101 Questions and Answers on Popes and the Papacy
, by Bellitto, Christopher M.
- ISBN: 9780809145164 | 0809145162
- Cover: Paperback
- Copyright: 5/1/2008
This fascinating, readable book answers almost every possible question that comes up whenever there is a papal transition-questions that haven't been posed for some time because of the long reign of John Paul II. And with new popes often advanced in years, these questions remain of perpetual interest and importance.
Christopher M. Bellitto, PhD, is assistant professor of history at Kean University in New Jersey
| Acknowledgments | p. xiii |
| Preface | p. xv |
| Timeline | p. xviii |
| The 101 Questions and Answers | |
| Prologue | p. 1 |
| Was Peter the first pope? | p. 1 |
| This means that Peter was the leader after Jesus, right? | p. 2 |
| Some of my Protestant friends insist that the papacy isn't found in the Bible. Is it? | p. 4 |
| Is the papacy a human institution or a divine institution? | p. 5 |
| Is there a kind of model pope in church history? | p. 6 |
| History | |
| The Early Church (ca. 50-800) | |
| Where does that word pope come from? | p. 11 |
| Are you saying that the first one or two dozen popes weren't really "popes"? | p. 11 |
| Does this mean the bishop of Rome was "first among equals"? | p. 12 |
| How did bishops of Rome respond to some of these challenges? | p. 14 |
| I know that the Roman Emperor Constantine became a believing Christian. What was the Donation of Constantine? | p. 16 |
| This arrangement sounds like a two-edged sword. Was it? | p. 17 |
| When the Roman Empire fell, why didn't the power of the bishop of Rome fade away, too? | p. 19 |
| Which bishops of Rome stepped into the power vacuum? | p. 19 |
| How did the popes justify their authority? | p. 20 |
| It sounds like the popes were now saying their power was not only over the other bishops, but over the emperors, too. Is this where the idea of "church and state" comes from? | p. 21 |
| How did the emperors and kings respond? | p. 23 |
| The Medieval and Reformation Church (ca. 800-1600) | |
| I had a teacher once say that the papacy really got started in the Middle Ages. Is this true? | p. 25 |
| I remember hearing about investiture. What was that and is it connected to this papal revolution? | p. 27 |
| When popes started to choose bishops, was that a good thing or a bad thing? | p. 29 |
| So can we say that the popes were claiming some kind of "superpower"? | p. 29 |
| I always hear negative things about the popes in the Middle Ages. Did they do anything good? | p. 32 |
| But were there any downsides to these developments? | p. 34 |
| Did anyone inside or outside the church complain about the popes becoming like monarchs at the time? | p. 35 |
| What about when the popes were in France somewhere? | p. 37 |
| I heard that there was a time when there were several popes simultaneously. Is this what an antipope is? | p. 40 |
| Three popes at once! How did they figure that one out? | p. 42 |
| Did this Council of Constance prove that a council is higher than the pope? | p. 44 |
| How did the popes fight back against the conciliar folks? | p. 45 |
| I know that Martin Luther comes along at some point and says that the papacy is the Antichrist. Why did he say this? | p. 47 |
| Is this where England's Henry VIII as "Head of the Church of England" comes in? | p. 49 |
| What was the Catholics' response? | p. 49 |
| How could this cardinal, Robert Bellarmine, defend the papacy after all that had happened over the last two centuries? | p. 52 |
| I keep hearing that the popes started a "siege mentality" after the Reformation. What does this mean? | p. 53 |
| The Early Modern and Modern Church (ca. 1600-today) | |
| What were some of the achievements of the popes in this period? | p. 54 |
| Did a pope really condemn Galileo for saying the earth revolves around the sun? | p. 57 |
| I know that there were revolutions to overthrow kings in America, France, and England. Did these attacks hurt the papacy, too? | p. 58 |
| How did European countries try to take over the church? | p. 59 |
| Did Napoleon really take the popes prisoners? | p. 61 |
| How did Catholics respond? | p. 62 |
| What's ultramontanism? | p. 63 |
| It seems that some popes were afraid of modernity and others weren't. Is this true? | p. 64 |
| Was Pius XII really "Hitler's pope"? | p. 67 |
| Recent popes seem to have been very different types of men, no? | p. 68 |
| Everybody said Pope John Paul II traveled more than any other pope in history. Is this true and what is the importance of all those trips? | p. 69 |
| Power and Symbols, Cardinals and Conclaves | |
| Papal Authority | |
| I heard that Pope John Paul II called for a discussion about papal primacy. What is papal primacy? | p. 73 |
| Pope Benedict XVI dropped the title "patriarch of the west." What's the significance of this? | p. 75 |
| If the pope is the highest authority in the church, what is the authority of my local bishop or a group of bishops? | p. 76 |
| What are episcopal conferences, and what is their authority with respect to the pope's authority? | p. 81 |
| What about general councils like Vatican II? | p. 82 |
| Were things always so clear-cut? | p. 83 |
| But didn't St. Augustine say something like, "Rome has spoken, so the matter is closed"? | p. 86 |
| What's an encyclical? | p. 87 |
| What is papal infallibility? | p. 88 |
| Where did the concept of papal infallibility come from? | p. 90 |
| Did everyone agree with Vatican I? | p. 92 |
| Popes have made mistakes. Wasn't one even condemned as a heretic? | p. 93 |
| Pope John Paul II apologized for a lot of the church's mistakes, didn't he? | p. 94 |
| Is the pope the closest person to God on earth? | p. 96 |
| Do I have to believe every word the pope says? | p. 97 |
| Cardinals | |
| Where do the cardinals come from? | p. 98 |
| What do cardinal and college of cardinals mean? | p. 100 |
| Why do cardinals wear red? | p. 101 |
| Why do they say someone gets a "red hat" when he's made a cardinal? | p. 101 |
| I heard that the number of cardinals who elect the pope is limited, but there seem to be so many more of them now. Were there always so many? | p. 102 |
| Are all cardinals bishops? | p. 104 |
| Is it true that if the pope wanted to appoint a woman to be a cardinal, he could? | p. 104 |
| Has there ever been a pope elected who wasn't a cardinal? | p. 105 |
| Papal Death and Succession | |
| What happens when a pope dies? | p. 106 |
| Who's in charge between popes? | p. 107 |
| What's a conclave? | p. 107 |
| Was this always the way to elect a pope? | p. 110 |
| Sounds messy. Is that why the procedures were changed? | p. 111 |
| Who created the conclave? | p. 112 |
| Have conclaves changed over the centuries? | p. 113 |
| We keep hearing about oaths of secrecy, closed doors, and white smoke. It sounds very cloak-and-dagger. Were things always so secretive? | p. 116 |
| What were the shortest and longest conclaves? | p. 119 |
| Is it true that when a pope has a long reign and names many cardinals, the next pope is just like him? | p. 119 |
| What happens if a pope becomes incapacitated and can't serve as pope anymore? | p. 121 |
| Have popes resigned or been deposed? | p. 122 |
| We were all shocked when Pope John Paul II was shot. Then, of course, there are all those murder rumors about Pope John Paul I, who died so suddenly after his election. Have any popes been assassinated? | p. 124 |
| Worldliness | |
| When I look at the Vatican, I see a lot of wealth, which doesn't remind me of a poor carpenter named Jesus. Why don't they just stop asking me for money, sell all that artwork, and give it to the poor? | p. 125 |
| It sounds to me like the papacy in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance was often corrupt and greedy. Didn't anyone object at the time? | p. 126 |
| What were the papal states? | p. 129 |
| When did the Vatican become the papal headquarters? | p. 130 |
| I'm confused when I hear the Vatican, the Holy See, and Vatican City. Are they all the same thing? | p. 132 |
| How does such a large organization work? | p. 133 |
| I heard that popes were slave owners and helped the slave trade. Is this true? | p. 134 |
| Symbolism | |
| The pope wears a lot of symbolic vestments and jewelry. What do they all mean? | p. 135 |
| Didn't popes wear something called a triple crown? | p. 137 |
| Why does each pope get his own coat of arms? | p. 139 |
| Whatever happened to that chair to carry popes around St. Peter's? | p. 139 |
| Why does the new pope change his name? | p. 140 |
| When did popes start wearing white? | p. 140 |
| Papal Potpourri | |
| Was there really a Pope Joan? | p. 145 |
| Who were the youngest and oldest popes? | p. 146 |
| Which popes had the longest and shortest reigns? | p. 147 |
| Is it true that some popes were married and had children? | p. 147 |
| Were there any papal father-son combinations? | p. 148 |
| People are already calling John Paul II "the Great." Where does that title come from and how many "Greats" have there been already? | p. 148 |
| How many popes are saints? | p. 149 |
| Epilogue | |
| The story of the papacy is inspiring, but there have been lots of flawed popes. Do you think people might have their faith weakened or lose heart by studying the entire picture of the papacy? | p. 150 |
| List of Popes (and Antipopes) | p. 151 |
| Notes | p. 157 |
| For Further Reading | p. 175 |
| Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved. |
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