Jews was canceled, and the Jews had to surrender all pledges and notes that they had taken for debts. The council, however, took the cash that the Jews possessed and divided it among the working-men proportionately. The money was indeed the thing that killed the Jews. If they had been poor and if the lords had not been in debt to them, they would not have been burnt…”

“Women should be subject to their men. The natural order for mankind is that women should serve men…for it is just that the lesser serve the greater. The image of God is in man and it is one. Women were drawn from man…therefore woman is not made in God’s image. Woman’s authority is nil; let her in all things be subject to the rule of man…and neither can she teach, nor be a witness, nor give a guarantee, nor sit in judgment. Adam was beguiled by Eve, not she by him. It is right that he whom woman led into wrongdoing should have her under his direction, so that he may not fail a second time…”

“Her Majesty understanding that there are of late divers(e) Blackmoores brought into the Realm, of which kind of people there are all ready here too many, where many for want of Service…fall to idleness; Her Majesty’s pleasure therefore is, that those kind of people should be sent forth from the land.

“There shall be a daily allotment of three gallons a day to each monk.”

“The art of printing can be of great service in so far as it furthers the circulation of useful and tested books; but it can bring about serious evils if it is permitted to widen the influence of [controversial] works. It will, therefore, be necessary to maintain full control over the printers so that they may be prevented from bringing into print writings which are antagonistic to the Catholic faith or which are likely to cause trouble to believers.”

*This question contains three parts; make sure that you fully answer all parts of the question!