Between the years 600 AD and 1450 AD in Europe, there was only one thing that remained constant, and that was the Roman Catholic Church. The church continued to have a great influence on the people of Europe and most of the region continued to believe in every single thing the church preached. The only thing that didn't remain constant was who had power over the church and how the church made sure everyone followed the rules they created. The church has had different teachings over many years. It was also used as a tool by the rulers of the time. The Catholic Church made its own laws and owned land. The Roman Catholic Church collected taxes, service charges, and even accepted gifts from people who wanted a guaranteed "place" in Heaven. The Church also had the power to influence kings and rulers. The Church helped by publicly supporting the kings and in return, the Church was granted reasonable amounts of land and the clergy were given essential positions within the King's Court, which gave the Church the ability to manipulate politics and laws. The Church has enacted many laws that include the involuntary conversions of heretics and the stifling of anti-church influences that might persuade other people to leave the Church and become heretics. This demonstrated the immense authority the Roman Catholic Church had over the people. Blasphemy (speaking against God or anything considered sacred) was considered a capital crime (i.e. punishable by death). Unlike today, the Church had a close relationship with the State. There was practically no division between secular and state affairs. The secular law that existed during the Middle Ages in Europe stated that all crimes committed we... middle of paper... religious persecutions perpetrated by the Roman Catholic Church began to decline and the relationship between the Church and State became a dichotomy . In conclusion, the Roman Catholic Church had a great influence on the people of Europe and changed people's lives in many ways. Works Cited1) "403 Forbidden". www.pbs.org. nd Web.09 12 2013. .2) “The religion of the library and the Catholic culture of the Middle Ages”. www.catholicculture.org. 2013 Web.09 12 2013. .3) "Religion in the Middle Ages". library.thinkquest.org. nd Web.09 12 2013. .4) “The religion of the Middle Ages”. www.lordsandladies.org. nd Web.09 12 2013. .