The Medieval Rebels Who Rejected Church Power

Bogomilism was a powerful 10th-century sect that viewed the physical world as the creation of the devil. Its followers rejected traditional church hierarchy and rituals, arguing that only the spiritual realm was truly pure.

Starting in medieval Bulgaria, these dualists believed that all worldly authority was inherently evil because it was tied to the material world. This radical stance led them to organize as a direct challenge to the power of both the Orthodox Church and the state. Because they avoided traditional temples and clergy, their ideas spread quietly among the peasantry across the Balkans for centuries. Their unconventional teachings became such a perceived threat that they were widely persecuted as heretics throughout Europe.