That's So Second Millennium copertina

That's So Second Millennium

That's So Second Millennium

Di: Paul Giesting William Schmitt
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Taking science AND faith seriously.Copyright 2020 Paul Giesting and William Schmitt Catechesi ed evangelismo Cristianesimo Igiene e vita sana Psicologia Psicologia e salute mentale Scienza Spiritualità
Episodi
  • Popes 1D - Paul

    Popes 1D - Paul
    Sep 30 2026
    St Paul I [brother: Stephen II] 757-767 Paul II [Pietro Barbo] 1464-1471 Paul III [Alessandro Farnese] 1534-1549 Paul IV [Giovanni Caraffa] 1555-1559 Paul V [Camillo Borghese] 1605-1621 St Paul VI [Giovanni Montini] 1963-1978 St. Paul I: brother to Pope Stephen II and succeeded him--the sort of thing that could happen in the premodern era. This was the era of Pepin the Frank, where the Frankish kingdom had just become the papacy's welcome bulwark against the conquests of the Lombards and the intrigues of the Byzantines, who also wished to take back control of as much of Italy as possible; at the end of the century this would lead to the crowning of Constantine as Western Emperor and the final decline of Byzantine influence, although the Lombard dukes would take longer to diminish in importance. Pope Paul I had a reputation for honor and personal sanctity which were still common in that era. Paul II: elected in the fifteenth century recovery and Roman Renaissance period following the Avignon period and the schism and wild experimental councils that ended it. His uncle was Pope Eugene II and apparently he became a priest after his uncle's election. Paul II was a big spender on building projects (probably still needed at the time), carnivals and festivals, and was a supporter of the arts. However, he also found it necessary to reign in some of the more ardent Renaissance figures of his day and closed something called the Roman Academy for its excesses toward paganism and moral turpitude. He made efforts, building on the conciliar period at the beginning of the century, to bring Russia into communion with Rome and to combat the Turks who had just conquered Constantinople; these big ideas and initiatives were, sadly, not successful. The Ottomans continued expanding for centuries to come and Russia is still very much in schism with Rome. Paul III: An aristocrat of the Farnese family, educated at Rome and Florence; knew Leo X from their youth in Florence. He was a cardinal from age 25 until his election as Pope at age 66, a period embracing the excesses of Popes Alexander and Julius/Julian and the beginning of Luther's disturbances. He was enormously influential between his intellect, education, wealth, time in the Sacred College, and diplomatic skill. Finally he was elected Pope in a time of turmoil, less than 20 years after Luther's 95 theses. By that point he was old and respected and past some questionable periods in his youth. Apparently Paul saw immediately that a new general council was needed to address the outbreak of Protestantism, but his efforts to get one started were thwarted by Holy Roman Emperor Charles V's attempts to hammer out vague agreements that everyone could accept, and even more so by the power politics of the French under Francois I. He wanted the Holy Roman Empire divided and weakened, and did not care if heresy was the means to that end. In that light it is not surprising that he persecuted Protestants harshly within France itself. This became a recurring French policy and would culminate in the Thirty Years' War that devastated and practically ended the Holy Roman Empire as a united country. Pope Paul was not immune to concerns about the excessive power of the Holy Roman Emperors who had mistreated so many of his predecessors, Gregory VII in particular, but in this he may have been short-sighted; his family were traditional Guelphs who supported the Popes politically against the Emperors. In any case Paul III did get the Council of Trent started and, like Pope John XXIII, did see its initial sessions. Against Charles V's desires, they immediately set to work on some of the key issues regarding original sin, justification, and the sacraments. Meanwhile Pope Paul had begun many reforms of the Curia and Church discipline on his own initiative that after his death were taken up by the Council. He supported many of the new religious orders springing up in this era. Many see Paul III as a Pope of towering importance for the history of the Church. Paul IV: Born of a Neapolitan noble family, brought into the Church by his uncle Cardinal Ottavino, but very attracted by the discipline of religious life. He, too, knew Leo X and was sent on diplomatic missions in his pontificate. Cardinal Giovanni, later Paul IV, eventually became a member of the priestly order set up by St. Cajetan. Because Giovanni was Bishop of Chieti, Theate in Latin, and because he was first general of the order, they became known as Theatines--a remarkably indirect reason. Protestant brigands sacked Rome in 1527 and the Theatines suffered greatly and went away to Venice for a few years, but Paul III believed they were needed in Rome and brought them back. Paul III made the future Paul IV a cardinal and employed him in reforming the Curia and in the Inquisition in Italy, where he was very strict if not harsh. Paul IV was very old at his election as pope and quite surprised by it. Legend has it that he might ...
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    54 min
  • Popes 1C - Sixtus

    Popes 1C - Sixtus
    Aug 31 2026

    Changing the numbering system to be more suggestive of a bracket. Sixtus is the third one seed, if you will.

    Image: Sandro Botticelli, 1480, Pope Sixtus II

    Popes names Sixtus (originally Xystus):

    St Sixtus I 117 or 119 to 126 or 128 Martyr

    St Sixtus II 257 to 258 Famous martyr, in the Roman Canon

    St Sixtus III 432 to 440

    Sixtus IV 1471 to 1484 Sistine Chapel named for him

    Sixtus V 1585 to 1590 Great reformer of the Papal States and Curia

    Sixtus or Xystus I: the earliest pope we have covered so far, in the very uncertain period of the second century, during the reign of Hadrian. The chronicles that look back to this time do not agree on the dates of his ministry and otherwise only record a few vague details. He is supposed to have placed the chanting of the Sanctus at its present place in the Mass, right after the Preface; he is also recorded to have been martyred, although nothing seems to be preserved about the event.

    Sixtus / Xystus II: pope during the persecution of Valerian in the third century. His brief reign saw a reconciliation with St. Cyprian and churches in Africa and Asia Minor, which had been requiring heretics to be rebaptized. The persecution was stepped up in August 258 and Pope Xystus was beheaded with four deacons in a cemetery where he was celebrating Mass; two more deacons were executed the same day; the last and most famous deacon, Lawrence, survived a few days to be captured and according to legend roasted to death. Pope Sixtus to this day is mentioned in the full version of the Roman Canon of the Eucharistic Prayer.

    Sixtus / Xystus III: prior to his election as pope, a correspondent with St. Augustine. Approved the acts of the Council of Ephesus and rededicated the restored basilica of St. Mary Major. This historical period included continued disputes with both Pelagians and Nestorians. Defended and maintained papal supremacy over Illyricum. Succeeded by Leo the Great.

    Sixtus IV: pope of the late fifteenth century. Born of poor parents; became a Franciscan and a notable theologian. Unfortunately once pope he became a traditional nepotist and involved the Papal States in wars to put his nephews in charge of Florence and Ferrara, and wars of this nature continued to absorb papal attention through the beginning of the Reformation. He opposed and annulled the decrees of the Council of Constance and was successful in turning the Church away from conciliarism. He was a great builder and is said to have made Rome much more livable, helping continue its recovery from the Avignon period of the papacy. He reorganized and essentially refounded the Vatican Library and most famously built the Sistine Chapel.

    Sixtus V: also of poor birth and Dalmatian ancestry, whose family had fled from Turkish expansion; supposedly a swineherd as a boy. Also became a Franciscan and rose to prominence in that order, also for a time appointed to the Inquisition in Venice. Accompanied the future Gregory XIII to Spain to investigate claims that the Archbishop of Toledo was a heretic, and the two did not get along. During Gregory XIII's long reign he was sidelined. Similarly to his time as an inquisitor, he proved to be an effective but severe and even brutal ruler of the Papal States. He had perhaps ten thousand to thirty thousand brigands to deal with and nearly exterminated them. He put the papal finances in order and built many useful and beautiful buildings, but seems to have taxed the economy into a stupor. Of particular significance, he created fifteen Congregations to organize the cardinals and created much of the current structure of the Curia. He caused editions of the Septuagint and the Vulgate to be printed, although his edition of the Vulgate is not considered to be of high quality, and even at the time was recalled and corrected in 1592 due to many errors already recognized. He was supposedly on the point of forcing the Jesuits to change their name from the "Society of Jesus" and change some of the rules of the order when he died. For a change he was actually notably non-nepotistic.

    Why Sixtus VI: A cardinal would take this name in order to revive the memory of Sixtus II (and I), recognizing that the Church in so many parts of the world faces persecution on a massive scale. That by itself might be enough. The early modern era Popes Sixtus, especially Sixtus V, might contribute to the idea especially if 1) the cardinal is a Franciscan and 2) he plans to address the Vatican finances and the organization of the Curia at large.
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    48 min
  • TSSM Bonus - Gloriously Depressing Literature Edition

    TSSM Bonus - Gloriously Depressing Literature Edition
    Jul 22 2026

    Paul followed through on his promise to read Fathers and Sons by Turgenev, Paradise Lost, and Crime and Punishment to discuss with a former student. Some gleanings from his particular corner of the asylum.
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    19 min
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