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From: "The Catholic Thing" <thecatholicth...@frinstitute.org>
To: gdig...@btinternet.com
Sent: Sunday, 30 Oct, 22 At 10:00
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Glimpses of Church History: period 900-1000 CEIn our previous episode,
we covered Pope Sergius III who became Pope in 904 after his supporters
murdered Leo V and Cardinal Christopher. Marozia's first son (by Pope
Sergius) became Pope John XI in 931. She married again and when her
second husband died, she married King Hugo of Provence in 932. Her
second son called Alberic came to know that Hugo planned to blind him.
So he appealed to the Romans to rise against Hugo. The Romans agreed and
when they got ready for battle, Hugo abandoned his wife and fled.
Alberic put the Pope, his half-brother, under permanent arrest and
imprisoned his mother in Hadrian's mausoleum where she remained for over
50 years. Alberic died in 954 at the age of 40. His son Octavian became
Pope John XII about the age of 18. He turned out to be one of the most
profligate popes known. He was a great gambler and kept a stud farm of
2000 horses which were fed on almonds and figs soaked in wine.
He stole the offerings of pilgrims and violated female pilgrims in St
Peter's. He kept a harem at the Lateran Palace and rewarded his
paramours with golden chalices taken from St Peter's.
King Otto of Germany came to John's aid when the King of Italy occupied
the papal states. John made him emperor of the Holy Roman empire in 962.
Otto asked John to mend his ways, whereupon John fled to Tivoli after
plundering the treasury of St Peter's. Otto then called a synod of
cardinals and bishops who read a list of John's misdeeds (charging for
ordinations, having sex with numerous women, castrating a cardinal,
incest with relatives, etc). John was duly informed of the Synod
decisions but John warned the Synod that he would excommunicate the
Bishops. John was urged to return and when he didn't, he was deposed by
the Synod and a new Pope, a German, was appointed as the next pope, Leo
VIII. Thereupon, John returned and the Leo VIII fled home to Germany.
John had his revenge on the plotters by maiming or executing them.
John then resumed his old ways. He was caught in bed with another's
wife. The husband is reported to have taken a hammer and smashed John's
skull. He was only 26 and it was his 8th year as Pope.
Eddie Ray
David W. Fagerberg: The world increasingly embraces
euthanasia, which in the Greek means “good [[or easy] death,” but the
Church sees the good...
