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power of modern weapons and the
deteriorating world situation,
the
surviva/ of the human race is at
stake!
The search for peace is being
viewed as a matter of the
greatest
urgency!
Many high churchmen-and
politicians alike- are beginning to
feel that the
very future of the
world
may hang on the success or
failure of the Vatican's peace
efforts!
This is an undertaking of great
significance-an effort that may
radically alter the
entire course of
world history!
How
can the Vatican make its
influence felt on the world scene?
And what are its chances for
achieving lasting peace?
Historical Perspectiva
No real understanding of the Vati–
can's modern role in world affairs
and the search for peace is possible
without a grasp of the sweep of
European history. History is a great
teacher.
lt
can help us to compre–
hend much about today's critica!
situation- and about
what lies
ahead.
Consider briefly the role of the
Roman Catholic Church in the
Middle Ages:
The Church was the most
powerful institution in medieval
Europe. Through a hierarchy of
cardinals, archbishops, bishops and
priests, papal authority was dif–
fused throughout all Europe. Politi–
cal borders posed no obstacle to the
all-embraci ng authority of the
Church.
The crowning of the Frankish
King Charlemagne as Emperor by
Pope Leo Hl in A.D. 800 is a spe–
cial example of the role of Church
and State in maintaining peace. A
glittering event staged in Rome, it
restored the Roman Empire in the
West and initiated a close alliance
between Pope and Empire. This
"marriage" formally linked the
spiritual power of the Pope with
the temporal power of the Emper–
or.
The Church at Rome was con–
sidered to be " God's chosen inst ru–
ment in spiritual matters." T he
Empire- which claimed (though
not always commanded) universal
32
temporal authority throughout
Western Europe-was regarded as
God's chosen
political
organization
over Western Christendom.
The Church's purpose was seen
as leading men to "eterna! happi–
ness with God." The State's pur–
pose was to promote man's tempo–
ral welfare. Both were believed to
derive their powers from God. Pope
and Emperor were regarded as
God's vice-regents on earth.
"The Almighty has appointed
" ...both swords,
the spiritual and the
material, are
in the power of the
Church. One sword,
moreover, ought to be
under the other."
Boniface VIl! (1294-1303)
the charge of the human race
between two powers," Pope Leo
XTII (1878- 1903) was later to
observe, "the ecclesiastical and the
civil, the one being set over divine,
the other over human things. " Leo
also pointed out that "Church and
State are like soul and body and
both must be united in order to live
and function rightly.... "
This intimate alliance of Church
and State served the needs of both
institutions. Tbe Empire exercised
its pol itical and mi litary powers to
defend religion and enforce reli-
gious uniformity. The Church, in
turn, acted as a "glue" for Europe,
holdi ng together the di f fering
national ities and cultures within
the Empire by the tie of common
religion.
As Leo XIII noted in retrospect:
"The Roman Pontiffs, by the insti–
tution of the Holy Empire, conse–
crated the política! power in a won–
derful manner. " To this day, the
Roman Catholic Church considers
its greatest accompl ishment to have
been the Christianization of Eu–
rope.
Maste r of Empe rors
Though Pope and Emperor were
both held to be God's vice-regents,
the Vat ican never took this to im–
ply coequal ity.
The powerful Pope Gregory VII
(1073-1085) stated it plainly: "The
Pope is the
master
of Emperors"!
Another strong Pope, Innocent I II,
asserted in 1198 that kings derive
their powers from the Pope, justas
tbe moon derives its light from the
sun.
The Vatican declared that tbe
Pope was above all nations and
independent of every temporal sov–
ereign, responsible only to
God.
This supremacy of Church over
Empire was symbolized by the tra–
ditional crowning of the Holy
Roman Emperors as
Imperator
Augustus
by the Popes in a mag–
nificent display of pageantry at
Rome. This was designed to public–
ly show that all political power
comes from God.
T his harmonious ideal in Church–
State relations, however, was not
completely realized. The respective
powers and privileges of Church and
Empire were not clearly defined.
The result was frequent conflict
between Emperor and Pope for the
leadership of Chr istian Europe. Tbis
conflict raged intermittently
throughout the Middle Ages.
Possibly the best illustration of
this is the incident at Canossa in
1077.
Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV
had been embroiled in a bitter dis–
pute with Pope Gregory VII. The
controversy was over whether tem–
poral princes could invest persons
with ecclesiastical offices (the Vati–
can said
no).
The unyielding Henry
The
PLAIN TRUTH