Supernatural Cause

Next Turn wrote me the following.

Ill have to reply after the weekend... going camping!

Anyway I post my sources for the following claims when I return.
1. Most poeple beleived the plague has supernatural cause.
2. Rats were the way the disease spread across Europe.

I sursprised that I actually need to post sources for these claims since they are so main steam on the subject.
If you would like to help me, search for combinations of "Black Black", "God", "Bubonic Plague", "Rats" and "rodents" in google an look at the overwhelming refferences to these ideas.

I will also comment on your arguments.

Have good weekend.

TheNextTurn

I hope you enjoyed your camp-out.

Before you start looking up sources about how some people felt the plague was the wrath of God. Please look at what my real problems with your argument are.

My problem is not that some people might of have felt that their suffering was the wrath of God. I am sure many did.

Nor do I have problem believing that rats played a major role in transmitting the disease, they certainly did.

Here are the statements that I feel you need to support with evidence.

2. A majority of those people thought the best/only solution was through God. (prayer etc.) It is very apparent that the majority of people in Europe thought that plague was caused by a vengeful God or the devil, and/or the ONLY solution was through God.

I don’t think this is apparent at all. Just because a person views God as the Ultimate cause does not mean that they are unaware of a Proximate cause. If we were to follow this logic you would have to believe that Christians never try to solve problems because we believe God ultimately in control of the universe. Clearly that is false.

One could even argue that ignoring the principles found in the book of Amos really was the ultimate cause of the plague. If the rich elite had not ignored the terrible sanitary conditions in the poor quarters of the growing cities it is unlikely the plague would have been so bad.

Also, when I answered you. I answered as if you felt the bodies of the dead was a major factor in the disease. When I reread your argument I saw that I had mistaken what you were saying. We agree that rats were the major transmitter. But I think it is important to remember that the disease is airborne and direct contact contagious as well.

3. This closed off millions upon millions of minds from the actual causes of the plague and the appropriate actions needed to stop the spread of the disease.

This is the meat of the argument. But I don’t have any reason to believe that people were not perusing every possible answer to this disease.


5. This is re-affirmed the by large number of subsequent outbreaks in Europe during later centuries that were not as frequent in other places of the world that were equally effected by the plague during the 14th century.

Even if things were handed better later, I don’t know what this would have to do with religious belief. I also don’t know what the plague in other locations has to do with religion either.

Please focus on these issues. I feel like we agree on your points 1 and 4. I am not sure what point 5 has to do with our discussion.

Have a nice week.