The Flagellants were a group of radical Christians who punished themselves in hopes of ending negative aspects of society, mainly the plague. Many desperate people who believed the plague would end the world blamed the sin of the world for the Black Death. Their name comes from the Latin word flagella which means "whips". The Flagellants believed God was responsible for the plague, and, by their self-torture, God would end the plague. The Flagellants would go into a town and create major scenes with spiritual dances and hymns. Their movement would spread all over Europe during the time of the plague. The first recorded incident of the Flagellants was recorded in Perugia in 1259. The motive behind the Flagellant's self mutilation was most likely related to repenting in the name of God. They believed that if God witnessed his subjects punishing themselves, maybe he wouldn't feel the need to continue spreading the plague.
http://www.wwnorton.com/college/english/nael/images/20thc/Flagellants.jpg
The most noticeable example of modern day flagellants is Silas from the da Vinci Code
Sources
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flagellant
Strayer Pg. 561
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