Papal History

Two Thousand Years Guiding the Barque of Peter

Sea of Galilee - by Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn

What is papal infallibility?

Was Pius XII really “Hitler’s Pope”?

Was there really a Pope Joan?

Why do cardinals wear red?

The Pope is the Vicar of Christ whose authority has been passed down from St. Peter in an unbroken line of succession for over two thousand years.  An office with that much history and that level of importance is bound to be at the center of numerous controversies and the subject of many questions ranging from the skeptical to the merely curious.  In 101 Questions & Answers on Popes and the Papacy, Christopher M. Bellitto, Ph.D. answers some of the most frequently asked questions about the history of the papacy over the last two millennia.

In addressing those questions Bellitto attempts to take a balanced approach, declaring in the preface that, “my intention is not to produce a work of advocacy or indictment.  I don’t want to evangelize or scandalize, revise or attack, debunk or skewer . . . Whitewashed history does no one any good.  It is bad history because it is incomplete history.”[1]

Overall, I believe Bellitto met his stated goal and took a very even-handed approach in answering many difficult questions.  Based on his experience teaching the history of the papacy at the university level as well his interactions with general audiences through television, radio, and public lectures, Bellito is very familiar with questions that create the most problems for people regarding the papacy.  For example, many questions he raises concern papal authority or the hierarchical structure of the Church (which is not surprising in the relativistic and fiercely independent culture of today).  Other questions cover the major hot-buttons in papal history such as the Protestant reformation and conflicts over the relationship between Church and state.  Bellitto also deals with a number of points that people are simply curious about, such as the pope’s vestments and jewelry, the triple crown, papal coats of arms, and why cardinals wear red.

Generally the answers to the questions are short and to the point, seldom exceeding one to two pages each.  When dealing with questions about papal failings or accusations against the Church, Bellito steers a middle course, neither engaging in hagiography nor blanket condemnations.  For example when answering questions about misdeeds of the clergy, Bellito, acknowledges the sins but puts the issue into perspective.

Have there been priest-pedophiles and did irresponsible bishops cover up their crimes?  Yes, but the overwhelming majority – surely better than 95 percent – of bishops and priests are the good guys.  Did Renaissance popes promote their children and grandchildren to cardinal, divert church money to their family bank accounts, and plot to push their enemies aside?  You bet, but . . .  those fellows were a very small minority of popes, not the norm . . . To speak too much of the “good popes” risks downplaying the dark chapters . . . but to speak only of the “bad popes” does a disservice to the far larger achievements of so many others.[2]

Similarly, when answering a question suggesting that the Church’s great collection of artwork and other wealth at the Vatican is contradictory to the Jesus’ mission to the poor, Bellitto explains,

. . . the church has a proud tradition of leading the way in helping the poor through her schools, hospitals, adoption agencies, and many other relief efforts.  True, the Vatican’s buildings and the art collections in its museums often make people wonder if the church is hoarding valuable objects that she might otherwise sell to give the money to the poor . . . However, it must be remembered that the church holds these objects in a kind of trust . . . More than most countries and other institutions, the church has safeguarded these artworks and made them available to people of all faiths, often at a financial loss because of the massive cost to simply maintain them.[3]

As a church historian, Bellitto believes the story of the papacy is best encountered by viewing it chronologically, stating,  “We must begin with the history and then return to specific aspects, themes, and topics of that history that recur . . .”[4]  Toward that end, Bellitto organizes the questions and answers into several major sections: The first three cover the history of the Early Church (50-800), the Medieval and Reformation Church (800-1600), and the Early Modern and Modern Church (1600-present).  The next group covers questions on structure and meaning with sections on Papal Authority, Cardinals, Papal Death and Succession, Worldliness and Symbolism.  The final group is a collection of miscellaneous questions which range from topics such as the existence of Pope Joan to which popes had the longest and shortest reigns.

By presenting a wide range of questions in a concise and objective fashion, Bellitto makes this work very accessible to a general audience, even when dealing with complex or controversial topics.  Some of the difficult questions that he covers include:

    V proof of the primacy of Peter

    V the struggle between church and state on such issues as lay investiture

    V effects of increased papal power

    V the Great western Schism and its aftermath

    V various aspects of the Protestant reformation

    V papal infallibility

    V effects of  European revolutions on the papacy

    V modern popes’ responses to modernism

    V papal authority vs bishop and council authority

Christopher Bellitto, Ph.D. is an assistant professor of history at Kean University in New Jersey.  He has written numerous books on Church history including Church History 101: A Concise Overview and Reassessing Reform: A Historical Investigation into Church Renewal.  In addition to his scholarly work, Dr. Bellitto is a frequent media resource and an entertaining lecturer.  Amazon sells 101 Questions & Answers on Popes and the Papacy (ISBN-13: 978-0809145164) for $11.94 in paperback.

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[1] Christopher M. Bellitto, 101 Questions & Answers on Popes and the Papacy (New York: Paulist Press, 2008), xv.

[2] Bellitto, 101 Questions & Answers on Popes, xv-xvi.

[3] Bellitto, 101 Questions & Answers on Popes, 125-126.

[4] Bellitto, 101 Questions & Answers on Popes, xvii.

Bibliography

Bellitto, Christopher. 101 Questions & Answers on Popes and the Papacy. New York: Paulist Press, 2008.