THE STORY OF POPE BENEDICT VI

Here is a story of a difficult episode in Church history. Benedict was a Roman, whose father, Hildebrand, was of German descent. In the past 35 years, Otto, the Holy Roman Emperor, a German, had been a controlling factor of the papacy and Italian politics. Benedict...

POPE JOHN XIII

Lateran basilica, where Pope John XIII grew up and served If you have been following this series, you will remember that Theophylact, virtual controller of Rome, and his wife, Theodora, were able to run the politics of the Catholic Church from the beginning of the...

HOW POPE LEO VIII WAS BOTH A POPE AND AN ANTIPOPE

Pope Leo VIII is seen as both an antipope and a pope. Let me explain…. Born in Rome, around 915, Leo was the son of a well-known noble family. His father was the protonotary, or the palace notary for the papal chancery, a layman. Leo followed in his father’s...

POPE JOHN X, SUPPORTER OF REFORM

Stories abound regarding John’s origins. Some say he was the son of Pope Sergius IV and his mistress, Marozia, daughter of Theophylact, the virtual ruler of Rome for many years. Others say he was the son of John, born in Tossignano, in Bologna. He seems to have been a...

A History of Popes: Leo V and Antipope Christopher

Originally printed at catholic365.com on October 23, 2020: At the beginning of the 10th century, the pope did not have jurisdiction over most of the Papal States. That privilege was argued over by the Holy Roman Emperor and the various kings of the Italian peninsula....