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The Roman Catholic Church has often held mortification of the flesh (literally, "putting the flesh to death"), as a worthy spiritual discipline. The practice is rooted in the Bible: in the asceticism of the Old and New Testament saints, and in its theology, such as the remark by Saint Paul, in his Epistle to the Romans, where he states: "If you live a life of nature, you are marked out for ...
By the 11th century, the use of the discipline for Christians who sought to practice the mortification of the flesh became ubiquitous throughout Christendom. [11] In the Roman Catholic Church, the discipline is used by some austere Catholic religious orders. [12]
Mortification of the flesh is an act by which an individual or group seeks to mortify or deaden their sinful nature, as a part of the process of sanctification. [ 1 ] In Christianity , mortification of the flesh is undertaken in order to repent for sins and share in the Passion of Jesus . [ 2 ]
Self-flagellation is the disciplinary and devotional practice of flogging oneself with whips or other instruments that inflict pain. [1] In Christianity , self-flagellation is practiced in the context of the doctrine of the mortification of the flesh and is seen as a spiritual discipline .
Over time, acts of charity began to replace the practice of self-flagellation. The Confraternity of Saint Lazarus in Marseille was founded in 1550 and undertook as its charitable work the maintenance of a local leper hospital. [2] Confraternities were actively involved in their communities. [3]
Spugna. A spugna is an instrument of penance used by some Christians who practice mortification of the flesh. [1] With the word "spugna" literally meaning "sponge", a spugna is made from a circular piece of cork that contains metal studs, metal spikes, or needles. [1]
Mortification in Christian theology refers to the subjective process of Sanctification. It means the 'putting to death' of sin in a believer's life. ( Colossians 3:5) Reformed theologian J.I. Packer describes it in the following way: "The Christian is committed to a lifelong fight against the world, the flesh and the devil.
The practice became popular in 1260 thanks to the example of Blessed Raniero Fasani of Perugia, [2] [3] a saintly hermit who began scourging himself publicly after receiving an apparition of the Virgin Mary and St. Bevignate who told him to start preaching penance for sins and to establish peace. [4]