| Part of the series on Pope (Catholic Church) | |
|---|---|
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| Coat of Arms of the Holy See. | |
| History | |
| Saint Peter and the origin of the office | |
| Election, death and abdication | |
| Titles | |
| Residence and jurisdiction | |
| Regalia and insignia | |
| Status and authority | |
| Political role | |
| Objections to the papacy | |
| Antipopes | |
| Other popes | |
| Longest-reigning popes | |
| Shortest-reigning popes | |
| Article discussion | |
| This article forms part of the series Clergy (Christian) | |
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| Major orders | |
| Bishop - Priest - Deacon | |
| Minor orders | |
| Subdeacon - Reader Cantor - Acolyte | |
| Other orders | |
| Chorepiscopos - Exorcist Doorkeeper - Deaconess | |
| Episcopal titles | |
| Pope - Patriarch - Cardinal - Catholicos Archbishop - Metropolitan Auxiliary bishop - | |
| Priestly titles | |
| Archimandrite - Protopresbyter Archpriest - Protosyngellos Economos | |
| Diaconal titles | |
| Archdeacon - Protodeacon - Hierodeacon | |
| Minor titles | |
| Lampadarios | |
| Monastic titles | |
| Abbot - Igumen | |
| Related | |
| Ordination - Vestments Presbeia - Honorifics Clergy awards - Exarch Proistamenos - Vicar | |
The pope (from Latin: "papa" or "father" from Greek , pappas) is the Bishop of Rome and as such, is leader of the worldwide Catholic Church (that is, both the Latin Rite and the Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Roman Pontiff). The current office-holder is Pope Benedict XVI, who was elected in papal conclave on 19 April 2005.
The office of the pope is called the Papacy, and his ecclesiastical jurisdiction the "Holy See" (Sancta Sedes in Latin) or "Apostolic See" (the latter on the basis that both St. Peter and St. Paul were martyred at Rome). The pope is also head of state of Vatican City, a sovereign city-state entirely enclaved by Rome.
Early popes helped to spread Christianity and resolve doctrinal disputes. After the conversion of the rulers of the Roman Empire (the conversion of the populace was already advanced even before the Edict of Milan, 313), the Roman emperors became the popes' secular allies until, with the loss of the emperors' power in the west, Pope Stephen II was forced in the 8th century to appeal to the Franks for help, beginning a period of close interaction with the rulers of the west. For centuries, the forged Donation of Constantine also provided the basis for the papacy's claim of political supremacy over the entire former Western Roman Empire. In medieval times, popes played powerful roles in Western Europe, often struggling with monarchs for power over wide-ranging affairs of church and state, crowning emperors (Charlemagne was the first emperor crowned by a pope) and regulating disputes among secular rulers.
Gradually forced to give up secular power, popes now focus almost exclusively on spiritual matters. Over the centuries, popes' claims of spiritual authority have been ever more clearly expressed, culminating in the proclamation of the dogma of papal infallibility for rare occasions when the pope speaks ex cathedra (literally "from the chair (of Peter)") to issue a solemn definition of faith or morals. The first (after the proclamation) and so far the last such occasion was in 1950, with the definition of the dogma of the Assumption of Mary.
Notes
References
Further reading
- Brusher, Joseph H. Popes Through The Ages. Princeton: D. Van Nostland Company, Inc., 1959.
- Chamberlin, E.R. The Bad Popes. 1969. Reprint: Barnes and Noble, 1993. ISBN 9780880291163.
- Dollison, John Pope-pourri. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1994. ISBN 9780671886158.
- Kelly, J.N.D. The Oxford Dictionary of Popes. Oxford: University Press, 1986. ISBN 0-19-213964-9.
- Maxwell-Stuart, P.G. Chronicle of the Popes: The Reign-by-Reign Record of the Papacy from St. Peter to the Present; with 308 Illustrations, 105 in Color. London: Thames and Hudson, 1997. ISBN 0-500-01798-0.
External links
- "papacy." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2009. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 12 Nov. 2009.
- The Holy See - The Holy Father—website for the past and present Holy Fathers (since Leo XIII)
- The Holy Father's 2008 Prayer Intentions
- Catholic Encyclopedia entry
- Pope Endurance League - Sortable list of Popes
- Scholarly articles on the Roman Catholic Papacy from the Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary Library
- Data Base of more than 23,000 documents of the Popes in latin and modern languages
| Popes of the Roman Catholic Church |
|---|
| Peter • Linus • Anacletus • Clement I • Evaristus • Alexander I • Sixtus I • Telesphorus • Hyginus • Pius I • Anicetus • Soter • Eleuterus • Victor I • Zephyrinus • Callixtus I • Urban I • Pontian • Anterus • Fabian • Cornelius • Lucius I • Stephen I • Sixtus II • Dionysius • Felix I • Eutychian • Caius • Marcellinus • Marcellus I • Eusebius • Miltiades • Silvester I • Mark • Julius I • Liberius • Damasus I • Siricius • Anastasius I • Innocent I • Zosimus • Boniface I • Celestine I • Sixtus III • Leo I • Hilarius • Simplicius • Felix III • Gelasius I • Anastasius II • Symmachus • Hormisdas • John I • Felix IV • Boniface II • John II • Agapetus I • Silverius • Vigilius • Pelagius I • John III • Benedict I • Pelagius II • Gregory I • Sabinian • Boniface III • Boniface IV • Adeodatus I • Boniface V • Honorius I • Severinus • John IV • Theodore I • Martin I • Eugene I • Vitalian • Adeodatus II • Donus • Agatho • Leo II • Benedict II • John V • Conon • Sergius I • John VI • John VII • Sisinnius • Constantine • Gregory II • Gregory III • Zachary • Stephen II • Paul I • Stephen III • Adrian I • Leo III • Stephen IV • Paschal I • Eugene II • Valentine • Gregory IV • Sergius II • Leo IV • Benedict III • Nicholas I • Adrian II • John VIII • Marinus I • Adrian III • Stephen V • Formosus • Boniface VI • Stephen VI • Romanus • Theodore II • John IX • Benedict IV • Leo V • Sergius III • Anastasius III • Lando • John X • Leo VI • Stephen VII • John XI • Leo VII • Stephen VIII • Marinus II • Agapetus II • John XII • Leo VIII • Benedict V • John XIII • Benedict VI • Benedict VII • John XIV • John XV • Gregory V • Silvester II • John XVII • John XVIII • Sergius IV • Benedict VIII • John XIX • Benedict IX • Silvester III • Benedict IX • Gregory VI • Clement II • Benedict IX • Damasus II • Leo IX • Victor II • Stephen IX • Nicholas II • Alexander II • Gregory VII • Victor III • Urban II • Paschal II • Gelasius II • Callixtus II • Honorius II • Innocent II • Celestine II • Lucius II • Eugene III • Anastasius IV • Adrian IV • Alexander III • Lucius III • Urban III • Gregory VIII • Clement III • Celestine III • Innocent III • Honorius III • Gregory IX • Celestine IV • Innocent IV • Alexander IV • Urban IV • Clement IV • Gregory X • Innocent V • Adrian V • John XXI • Nicholas III • Martin IV • Honorius IV • Nicholas IV • Celestine V • Boniface VIII • Benedict XI • Clement V • John XXII • Benedict XII • Clement VI • Innocent VI • Urban V • Gregory XI • Urban VI • Boniface IX • Innocent VII • Gregory XII • Martin V • Eugene IV • Nicholas V • Callixtus III • Pius II • Paul II • Sixtus IV • Innocent VIII • Alexander VI • Pius III • Julius II • Leo X • Adrian VI • Clement VII • Paul III • Julius III • Marcellus II • Paul IV • Pius IV • Pius V • Gregory XIII • Sixtus V • Urban VII • Gregory XIV • Innocent IX • Clement VIII • Leo XI • Paul V • Gregory XV • Urban VIII • Innocent X • Alexander VII • Clement IX • Clement X • Innocent XI • Alexander VIII • Innocent XII • Clement XI • Innocent XIII • Benedict XIII • Clement XII • Benedict XIV • Clement XIII • Clement XIV • Pius VI • Pius VII • Leo XII • Pius VIII • Gregory XVI • Pius IX • Leo XIII • Pius X • Benedict XV • Pius XI • Pius XII • John XXIII • Paul VI • John Paul I • John Paul II • Benedict XVI • Francis |