Pope
The Pope is the Catholic bishop and patriarch of Rome, and ex officio supreme spiritual leader of the Catholic Communion (viz., the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Catholic Churches). In addition to this spiritual role, the Pope is also quasi-absolute monarch of the independent, sovereign State of the Vatican City, a literal city-state entirely surrounded by the city of Rome. Prior to 1870, the Pope's temporal authority extended over a large area of central Italy, a territory formally known as the Patrimony of St. Peter. The office of the Pope is informally called the Papacy and formally called the Pontificate; his ecclesiastical jurisdiction is called the Holy See (Sancta Sede). The reigning Pope is Pope John Paul II, who was elected at the age of 58 in 1978. He is the first non-Italian to be elected to the Pontificate in several hundreds of years. An antipope is a person who claims the Pontificate without being canonically and properly elected to it. The existence of an antipope is usually due either to doctrinal controversy within the Church, or to confusion as to who is the legitimate Pope at the time (see Papal Schism). The head of the Coptic Church is also designated "Pope", commonly disambiguated as the Coptic Pope or the Pope of Alexandria. The head bishop of the Eastern Orthodox Church of Alexandria in Egypt also is called the Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa. Note: The term 'Catholic Church' is used in this article to refer to the community of churches in full communion with one another and with the Pope. For other meanings of the term, see Catholicism.
See alsoImmaculate Conception, Assumption, Ecumenical Council, College of BishopsPolitical roleWith the Christianisation of the Roman Empire in the Fourth century, the Popes received civil authority within the state as well as spiritual authority within the Church; by the late VI Century, the Pope was the senior Imperial civilian official in Rome. This status as a secular and civil leader was substantially increased in 754, when the Frankish ruler Pepin the Short donated to the Pope a strip of territory which formed the core of the so-called Papal States (properly the Patrimony of St. Peter). In 800, Pope Leo III crowned the Frankish ruler Charlemagne as Roman Emperor, a major step toward establishing what later became known as the Holy Roman Empire; from that date it became the Pope's prerogative to crown the Emperor, a tradition which continued until Emperor Charles V, the last Holy Roman Emperor to be crowned by the Pope (subsequent Emperors never received coronation), and which was partially revived by Napoléon Bonaparte. As has been hitherto mentioned, the Pope's sovereignty over the Papal States ended in 1870 with their annexation by Italy. In addition to the Pope's position as a territorial ruler (especially prominent with the Renaissance Popes like Pope Alexander VI who was notably corrupt, and Pope Julius II, a formidable general and statesman) and as the spiritual head of the Holy Roman Empire (especially prominent during periods of contention with the Emperors, such as during the Pontificates of Pope Gregory VII and Pope Alexander III), the Pope also possessed a degree of political and temporal authority in his capacity as Supreme Pontiff. Some of the most striking examples of Papal political authority are the Bull Laudabiliter in 1155 (authorising Henry II of England to invade Ireland), the Bull Inter Caeteras in 1493 (leading to the Treaty of Torsedillas in 1494, which divided the world into areas of Spanish and Portuguese rule) the Bull Regnans in Excelsis in 1570 (excommunicating Elizabeth I of England and releasing all her subjects from their allegiance to her), the Bull Inter Gravissimas in 1582 (establishing the Gregorian Calendar).See alsoCaesaropapism, Investiture ControversyDeath and electionThe document that currently regulates the period of vacancy of the apostolic see (or interregnum) is the Papal Document Universi Dominici Gregis written by John Paul II. During the vacancy or "sede vacante" of the Apostolic See, the College of Cardinals is the body primarily responsible for the governance of the Church and of the Vatican itself; however, canon law specifically forbids the Cardinals from introducing any innovation in the government of the Church during the vacancy of the Holy See (sede vacante). Any decision that needs the assent of the Pope has to wait until a new Pope has been elected and takes office. Theoretically, the Pope's death is officially determined by the Cardinal Chamberlain by gently tapping the late Pope's head thrice with a golden hammer and calling his name (it is not clear when this ceremony ceased to be observed, as it does not appear to have been practised in the twentieth century at all). The Cardinal Chamberlain then removes the Fisherman's Ring from the Pope's right hand and smashes it (theoretically with the same hammer used to determine the Pope's death), and the body then lies in state for a number of days before being interred in the crypt of a leading church or cathedral; the Popes of the Twentieth century have all been interred in St. Peter's Basilica, but it is expected that the reigning Pope, Pope John Paul II, will be interred in his native Poland. A nine-day period of mourning (novem dialis) follows after the interment of the late Pope. The Pope was originally chosen by those senior clergymen resident in and near Rome. In 1059, the electorate was restricted to the Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church, and the individual votes of all Cardinal Electors were made equal in 1179. The Pope is usually a member of the College of Cardinals, but theoretically any male Catholic (including a layman) may be elected; Pope Urban VI was the last Pope who was not already a cardinal at the time of his election. Canon law requires that if a layman or non-bishop is elected, he receives episcopal consecration from the Dean of the College of Cardinals before assuming the Pontificate. Under present canon law, the Pope is elected by the cardinal electors, viz., those cardinals who are under the age of 80. The Second Council of Lyons was convened on May 7, 1274, to regulate the election of the Pope. This Council decreed that the cardinal electors must meet within ten days of the Pope's death, and that they must remain in seclusion until a Pope has been elected; this was prompted by the three-year Sede Vacante following the death of Pope Clement IV in 1268. By the mid-Sixteenth century, the electoral process had more or less evolved into its present form, allowing for alteration in the time between the death of the Pope and the meeting of the cardinal electors. Traditionally the vote was conducted by acclamation, by selection by committee, or by plenary vote. Acclamation was the simplest procedure, consisting entirely of a voice vote, and was last used in 1621. The reigning Pope, Pope John Paul II, has abolished vote by acclamation and by selection by committee, and henceforth all Popes will be elected by full vote of the Sacred College of Cardinals by ballot. The election of the Pope almost always takes place in the Sistine Chapel, in a meeting called a "conclave" (so called because after twenty days after the Pope's death, the present cardinal electors are theoretically locked in, cum clavi, until they elect a new Pope). Three cardinals are chosen by lot to collect the votes of absent cardinal electors (by reason of illness), three are chosen by lot to count the votes, and three are chosen by lot to review the count of the votes. The ballots are distributed and each cardinal elector writes the name of his choice on it and pledges aloud that he is voting for "one whom under God I think ought to be elected" before depositing his vote. Balloting continues until a Pope is elected by two-third majority (since the promulgation of Universi Dominici Gregis in 1996 the rules allow for a simple majority after a deadlock of twelve days). One of the most famous parts of the conclave is the means by which the results of a ballot are announced to the world. Once the ballots are counted, they are burned, and the smoke indicates the results: black smoke (sfumata), created using straw with the ballots, announces that the vote was not decisive, and white smoke announces the election of a new Pope. The Dean of the College of Cardinals asks the Pope-elect to confirm his acceptance, and then announces the name he has chosen for himself (starting in 535, the Pope has customarily chosen a new name for himself during his Pontificate). The senior cardinal deacon then announces from a balcony over St. Peter's Square the following proclamation: Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum! Habemus Papam! ("I announce to you a great joy! We have a Pope!") Until 1978, the Pope's election was followed in a few days by a procession in great pomp and circumstance from the Sistine Chapel to St. Peter's Basilica, with the newly-elected Pope borne in the sedia gestatoria. There the Pope was crowned with the triregnum and he gave his first blessing as Pope, the famous Urbi et Orbi ("to the City [Rome] and to the World"). Another famed part of the coronation was the lighting of a torch which would flare brightly and promptly extinguish, with the admonition Sic transit gloria mundi ("Thus fades worldly glory"). Traditionally, the pope-elect takes the Papal oath (the so called "Oath against modernism") at his coronation, but John Paul I and later John Paul II have refused to do so. As has been hitherto noted, the Latin term Sede Vacante ("vacant seat") refers to a Papal interregnum, or the period between the death of the Pope and the election of his successor. From this term is derived the name Sedevacantist, which designates a category of dissident, schismatic Catholics who maintain that there is no canonically and legitimately elected Pope, and that there is therefore a Sede Vacante; one of the most common reasons for holding this belief is the idea that the reforms of the Second Vatican Council and especially the replacement of the Tridentine Mass with the Novus Ordo Missae are heretical, and that, per the dogma of Papal infallibility (see above), it is impossible for a valid Pope to have done these things.Objections to the PapacyThe Pope's position as Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church is dogmatic and therefore not open to debate or dispute within the Catholic Church; the First Vatican Council anathematised all who dispute the Pope's primacy of honour and of jurisdiction (it is lawful to discuss the precise nature of that primacy, provided that such discussion does not violate the terms of the Council's Dogmatic Constitution). However, the Pope's authority is not undisputed outside the Catholic Church; these objections differ from denomination to denomination, but can roughly be outlined as (1.) objections to the extent of the primacy of the Pope; and (2.) objections to the institution of the Papacy itself. \n
Some non-Catholic Christian denominations, such as the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and the Anglican Communion, accept the doctrine of Apostolic Succession, and therefore accept (to varying extents) the claim that the Pope as successor to St. Peter is heir to Petrine primacy of honour. These churches deny, however, the claim that the Pope is also heir to Petrine primacy of jurisdiction. Because none of these denominations recognise the First Vatican Council as ecumenical, they regard its definitions of Papal jurisdiction and infallibility (and anathematisation of those who do not accept them) as non-binding.
Other non-Catholic Christian denominations do not accept the doctrine of Apostolic Succession, or do not understand it in hierarchical terms, and therefore do not accept the claim that the Pope is heir either to Petrine primacy of honour or to Petrine primacy of jurisdiction. The Papacy's complex relationship with the Roman and Byzantine Empires, and other secular states, and the Papacy's territorial claims in Italy, are another focal point of these objections; as is the monarchical character of the office of Pope. In Western Christianity, these objections — and the vehement rhetoric they have at times been cast in — are products of the Protestant Reformation. These denominations vary from simply not accepting the Pope's authority as legitimate and valid, to believing that the Pope is the Antichrist or one of the beasts spoken of in the Book of Revelation. Ian Paisley is one of those who strongly rejects the idea of the authority of the Pope. These denominations tend to be more heterogeneous amongst themselves than the aforementioned hierarchical churches, and their views regarding the Papacy and its institutional legitimacy (or lack thereof) vary considerably.
Some objectors to the papacy use empirical arguments, pointing to the corrupt characters of some of the holders of that office. For instance, some argue that\nclaimed successors to St. Peter, like the Pope Alexander VI and Callixtus III from the Borgia family, were so corrupt as to be unfit to wield power to bind and loose on Earth or in Heaven. An omniscient and omnibenevolent God, some argue, would not have given those people the powers claimed for them by the Catholic Church. Defenders of the papacy argue that the Bible shows God as willingly giving privileges even to corrupt men (citing examples like some of the kings of Israel, the apostle Judas Iscariot, and even St. Peter after he denied Jesus). They also argue that not even the worst of the corrupt popes used the office to try to rip the doctrine of the Church from its apostolic roots, and that this is evidence that the office is divinely protected.
External linksLinks relating to the Roman Catholic Pope\n*The Holy See\n*The Dogmatic Constitution on the Church of Christ, Fourth Session of the First Vatican Council\n*The Code of Canon Law\n*Eastern Church Defends Petrine Primacy and the PapacyLinks relating to Coptic Orthodox Pope\n*The Coptic Orthodox Pope of Alexandria and of the See of Saint Mark the ApostleLinks relating to the Eastern Orthodox Pope of Alexandria and All AfricaCategory:Christian leaders\nCategory:Roman Catholic Church\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n |
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"In the end, everything is a gag." - Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977) |
of the 
Another famous part of the Papal regalia is the Fisherman's Ring, a gold ring decorated with a depiction of St. Peter in a boat casting his net, with the name of the reigning Pope around it. The Fisherman's Ring was first mentioned in a letter of 
In heraldry, the Pope's arms are surmounted by the aforementioned two keys in saltire behind the escutcheon (one key silver and one key gold, tied with a red cord), and above them a silver triregnum with three gold crowns and red infulae, or the red strips of fabric hanging from the back over the shoulders when worn ("two keys in saltire or and argent, interlacing in the rings or, beneath a tiara argent, crowned or"). The flag most frequently associated with the Pope is the yellow and white flag of Vatican City, with the arms of the Holy See ("Gules, two keys in saltire or and argent, interlacing in the rings or, beneath a tiara argent, crowned or") on the right hand side in the white half of the flag. This flag was first adopted in 