e it more
terrible. "The long-continued teaching of the church, that persistent
heresy was the one crime for which there could be no pardon or excuse,
seemed to deprive even the wisest and purest of all power of reasoning
where it was concerned."[542]

+241. The ordeal.+ The doctrines and sentiments of this early age were
seed planted to produce an immeasurable crop in the eleventh and twelfth
centuries, when they were brought forth again and quoted with the
authority of the church fathers. The ordeal is a question addressed to
the superior powers in order to learn the truth. The question is always
categorical: Is this man guilty or not? The irrationality is that there
is a third possibility which cannot be tested; the superior powers may
not answer at all. In the early Middle Ages the ordeal was in common use
in all civil and ecclesiastical trials. Experience proved the fallacy of
it. We are led to believe that the people of the dark ages, not yet
being locked in dogmatism, although stupid and ignorant, were better
able to learn from experience than those of later times. Innocent III,
in 1212, forbade the use of the ordeal, the occasion being its use by
the Bishop of Strasburg against heretics.[543] The Lateran Council of
1215 forbade ecclesiastics to take any part in ordeals. It is perhaps
true that torture was introduced from the Roman law after the ordeal was
ruled out.[544]

+242. Irrationality of torture.+ Torture was far more irrational than
the ordeal. The Roman authorities had recorded warnings of its
fallacy.[545] Torture destroys nerve power, will, and consciousness.
There comes a point at which the victim will assent to anything to
escape pain, or to get a quick and easy death. Therefore "confessions"
under torture are of no value. Ulpian said of it, "_Res est fragilis et
periculosa et quae veritatem fallat_."[546] One of the templars said
that if he was tortured further he would confess that he had murdered
the Saviour. Another said that he would confess anything if he was
tortured further, although he was ready to suffer any death for the
Order of Templars. He would confess that he had killed the mother of
God.[547] A heretic under torture cried out that Christ, if so treated,
would be proved a heretic.[548] Bernard Delicieux declared before King
Philip that Peter and Paul could be convicted of heresy by the methods
of the inquisitors.[549] Count Frederick von Spee, a Jesuit who opposed
the witch persecu