Catharism
name
name ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 a Christian movement considered to be a medieval descendant of Manichaeism in southern France in the 12th and 13th centuries; characterized by dualism (asserted the coexistence of two mutually opposed principles, one good and one evil); was exterminated for heresy during the Inquisition wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A Christian religious sect of mediaeval Europe, with dualistic and gnostic elements; condemned as a heresy by Pope Innocent III in 1209. historical
Example
More examples"In Europe, Cathari were a sect at odds with the Catholic Church during the 11th to 13th centuries. They believed in 2 gods, the evil Creator God Rex Mundi and Jesus. Like Marcionites in the 2nd and 3rd centuries, Cathari in the Middle Ages were dualistic. It is unclear whether Catharism was a continuation of Marcionite thinking."
Etymology
From Cathar + -ism.
More for "catharism"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.