Benedict Us2005/04/19 18:43
I think they might be doing a reprint soon...
Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it.
So...
Benedict I
Benedict I was pope from June 2, 575 to 579. He succeeded Pope John III, and occupied the Papal chair during the incursions of the Lombards, and during the series of plagues and famines which followed these invasions. Few of the records of transactions outside Rome that help us understand the history of the Papacy survive from Benedict's reign, and perhaps because of the disruption of the Lombards in Italy few ever existed.
Benedict II
Benedict II was pope from 684 to 685. He succeeded Leo II, but although chosen in 683 he was not ordained till 684, because the leave of the Emperor Constantine IV Pogonatus was not obtained until some months after the election. He obtained from the Emperor a decree which either abolished imperial confirmations altogether or made them obtainable from the exarch in Italy.
He is the patron saint of Europe.
Benedict III
Benedict III was reportedly Pope from 855 to 7 April, 858. However legend places the three-year-term of Pope Joan between the reigns of Pope Leo IV and Benedict. Thus only accepting a term of a few months for him.
Prior to his election, Benedict had a reputation for learning and piety, and elected on the refusal of the initial choice of clergy and people, Hadrian: a group of important people preferred Anastasius. This latter group had Benedict's election disavowed and Anastasius installed. However popular opinion was so strong that Benedict's consecration was allowed. The Emperor Louis II's envoys forced Benedict to handle Anastasius and adherents leniently. The schism helped to weaken the hold of the emperors upon the popes, especially upon their elections.
Benedict intervened in the conflict between the sons of Lothair I (the future Lothair II, Louis II and Charles the Bald) on the latter's death. He was active in other cases and adopted a firm position towards Constantinople.
Aethelwulf of Wessex and his son, the future Alfred the Great visited Rome in Benedict's reign.
Benedict IV
Benedict IV was pope from c. 900-903. He was the son of Mammalus, a native of Rome. The tenth century historian Frodoard commended his noble birth and public generosity. Benedict upheld the ordinances of Pope Formosus, whose rotting corpse was exhumed by Pope Stephen VI and put on trial in the infamous "Cadaver Synod" of 897. In 901, when the Carolingian emperors disappeared, Benedict could follow the example of Pope Leo III and crown Louis of Provence. In his reign, he crowned Louis the Blind as Holy Roman Emperor and excommunicated Baldwin II, Count of Flanders, for murdering Fulk, Archbishop of Reims. He died in the summer of 903 and was buried in front of St. Peter's by the gate of Guido. He succeeded Pope John IX and was followed by Pope Leo V.
Benedict V
Benedict V (died July 4, 965), Pope (22 May 964 - 23 June 964), was elected by the Romans on the death of John XII. However the Roman emperor Otto I did not approve of the choice, had him deposed after only a month, and the ex-pope was carried off to Hamburg where he became a deacon, dying in July 965.
At the synod which deposed him the pastoral staff was broken over him by Leo VIII; this is the first mention of the papal sceptre.
Benedict VI
Benedict VI, Pope (972 - 974), was chosen with great ceremony and installed pope under the protection of the Emperor Otto the Great. On the death of the emperor the turbulent citizens of Rome renewed their outrages, and the pope himself was strangled by order of Crescentius, the son of the notorious Theodora.
Benedict VII
Pope Benedict VII (died 983) belonged to the noble family of the counts of Tusculum. He governed Rome quietly for nearly nine years, a somewhat rare thing in those days.
Benedict's date of birth is not known with certainty; the years 974 and 975 have been conjectured.
Benedict was related to Prince Alberic II, and connected to the Crescenti family. He succeeded to the papacy as a compromise candidate, to replace Antipope Boniface VII. Boniface was excommunicated and unsuccessfully attempted to retake the papacy.
Benedict promoted monasticism and ecclesiastical reform along with Emperor Otto II.
In March 981, he presided over a Synod in St Peter's that prohibited simony. [Whahaenote: The buying or selling of ecclesiastical pardons, offices, or emoluments.]
In September 981, he convened a Lateran Synod.
Benedict VIII
Benedict VIII, né Theophylactus (died April 9, 1024), pope (1012-1024), of the noble family of the counts of Tusculum, descended from Theophylact, Count of Tusculum like his predecessor Benedict VI, was opposed by an antipope Gregory, who compelled him to flee from Rome. He was restored by Henry II of Germany, whom he crowned emperor in 1014. In his pontificate the Saracens renewed their attacks on the southern coasts of Europe, and effected a settlement in Sardinia. The Normans also then began to settle in Italy.
Benedict IX
Benedict IX, né Theophylactus (c. 1012 - maybe 1055, 1065, or 1085) was pope from 1032 to 1045. The son of Alberich III, count of Tusculum, Benedict was nephew of Pope Benedict VIII and Pope John XIX. His father obtained the Papal chair for him, granting it to his son in October 1032.
It has been stated that Benedict was no older than twelve when made pontiff. Some sources even claim eleven. If this were true, then he would be the youngest pope ever. But the Catholic Encyclopedia [1] (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/) and other sources claim that he was around 18 to 20 years old. Since his precise date of birth is unknown, we can say with certainty only that he must have been one of the youngest popes.
Benedict was entirely unsuited to be pontiff; he reportedly led an extremely dissolute life, although in terms of theology and the ordinary activities of the Church he was entirely orthodox. He was briefly forced out of Rome in 1036 and needed the support of Emperor Conrad II to return. In January 1044 he was forced from the city again and replaced by Silvester III, sometimes considered an antipope. Benedict's forces returned in April and expelled his rival.
Benedict then resigned in June possibly desiring to marry, selling his office to Priest John Gratian, his godfather (possibly for over 650 kg of gold). Gratian became Pope Gregory VI in May, 1045. Benedict apparently soon regretted the sale and returned to try to depose Gregory; Silvester also re-emerged to make his claim.
Benedict retook Rome and remained on the throne until July 1046. King Henry III intervened and at the Council of Sutri in December 1046 Benedict and Silvester were deprived of their offices and Gregory was encouraged to resign, Benedict did not actually attend. The German Bishop Suidger was crowned Pope Clement II. Benedict rejected this and when Clement II died in October 1047 he seized the Lateran Palace in November, but was driven away in July 1048 and Poppo of Brixen as Damasus II finally succeeded Clement. Benedict refused to appear on charges of simony in 1049 and was excommunicated.
Benedict's fate is obscure, he may have given up and resigned the pontificate, dying around 1065 in the Abbey of Grottaferrata. Other sources say he died in 1085. Pope Leo IX may have lifted the ban on him. Another report is that he continued to seek support for a return but died in January 1055 or 1056.
Benedict X aka Antipope Benedict X
Pope Benedict X (reigned 1058-1059; died c. 1073 or 1080), was born John Minicus, and later became Cardinal Bishop of Velletri. He was elected in 1058, his election having been arranged by the Count of Tusculum. However, a number of Cardinals alleged that the election was irregular, and that votes had been bought; these cardinals were forced to flee Rome. Hildebrand, later Pope Gregory VII, had been sent by the late Pope Stephen X to the court of Empress Agnes (mother and regent for Holy Roman Emperor Henry III, then a minor), who had questioned the validity of Stephen X's election. When, on his return to Rome, he heard of Benedict X's election, he decided to oppose it, and obtained the support of the Duke of Lorraine-Tuscany and Empress Agnes for the election of Gerhard of Burgundy, Bishop of Florence, as Pope instead. Those cardinals who had opposed Benedict X's election met at Siena in December 1058, and elected Hildebrand's candidate as Pope, who then took the name Nicholas II.
Nicholas II proceeded towards Rome, along the way holding a synod at Sutri, where he pronounced Benedict X deposed and excommunicated. The supporters of Nicholas II then gained control of Rome, and forced Benedict X to flee to the castle of Gerard of Galeria. Having arrived in Rome, Nicholas II then proceeded to wage war against Benedict X and his supporters, with Norman assistance. An initial battle was fought in Campagna in early 1059, which was not wholly successful for Nicholas II; but later that same year, his forces conquered Praeneste, Tusculum and Numentanum, and then attacked Galeria, forcing Benedict X to surrender and renounce the Papacy.
Benedict X was then allowed to go free, and he retired to one of his family estates; but Hildebrand then had him imprisoned in 1060 in the hospice of St. Agnese, where he died, still a prisoner, sometime around 1073 or 1080.
The most important consequence of the affair of Benedict X was the adoption of new laws on papal elections, at a synod hosted by Nicholas II in the Lateran Palace at Easter 1059.
Benedict XI
Benedict XI, né Nicholas Boccasini (1240 -July 7, 1304), pope (1303 - 1304), succeeded the famous Boniface VIII, but was unable to carry out his Ultramontane policy. Benedict had a Dominican education, and when he was made Master General of the order in 1296, he issued ordinances forbidding public questioning of the legitimacy of Boniface's election on the part of any Dominican. Though at the time of the seizing of pope Boniface at Anagni (q.v.), Boccasini was one of only two cardinals to defend the papal party in the Lateran Palace itself, still, upon being made pope, he released Philip the Fair of France from the excommunication that had been laid upon him by Boniface, and practically ignored the bull Unam sanctam. Nevertheless, on June 7, 1304, he excommunicated Philip IV's implacable minister, William of Nogaret, and all the Italians who had captured Boniface at Anagni.
After a brief pontificate of eight months, Benedict died suddenly at Perugia. It was suspected, not altogether without reason, that his sudden death was caused by poisoning through the agency of Nogaret. Benedict's successor, Clement V, and the popes who succeeded him were completely under the influence of the kings of France, and removed the Papal seat from Rome to Avignon, sometimes known as the Babylonian Captivity.
Benedict XI was the author of a volume of sermons and commentaries on the Gospel of Matthew, on the Psalms, the Book of Job, and John's Apocalypse.
Benedict XII
Benedict XII, née Jacques Fournier (c.1280s - April 24, 1342), was pope from 1334 to 1342.
Little is known of the origins of Jacques Fournier. He is believed to have been born in Saverdun in the Comté de Foix around the 1280s to a family of modest means. He became as Cistercian monk and left to study at the University of Paris. In 1311 he was made Abbot of Fontfroid and quickly became known for his intelligence and rigorous organization. In 1317 he was promoted to be Bishop of Pamiers. There he pursued a rigorous witch hunt for heretics, which won him plaudits from the Vatican but alienated him from the local population. His effect on the simple Cathars of Montaillou high in the Aričge was documented by the historian Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie's pioneering work of microhistory Montaillou, village occitan. In 1326, successful at rooting out the last, it was thought, of the heretics of the south, he was made Bishop of Mirepoix. A year later he was made a Cardinal.
He succeeded Pope John XXII as Pope in 1334, but did not carry out the policy of his predecessor. He practically made peace with the Emperor Louis, and as far as possible came to terms with the Franciscans, who were then at odds with the Roman see.
He was a reforming pope, and tried to curb the luxury of the monastic orders, but without much success. He also ordered the construction on the Palais des Papes in Avignon. He spent most of his time working on questions of theology, he rejected many of the ideas developed by John XXII and campaign against the Immaculate Conception. He engaged in long theological debates with other noted figures of the age such as William of Ockham and Meister Eckhart.
Benedict XIII
For Pedro de Luna, see Antipope Benedict XIII.
Benedict XIII, born Pietro Francesco Orsini, and later in religion Vincenzo Maria Orsini (Gravina di Puglia, February 2, 1649 - February 23, 1730) was pope from 1724 to 1730. He succeeded Innocent XIII in 1724. At first, he called himself Benedict XIV (due to the superstition alleging that the number thirteen brings bad luck), but afterwards altered the title. He was a reforming pope and endeavoured to put a stop to the decadent lifestyles of the Italian priesthood and of the cardinalate. He was a member of the great Orsini family of Rome, and the last member of that family to become Pope.
Antipope Benedict XIII
Luna, Pedro de (pa'thro da lu'nä) , 1328?–1423?, Aragonese churchman, antipope (1394–1417) with the name Benedict XIII. He was a doctor of canon law and as cardinal (1375) became an outstanding member of the Curia Romana. He supported the election of Urban VI, but later switched his allegiance to Robert of Geneva, who, as Antipope Clement VII, launched the Great Schism (see Schism, Great). As Robert's legate in Spain, Cardinal de Luna secured the adherence of his country to the Avignon obedience. On Robert's death, the cardinals at Avignon elected Cardinal de Luna, having first elicited his promise to abdicate should that be necessary to bring an end to the schism. As Benedict XIII, the new antipope proved himself the most able of all of the popes and antipopes of the period. He showed himself unwilling, however, to negotiate an end to the schism. His outright refusal to abdicate at the Council of Pisa (see Pisa, Council of) only made matters worse, and Benedict lost all his obedience but Scotland, Sicily, Castile, and Aragón. The Council of Constance (see Constance, Council of) moved Benedict to even greater intransigence. The council deposed him in 1417. Benedict, forsaken by all but his household, lived on in his fortress at Peńiscola (near Valencia), claiming to be the rightful pope until his death.
Benedict XIV
Benedict XIV, 1675–1758, pope (1740–58), an Italian (b. Bologna) named Prospero Lambertini; successor of Clement XII. Long before his pontificate he was renowned for his learning and wrote a classic treatise on the subject of canonization (1734–38). In 1728 he became a cardinal. He was much interested in the Eastern churches and began (with the bull Etsi pastoralis, 1742) the modern papal legislation that favors the Eastern rites and prohibits activity that is likely to Latinize them. He beautified Rome and restored monuments, and he was munificent to Bologna. He patronized learning and welcomed scholars and artists to his court. He denounced the cruelty to the Native Americans in the disbanding of the Paraguay reductions. He was succeeded by Clement XIII.
Benedict XV
Benedict XV, né Giacomo della Chiesa (November 21, 1854-January 22, 1922), was Pope of the Roman Catholic Church from 1914 to 1922; he succeeded Pope Saint Pius X.
He was born in Genoa, Italy, of a noble family. He acquired a doctorate of law in 1875, after which he studied for the priesthood and then the training school for the Vatican diplomatic service - most of his career was spent in the service of the Vatican.
Cardinal Mariano Rampolla was a friend and patron, employing him as a secretary on being posted to Madrid and in a similar post on being appointed Secretary of State. During these years he helped negotiate a dispute between Germany and Spain over the Caroline Islands as well as organising relief during a cholera epidemic. When Rampolla left his post with the election of Pius X, and was succeeded by Cardinal Merry del Val, Chiesa was retained in his post.
However, Chiesa's association with Rampolla, the architect of Leo XIII's relatively liberal foreign policy and Pius X's rival in the conclave of 1903, made him suspicious in the eyes of the new ultra-conservative regime. He was soon to be moved out of the diplomatic service and the centre of Church power in Rome, on 16 December 1907 becoming Archbishop of Bologna.
On 25 May 1914 Chiesa was appointed a cardinal and, in this capacity, on the outbreak of World War I, and the death of Pius X, he made a speech on the Church's position and duties, emphasising the need for neutrality and promoting peace and easing suffering. The Conclave opened at the end of August, and, on 3 September 1914, Chiesa was elected Pope, taking the name of Benedict XV.
His pontificate was dominated by the war and its turbulent aftermath. He organised significant humanitarian efforts (establishing a Vatican bureau, for instance, to help prisoners of war from all nations contact their families) and made many unsuccessful attempts to negotiate peace, including the well-known Papal Peace proposal of 1917, but each side saw him as biased in favour of the other and were unwilling to accept the terms he proposed. This resentment saw the Vatican was excluded from the peace negotiations on the war's end; despite this, he wrote an encyclical pleading for international reconciliation, Pacem Dei munus. In the post war period Benedict was involved in developing the Church administration to deal with the new international system that had emerged.
In internal Church affairs, Benedict calmed the excesses of the campaign against supposedly modernist scholars within the Church which had characterised the reign of St. Pius X. He also promulgated a new Code of Canon Law in 1917 and attempted to improve relations with the anticlerical Republican government of France by canonising the French national heroine Joan of Arc. In the mission territories of the Third World, he emphasised the necessity of training native priests to replace the European missionaries as soon as possible.
In his private spiritual life, Benedict was devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and of all the modern Popes was the most fervent in propagating the wearing of the Brown Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, endorsing the claim that wearing it piously brings "the singular privilege of protection after death" from eternal damnation, and giving an indulgence for every time it is kissed.
Benedict XV died of pneumonia at the age of 67 in 1922. Although one of the less remembered of the Popes of the twentieth century, he deserves commendation for his humane approach in the world of 1914-18, which starkly contrasts with that of the other great monarchs and leaders of the time.
Benedict XVI
Joseph Ratzinger
Joseph Ratzinger (b. April 16, 1927) was a Cardinal Bishop of the Roman Catholic Church. In 1981 Cardinal Ratzinger was appointed prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith by Pope John Paul II, made a Cardinal Bishop of the see of Velletri-Segni in 1993, and was elected Dean of the College of Cardinals in 2002, becoming titular bishop of Ostia.
Born in Marktl am Inn, in Bavaria, Germany, Ratzinger entered a preparatory seminary in 1939. In 1943, at the age of 16 he was, along with the rest of his class, drafted into the Flak or anti-aircraft corps. He went into basic training for the Wehrmacht infantry in November of 1944. In 1945 he was interned in a POW camp as a German soldier. By June he was released, and he and his brother (Georg) reentered the seminary. On June 29, 1951, he and his brother were ordained by Cardinal Faulhaber of Munich. His dissertation (1953) was on Saint Augustine, his Habilitationsschrift (second dissertation) on Saint Bonaventure.
Ratzinger was a professor at the University of Bonn from 1959 until 1963, when he moved to the University of Muenster. In 1966, he took a chair in dogmatic theology at the University of Tübingen, where he was a colleague of Hans Küng but was confirmed in his traditionalist views by the liberal atmosphere of Tübingen and the Marixist leanings of the student movement of the 1960s. In 1969 he returned to Bavaria, to the University of Regensburg.
At the Second Vatican Council (1962 – 1965), Ratzinger served as a peritus or chief theological expert, to Cardinal Joseph Frings of Cologne, Germany.
In 1972, he founded the theological journal Communio with Hans Urs von Balthasar, Henri de Lubac and others. Communio, now published in German, English, and Spanish editions, has become one of the most important journals of Catholic thought. In March 1977 Ratzinger was named archbishop of Munich and Freising and in the consistory that June was named a Cardinal by Pope Paul VI.
On November 25, 1981 Pope John Paul II named Ratzinger prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, formerly known as the Holy Office of the Inquisition, which was renamed in 1908 by Pope Pius X. He resigned the Munich archdiocese in early 1982, became cardinal-bishop of Velletri-Segni in 1993, vice-dean of the College of Cardinals in 1998, and was elected Dean in 2002. In office, Ratzinger usually takes very conservative views on topics such as birth control, inter-religious dialogue, and ecumenism.
On September 30, 2003, Ratzinger's statement, "We should pray for the Pope", was published by the German weekly Bunte, and subsequently, the quote made headlines worldwide, raising questions about the Pope's health and fueling speculation that the Pope was nearing death.
On January 2, 2005, Time quoted unnamed Vatican sources as saying that Ratzinger was a frontrunner to succeed John Paul II should the Pope die or become too ill to continue as Pontiff. His see, Cardinal-Bishop of Istia, has traditionally been an antechamber to the Papal seat.
Footnote
On April 19, 2005, three days after his 78th Birthday, Ratzinger was elected as The Bishop of Rome and head of the Roman Catholic Church on earth, aka Supreme Pontiff, His Holiness, The Pope.
Over to you Joseph... read about his ramblings here in
The Memories of a Destructive Mind.
Finally,
Nemo me Impune Lacessit.
