Lichwa i sprawy majątkowe chrześcijan w świetle postanowień zachodniorzymskich zgromadzeń biskupich IV i V w.

Abstrakt

In this article I tried to prove that bishops from western part of Roman Empire in the IVth and Vth century were concerned about social problems like usury and property issues related to the acquisition of wealth. The bishops on their synods discussed many problems. Usury has been criticized on many synods. The bishops also took up matter of trade and simony. Christians were ordered to refrain from greed. Moreover, it was not allowed to enrich themselves unfairly and to sell a goods of Church. These problems were discussed. Especially usury was hard to eradicate, which proves next canons published by the next synods in the period of time. At the end, the best opinion about that issue was told by Jesus Christ: „It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers” (Lc 19,47).