The Black Death and the Transformation of Medieval Christian Faith

SSR

Scientific and Social Research

2661-43322981-9946

Bio-Byword Scientific Publishing Pty. Ltd.

10.26689/ssr.v8i9.15755

Article

The Black Death and the Transformation of Medieval Christian Faithhttps://artdesignp.com/journal/SSR/8/9/10.26689/ssr.v8i9.15755ChenAndi

2026

2026-10-21

The Black Death that swept across Europe in the 14th century caused massive loss of European lives and profoundly shook the medieval Christian faith system. The reality of death disintegrated the traditional sacred order and triggered a faith crisis from three dimensions: theodicy logic, secular authority of the Church, and public mental‑psychological state. The catastrophe forced people’s spiritual cognition to turn toward the individual and brought about an overall transformation of Christian faith. This transformation weakened the discourse power of the Church, bred early humanism, provided ideological conditions for the Renaissance and the Reformation, and became a crucial opportunity for Europe’s transition from theocentric to human‑centered civilization.The Black Death, Christian faith, Faith transformation, Humanism, Medieval Europe

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