Author Description

On March 16 1244. exactly 777 years ago, about 300 Cathars who were declared "heretics" were burned alive at Chateau de Montsegur. It is said that they walked onto the pyre willingly, chanting and singing, refusing to give up their beliefs and turn themselves over to the Catholic Church. This date, March 16, is called "Montségur Day" in remembrance of the 13th century Gnostics in France, the Cathars or Albigensians. They were among the first victims of the Inquisition and were persecuted greatly for their loving heresies. The Cathars made their final stand inside the mountain castle at Montségur; Conservative historians estimate that at least 250,000 Cathars were hunted down and executed in the following persecutions. The Cathars were among the finest Christians and the best flowering of Gnostic Christianity the world has ever known.