Medieval Christianity: The Popes

There has been a tendency in recent years to view the history of the early medieval papacy in predominantly, if not exclusively,ideological terms. This has resulted, Jeffrey Richards believes, in a one sided view of papal history, in which the major theme is the progressive and systematic elaboration of an idea of papal monarchy. In this study of the period that has been described as 'the Bizantine captivity of the papacy', Mr. Richards questions that view, arguing that while the papacy's power and responsibility grew during the period, it did so by a series of historical accidents rather than a coherent radical design. - Flap cover

Before the mid-eleventh century the pope was far from being the active leader of the Roman Catholic Church that he is today: he restricted himself to the local concerns of the diocese of Rome and was virtually ignored by the outside world. This book is a study of the transformation of the role of the pope in the twelfth century, from which he emerged as monarch of the universal Church, dedicated to reform and to making the Church independent of secular control. The most important role in the new model government was given to the cardinals, who hence forward were the principal advisers, agents and electors of the popes. These developments were accelerated by schism and political conflict: on three occasions the lawful pope was driven into exile by an antipope supported by a powerful secular ruler. Professor Robinson's text emphasizes the growing importance of the College of Cardinals and the practical aspects of papal government. It offers the most detailed analytical study yet available of this key period in the history of the western Church.

In this study of the centralization of ecclesiastical institutions, Kenneth Pennington draws upon the writings of church canon lawyers who interpreted the growing mass of decretal legislation. They outlined the pope's power and its limitations and interpreted papal decrees touching the constitutional position of the bishops. In principle the pope governed the church with his bishops; since the bishops often were rulers of local dioceses as well as members of the universal church, the issue of authority was, at best, a thicker of competing interests. Pennington shows us how issues crystallized, often over seemingly minor disputes - such as whether bishops had the sole right to grant permission to wandering priests to hear confessions and say mass within diocesan boundaries - and how resolution of these disputes evolved from the elucidation of rights to a theory of jurisdiction. -Flap cover.

This book surveys one of the most important periods in the history of the papacy-from the accession of St.Leo IX in 1049 to the death of Innocent IV in 1254.During this area,papal supremacy was installed as an institution of ecclesiastical government,and the papacy became an active force in instilling the principles of Christian living into European society.-Flap cover

The ninth-century biographies, as a semi-official papal chronicle, are one the most important sources for Italian history. Major themes preoccupying the popes of this period and their contemporary biographers were relations with the two empires, the Carolingian and the Byzantine. In the former case the popes were determined to maintain freedom of action while the Western emperors were concerned to exercise some influence in Rome. In the case of the Eastern Empire, the popes wished to maintain their independence, established in the previous century, yet to assert primacy over the Byzantine Church: hence their concern both to have their right to decide between claimants to the See of Constantinople acknowledged and assert jurisdiction in territory disputed between East and West (the legacy of this being sadly still with us). Rome itself was under threat:the Saracen invasion of AD 846 forms a high-point of the narrative. Yet, for all their problems, the popes continued building and richly endowing churches; the descriptions of objects of precious metal and of silks and other textiles are of major importance to art historians.

Concentrating on the popes and the antipopes, this book examines the perturbations of ecclesiastical reform from the mid-eleventh century to the reign of Gregory VII, pointing out what factors other than reform influenced the main personae. It demonstrates how a weak papacy reversed power with a strong empire.

This volume takes up where "Book of the Pontiffs" stopped, dealing with the next nine biographies from the "Liber Pontificalis" of the Roman Church down to AD 817. The biographies provide an Italian perspective on the events of the period, as well as being a useful source for art historians.

The author has examined the relations between the spiritual and the secular powers over a wide area of Christendom and produced a work which will be of interest to all historians of the late medieval and early modern period.particularly those specialising in conciliar thought and in Church history.-Back cover.

This collection of Latin texts, published in a new edition with an English translation, draws on the rich hagiographical corpus of Anastasius, papal diplomat, secretary and translator in late ninth-century Rome. The texts concern two controversial figures: Pope Martin I (649-653), whose opposition to the imperially sponsored doctrines of monoenergism and monothelitism saw him exiled to Cherson where he died in 655, and Maximus the Confessor, an Eastern monk condemned to suffer amputation and exile to Lazica for similar reasons in 662. The author seeks to place these works in their political context, namely the growing hostility between the eastern and western churches in the late ninth century, and to assess Anastasius's contribution to the deteriorating relations between the two through his translations of hagiography.

The comprehension of this study spans the thirteenth century commencing with the pontificate of Innocent III in order to observe the traditional methods used by the papacy to suppress heresy. After the institution of the Inquisition by Gregory IX and the definitive crystallization of its form and procedure under the succeeding popes a conclusion is made with the reign of Boniface VII. For with the fourteenth century the situation changed radically. The anti-sacerdotal and anti-social heresies of the preceding century were overshadowed by the conflicts between the papacy and the monarchs of France and England, the Babylonian Captivity of the popes at Avignon, the trial of the Templars, and the condemnation of the spiritual Franciscans.

Crusade, emerging as a sign of an assumed papal victory over the Emperor was always heavily influenced by the exigencies of papal needs, whether these were military or fiscal. The nature of the crusading movement changed with the changing shape of Latin Christendom, its beliefs and practices. Thus this book is an attempt to illustrate how, in the last years of the mainland Crusader States, papal needs in the west were at odds with the practical needs of the Franklin East, as was also the logic of certain doctrinal developments related to penance and the remission of sins.

Documents the story of Pope Celestine V, evaluating the views of his supporters and detractors while tracing his progression to the papacy and his decision to abdicate months later, discussing his choice's impact on the Catholic Church.

This book examines the scope and extent to which the East influenced Rome and the Papacy following the Justinian Reconquest of Italy in the middle of the sixth century through the pontificate of Zacharias and the collapse of the exarchate of Ravenna in 752.

As regards the Schism, no one was better placed or better qualified to discover the truth. His reaction suggests that the Urbanist case is a good deal less watertight than the more committed Church historians seem to assume. As a matter of fact, The Roman Church, wiser than some of her followers, has never made a dogmatic pronouncement. We are left, then, with a free choice. To the writer Peter appears as a conservative, as the last of the great autocratic popes of the medieval tradition, while those who find his story too disquieting may take refuge in the belief, supported by many prim authorities, that he was only an antipope. In any case his story is a warning. We are still searching for Unity of various kinds, and none of them will come easily. Peter's search led him into a cul-de-sac. It was a tragedy, for he had greatness in him. But the lives of his lesser contemporaries often cross the border into comedy or even farce. The Great Schism was an utterly fantastic episode, a reductio ad absurdum as complete as any in history. The absurdity is an essential element. The story would be incomplete without it. And to smile at the politics of religion need not always be a sign of impiety. -Encounter in Peniscola (Foreword)

A collection of manuscript studies, analyses, and their interpretations which previously appeared in various journals.

Out of this tumultuous Conclave of 1378, when the Cardinals in terror created two simultaneous Popes and then a third-old Tibaldeschi (who refused), Urban (who promised to abdicate), and finally (when Urban proved intractable) Clement VII - came the Great Schism of the West. Forty disastrous years of rival Popes, rival armies on the narch-years of moral chaos as the Church was split asunder, perhaps forever. Marzieh Gail recreates that turbulent age with the help of contemporary letters, memoirs and documents, superbly evoking the drama and texture of a world irrevocably divided between Urbanists, Clementines, and followers of John of Pisa. She uncovers the intricate web of intrigue running through all the courts of Europe, even to Islam. Above all, she brings to life the extraordinary men and women - saints, peasants, Kings, and the Popes themselves - who were the prime movers.