What are six medieval issues found in The Pillars of the Earth? Fully describe the problem identified and comment about it.

Several issues exist in this novel.  One is the idea of building, but with a new design for the church.  Many new architectural ideas were being tried in the 12th century and the idea of building with an open design was radical,for what was to hold up the roof?  A second issue is that of the poverty of the ordinary citizen who has no recourse or source of help.  Tom Builder leaves his newborn son...

Several issues exist in this novel.  One is the idea of building, but with a new design for the church.  Many new architectural ideas were being tried in the 12th century and the idea of building with an open design was radical,for what was to hold up the roof?  A second issue is that of the poverty of the ordinary citizen who has no recourse or source of help.  Tom Builder leaves his newborn son by the grave of his wife because he is too poor to feed the child.  Another issue is the conflict between the small churches and the wealth of the central cathedral which basically owns the wealth of the small churches.  A fourth issue is the founding of a new town which is a place to trade and earn money for the local people.  The Builder family is instrumental in trying to establish their new town where Tom  is building the church, but also to include ways of keeping the money from tradespeople in the town.  A fifth issue is the constant fight between the local churches and the Bishop or Archbishop who has far more power.   The use of that power changes lives and keeps the conflict in the forefront of dealings with the powers of the church.  Behind the back stealing and lying by those in power changes who takes over the Builder's church when the prior dies.  The last issue I would bring up is the lack of knowledge of health care and how many people died because of this lack of knowledge.  The plague and other illnesses spread like wildfire because people travel to trade goods and bring the illnesses with them.

My comment to all of these issues is that all of these still apply in this time as well as back then.  Issues of poverty, power, unknown diseases, and church influence still exist today.  Even experimental building is a problem today as radical ideas are often looked at with skepticism. I did love the book and its sequel because I love historical novels.  This one was set in a difficult time in the world and you can see how the struggles and intrigue are still very relevant today.