This essay attempts to ascertain certain details about the life and thought of Valdes, a layman Christian thinker, who was condemned by the Roman Catholic Church as a heresiarch in the late 12 th century Valdes was a wealthy merchant in Lyons when he had a sudden conversion, he abandoned his fortune and began to preach without license or the approval of Church officials Nevertheless, he won wide support among the populace Valdes's main motivation centered on the appeal of the true apostolic life, to which it appears he was smglemindedly guided by his socio-rehgious position in contemporary society In those days, some common people became wealthy ty accumulating property and promoted themselves to a higher social status. Religious roles assigned by the Church to laymen like Valdes, however, were still very minimal in those days Thus, Valdes's religious zeal and the social means he utilized to express himself as a religionist were definitely out of proportion For Valdes, the salvation of the soul was paramount, thus, given such a spiritual-social situation, his proselytizing actions assumed radical forms In those days, there were many other men and women of a similar spiritual nature who led lives akin to that of Valdes and who joined like-minded religious movements. Not only evangelical heretics like Valdes but also dualist heretics such as Cathan and Pubhcam represented comparable trends of evangelical awakening in that particular age Scholars have often treated Valdes's role and positionm an exaggerated manner, completely disregarding his social background Herein, I have tried to present a more balanced position of Valdes's life and thought in the general milieu of contemporary lay piety This approach in no way diminishes Valdes's historical importance His radicalism surely contributed to spurring on the introduction of lay religious zeal into the spiritual and ecclesiastical life of the time It can be said that the conversion and proselytism of Valdes acted as a mirror reflecting 12 th century European religious activity
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