Is Margery Kempe a Heretic?

本文主要讲的是关于马哲是肯普异端进行分析阐述的essay范文。文中主要针对异端的这一词进行解释分析，进一步从试验的例子和例举的的事情、观点进行分析，最终得出的是根据异端的两个定义，它是很难证明肯普是一个异端。
According to the first definition of heresy, people who resists to the teaching of the church persistently and obstinately refuses to obey or retract is a heretic. According to the second definition, people who holds intentionally doctrine contrary to holy scripture and avows it publicly and defends it obstinately is a heretic. 
These two definitions are different. As we all know, the teaching of the church might be slightly different from the of the holy Scripture, since the teaching of the church derives from the personal interpretations of different churches. Thus, it is possible that teaching of one church might be different from that of another, slightly. 
When it comes to the application of the second definition, it is thorny, too. The judgment of to which extent one’s doctrine or opinion is contrary to the holy Scripture is based on personal interpretation of different people. It is possible that while both people think that their opinions are consistent with the holy Scripture, their opinions might be different or contrary to each other. Therefore it lapses into the difficulty of the first definition. However, both definitions share on factor, when considering whether a person is a heretic, the only way is to resort to his or her opinion. 
Now, it’s time to examine the two trials in order to figure out whether Kempe should be regarded as a heretic. On the trial of Leicester, the Archbishop ask the reason why Kempe was in white. She kneeled on her knees before him and replies, which means that she obeyed the rule or propriety made by the church—showing respect to the authority. And her reply that she was a wife shows no indignation that she held any opinion contrary to the church. When she was left alone, she made her prayers to our Lord God Almighty to help her, which shows that she has sincere religious Christian experiences. When the “Articles of our Faith” was presented to her, Kempe shows proficiency of the Articles. When she was challenged by the hearsay that she is a “right wicked woman”, she is outspoken to challenge the Archbishop that “so I hear that you are a wicked man”. Though this refutation is impolite, it shows no indignation that she hold doctrine contrary to the teaching of the church. Her refutation is convincing since she shows that ungrounded hearsay is not valid in an argument. When the Archbishop requires her to swear that she shall neither teach nor challenge people at his diocese, she shows great proficiency of her holy Scripture again and replied that she is not preaching. Thus, in the trial, it seems that the Archbishop runs out of any proof to show that she is a heretic. 
When she was convicted to be Lollard and was arrested by two yeomen. She shows calmness and replies, “I shall go with you wherever you will lead me.” On the second trial, the Archbishop even defends Kempe that “ I had this woman before me…and found no default in her”. But the friar indicted that she disproved all men of holy church and that she say she may weep and have contrition when she wishes. But, the fact that Kempe weep and have contrition shows that she has sincere Christian experience rather than that she is a heretic. The second accusation made by the friar is that “My Lord of Bedford is angry with her, and he will have her. However, this is not a proof at all, since the fact that the Lord is angry with her reveals no information about her opinion contrary to the teaching of the Church or the holy Scripture. Therefore, the Archbishop is not convinced by the friar and just wants to end this trial and says to the friar, “and you shall lead her to him (the Lord ) “ Obviously, the archbishop finds to evidence to prove her to be a heretic.
Though, according to the above examination, it is quiet hard to brand Kempe as a heretic, it’s time to stand on the position that Kempe is a heretic try to defend this ponsition by consider social factor which might help to defend this position. 
Previously, it is mentioned Kempe is in white and have frequent religious experience, showing that she is odd and behave in ways unacceptable to ordinary people. Commonsense tells us that people’s behavior and dressing are driven by their thoughts and view of world. Thus, we can infer or conjecture people’ opinion by their behavior and dressing. Thus, it is plausible that Archbishop asked the reason why Kempe was white. It seems that only maidens during that time were in white. However, Kempe reply that she was a wife. In wife in white was odd for people at that time, thus she might hold different or contrary opinion to the Church or to the holy Scripture. The second reason might drive us to brand her as a heretic is that she was too outspoken to refute the religious authority. During that time only heresy would refute the charge from the Archbishop. However, she refuted that “Sir, so I hear said that you are a wicked man. And, if you are as wicked as men say, you shall never come into heaven unless you amend yourself while you are here." The Archbishop seems to be so well-controlled and rational, since he was not annoyed by such outspoken language. However, if the one who was interrogating her was another ill-tempered Archbishop, Kempe might be charged as a heretic. The third clue which Kempe might be branded as a heretic is that she wept frequently and had contrition. This is also an oddness which indicated that she hold contrary opinion to the Church, since other Christians show no such behavior. Truly, we might infer that she was so devout that she show oddness. However, it is also possible that she had faith in other religious, while pretended to obey the rule of Christianity for the sake of oppression. 

In conclusion, according to the two definitions of heresy, it is hard to prove that Kempe was an heretic. That was the reason why her pilgrimage was safe, though she had been arrested and trialed time and time again. Tough I have try to prove that it is possible that she might be a heresy, it is only based on inference rather than outspoken language. 

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