Cassie holds a master's degree in history and has spent five years teaching history and the humanities from ancient times to the Renaissance.
You have probably heard of Pope Francis. He oversees the spiritual needs of all one billion Catholics in the world and was elected in 2013 by a council of cardinals, who are high ranking bishops. Today, the pope is recognized throughout the world as the supreme spiritual authority in the Catholic Christian Church. In previous centuries, the popes were so powerful even kings and emperors thought twice about crossing them. However, did you know that there was a span of many centuries where very few Catholics cared what the pope said or even who he was?
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The term pope is derived from the Latin word papa, meaning 'father.' In the early centuries of Christianity, it was commonly used by many Christian bishops, who are high ranking priests who administer urban areas and surrounding territories. Eventually, however, the term 'pope' became associated with only one bishop, the bishop of Rome, and his authority came to cover all Catholics, not just those in Rome. Here, we will only use the term 'pope' to refer to the bishop of Rome.
Some facts about early bishops of Rome:
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Starting in the 5th century, the powerful bishop of Rome (i.e. the pope) starting putting forth the Petrine Doctrine, which stated that Jesus wished St. Peter - and therefore, all bishops of Rome after him - to head the entire Church.
At this time, the Roman Empire had collapsed in Western Europe, and there was not a lot of long distance communication. Not only did few people take notice of the doctrine, but it was practically impossible to enforce anyway.
As Europe became more organized, the pope became more and more influential, and the Petrine Doctrine was put to practical use. Now the pope was truly seen as the spiritual authority over all Catholics, not just those in Rome.
He was so powerful that, by the 11th century, there was considerable struggle between kings and popes over ultimate authority. One of the biggest issues was the Investiture Controversy. This concerned who would appoint local bishops. The problem is when a bishop was appointed, he gained land within a king's territory, so that brought up the question of who - the king or the pope - should get to choose who would be a bishop.
The most well-known conflict on the matter happened between Emperor Henry IV of the Holy Roman Empire and Pope Gregory VII. Gregory excommunicated Henry, meaning Henry could not partake of Church rituals. Fearing for his soul, Henry begged for forgiveness, and Gregory gave it. Henry then immediately began attempting to overthrow the pope, and Gregory did similarly in response.
By the early 14th century, the Church was at the height of its power. In 1302, Pope Boniface VIII issued Unam Sanctum, which declared submission to the pope was vital for salvation. It also stated spiritual authority was more powerful than secular authority, thus claiming supreme authority over even kings.
King Philip IV of France, with whom Boniface had already been feuding, responded with a variety of criminal and immoral accusations against the pope, and many bishops sided with him. The pope was captured, beaten, and died shortly afterward, and no pope attempted to put forth a claim similar to Unam Sanctum again.
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In the early 16th century, people started successfully questioning Catholicism and forming their own churches. These people became known as Protestants. While the Protestants disagreed on several issues, one of the things they all agreed on was that one person should not be in charge of all Christians. Thus, they objected to the very role of the pope.
One of the reasons so many people agreed with Protestants on this matter was because the popes at the time were behaving very scandalously. Some had children out of wedlock. They took and paid bribes. They lived extravagant lives and were visited by prostitutes. Many people thought this was not the correct way for a spiritual man to behave.
Since the Protestant Reformation, the pope's authority has continued to decline. Non-Catholics do not recognize his authority at all, while Catholics have a wide variety of opinions as to how much control the pope should have over their lives. The pope regularly speaks out on a variety of topics, particularly ones involving ethics and morality, but world leaders have no obligation to agree or follow.
The role of the pope as changed dramatically over the last 2000 years. At first, he was merely the bishop of Rome. After Christianity was legalized, his authority started to slowly spread per the Petrine Doctrine. Eventually, he became so powerful, kings and emperors argued with him on issues, such as the Investiture Controversy, and they feared punishments, such as excommunication. By the 16th century, however, the popes' authority had waned, a process that has continued into today. Still, he is a powerful spiritual leader over the one billion people who belong to the Catholic Church today.
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