The Perfect Heresy [Stephen O'Shea]

[Cathars] [Millenarianism] [Utopia]

The Perfect Heresy

Stephen O'Shea

Walker and Company, NY. 2000. First edition paperback. A bit of soiling and a few small creases, quite fine otherwise. A very good copy.

From the publisher:

"Stephen O’Shea tells the story of the Cathar movement, which arose in Languedoc during the 12th century and whose adherents held the heretical belief that the world was created by a force of darkness. He explains how the popularity of their ideas brought the Cathars into conflict with both Church and monarchy, resulting in their persecution in the brutal Albigensian Crusade and at the hands of the newly established Inquisition."

A house favorite, The Perfect Heresy is a lively retelling of the brutal history of the Cathars, who met their end during the depraved Albigensian crusade - a first test for the newly formed inquisition. Body counts into the tens of thousands folks - not good. If you're like me, you take great pleasure in imagining the world of the past. Fresh water, clean air, endless bounty, and imaginal entities flourishing into world scorching egregores of inflamed religiosity.