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Medieval Society

Oratores

By "those who pray" medieval writers meant the members of the clergy. This included not only ordained priests. It included also all members of monastic communities as well as those who were in "minor orders". I'll talk about those groups later. Modern writers, when needing to refer to the whole body of "those who pray" will usually use the word "clergy", which is what I will do.

The clergy held a special position in Christian society (it should be noted that members of the clergy of other faiths—most notably the Jews—were definitely not counted among the oratores). They held numerous legal privileges. They were subject to their own body of laws. They were held to a different standard of behavior and the rest of society held special expectations of them.

In a deeply profound sense, the clergy were the guardians of society. They prayed for souls, of both the living and the dead. They performed the services that kept the spiritual order of society: baptisms, marriages, confession, catechism, communion, and so on. Just as a king or duke guarded the physical frontiers of society, administered justice and extended protection; so did the clergy defend the spiritual frontiers, administered or arbitrated divine justice, and mediated divine protection. And, even though the educated clergy discouraged this sort of thing, the local priest performed almost shaman-like duties: he might bless a crop or a new building, ring the church bell during a storm, or cast out some demon from a nearby spring or forest.

In short, the clergy was a clearly-defined social group. They were identified separately in law, in dress, in where they resided, and perhaps most significantly in that they were not allowed to marry.

They were not, however, a homogeneous group. The two most obvious groups were priests and monks, who had a different origin and different functions. Beyond that, there was an interior hierarchy of power and wealth and status. There was wide gap between an archbishop or cardinal and a poor village priest. I'll talk about that aspect as well.