Vatican Newspaper Hosts Womens' Supplement

From the Guardian:

The Vatican's official newspaper is for the first time in its 150-year history publishing an all-colour women's supplement "to give voice to the value that women bring to the church".

Women, Church, World will be edited by women and published withL'Osservatore Romano, the newspaper founded in 1861 and published by the Holy See on the last Thursday of every month.

The new section will promote a keener understanding of the "under-appreciated treasure" of women in the church, according to editor Giovanni Maria Vian.

The launch coincides with the worst scandal to hit the Vatican in years as leaked letters addressed to the pope expose a world of jealous, spiteful prelates and petty rivalries.

Vian said Pope Benedict backed the supplement, which he said would hire non-Catholic contributors.

Review: Pope Joan (Lawrence Durrell)

This work by Lawrence Durrell is a 1954 translation of the Greek Papissa Joanna of Emmannuel Royidis which was written in 1886.  As such, the review is really covering the original work and is not a critique of Durrell's translation of the original work.

Joanna’s story begins with her humble antecedents – the daughter of an unnamed English monk (who is never named) and a buxom Saxon goose girl called Judith. Her father-monk is inspired to leave England and preach in the land of the great Charles (whom I am presuming to be Charlemagne), which he did as a wandering missionary for eight years until his “every hope of paternity” was cruelly removed. Whether through miraculously conception or rape, Joanna was born sometime in the year 818. And eight years later, following the passing of Joanna’s mother and a curious incident with a bare-breasted Abbess, Joanna’s father once more embarks on the missionary trail, this time with Joanna to accompany him.

You can read more of my review at Medievalists.net

Pope: Joan of Arc a Role Model for Public Officials

From Google News:

Pope Benedict XVI said Wednesday that public officials would do well to model themselves on Joan of Arc, the French saint who was tried for heresy and burned at the stake for her convictions.

Benedict highlighted the life of the 15th century mystic in his weekly general audience. For several months he has used his Wednesday catechisms to promote an important woman in the church's history.

Joan of Arc led the French to several victories over the English during the Hundred Years War. She had said she heard voices from a trio of saints telling her to deliver France from the English.

She was tried for heresy and witchcraft and burned at the stake in 1431, though her conviction was later annulled. She was canonized in 1920 by Pope Benedict XV.

"Hers is a beautiful example of holiness for lay people working in public life, particularly during the most difficult situations," Benedict XVI said.

Benedict expressed bitterness at how Joan of Arc had been treated by the church, saying her heresy trial was a "upsetting page" in church history and was due to French churchmen "who had made different political choices" than she.

But he noted that the illiterate farm girl nevertheless went to her death professing a love for the church and Christ.

Peters Pence - Orgins

Did you know:

"By the end of the eighth century the Anglo-Saxons felt so closely linked to the Bishop of Rome that they decided to send a regular annual contribution to the Holy Father. It was thus that the Denarius Sancti Petri (Alms of Saint Peter) originated and spread throughout Europe."

Source: Vatican website

History Making News

From BBC News: Turkey demands the return of the bones of St Nicholas.

A Turkish archaeologist has called on his government to demand that Italy return the bones of St Nicholas to their original resting place.

The 3rd Century saint - on whom Santa Claus was modelled - was buried in the modern-day town of Demre in Turkey.

But in the Middle Ages his bones were taken by Italian sailors and re-interred in the port of Bari.

The Turkish government said it was considering making a request to Rome for the return of the saint's remains.

From BBC News: 15th Century Papal Bull

Work to preserve a 15th Century letter from the Pope founding the University of St Andrews has been completed.

The Bull of Foundation is one of a series of six letters from the Pope, sent in 1413, which brought the institution into existence.

It took experts three weeks to restore the Papal Bull, including surface cleaning, repairing edge tears and the realignment of the document's silk tag.

The document will now be able to be displayed to the public.

From the Telegraph: Tomb of 3rd Cent Notorious General

Chinese archaeologists have unearthed a large third-century tomb which they say could be that of Cao Cao, the politician and general infamous in East Asia for his Machiavellian tactics.

The tomb, discovered in Xigaoxue village near the ancient city of Anyang in Henan Province, has an epitaph and inscription that appear to refer to Cao Cao, Central China Television said on Sunday.

A Chinese proverb, "speak of Cao Cao and he appears", is the the equivalent of "speak of the devil" in English.

Female Swiss Guards

From the Telegraph:

The Swiss Guard is to consider recruiting women into the world's smallest army for the first time in the papal security force's 500-year history.

The new commander of the force, whose distinctive blue, yellow and red uniforms and ceremonial halberds grace the precincts of the Vatican, said that obstacles that had kept the force all-male could be overcome.

His surprise comments, which follow the refusal of his predecessors to contemplate women recruits, were made on the eve of a swearing-in ceremony at the Vatican for 32 new members of the force.

Mazoria

Senatrix and Papal Power-broker (d.986)

Mazoria was a member of the influential Theophylact family of Rome, Italy. Her father was a Roman Senator, her mother Theodora, papal mistress. She had a half-sister, another Theodora. Mazoria was the product of her time. She was thrice married and had numerous affairs. When Mazoria was aged 15, she was seduced by Pope Sergius III and bore him a son. Aged 22, and with her son now aged 6, Mazoria married Alberic of Tuscany (914) and bore him a son Alberic Junior.

Her husband attempted to seize control of Rome, but failed and was killed by her mother's lover - Pope John X. After the death of her mother, Mazoria was responsible for having the Pope imprisoned (928) and suffocated. Her 20 year old eldest son succeeded as Pope John XI. Mazoria married a second time to Guy of Provence. When he died, she married his half-brother King Hugo of Provence (932). In the meantime Mazoria's second son 18yo Alberic Junior took over Rome. Mazoria was then abandoned by her husband who fled. Her eldest son Pope John XI was put under house arrest (he died four years later).

Mazoria was imprisoned by her son Alberic Junior in Castel Sant'Angelo for over 50 years. She was aged 60 when 40yo Alberic Junior died and her grandson Octavian succeeded as Pope John XII (955). He decided to put her out of her misery. Mazoria was exorcised, her excommunication was lifted and she was then executed (986).

~~~ Melisende (first pub: 1998 Women of History)

Pope Joan

The myth of the woman, who disguised as a man, sat enthroned as Pope in the Vatican; her identity only being discovered when she gave birth.

And it is just that - a myth. Whilst it would have been quite a feat for a woman to sit atop the throne of St Peter, the legend actually became current approximately 400 years after the so-called fact.

Looking at the Papal lists for the 9th Century:

St. Leo III (r.26/12/795 - 12/6/816) - the Pope who crowned Charlemagne (800).
Stephen IV (V) (r. 22/6/816 - 14/1/817) - crowned Louis the Pious (816).
St. Paschal I (r.25/1/817 - 11/2/824) - met Lothair, son of Emperor Louis (823).
Eugenius II (r.21/2/824 - 27/8/827) - papacy under direct control of the Emperor.
Valentine (r. August - September 827).
Gregory IV (r. October 827 - 25/1/844) - reign of Anti-Pope John VIII, a deacon, who though elected was quickly expelled (January 844).
Sergius II (r. January 844 - 21/1/847) - considered one of the most corrupt Popes.

The reigns of Leo IV (r. January 847 - July 855) and Benedict III (r.29/9/855 - April 858) were fairly fluid - Hadrian, Cardinal Priest of San Marco was elected but refused to accept (July - September 855) and so elections were re-held and Benedict III ascended the papal throne. There did coincide the reign of Antipope Anastasius (r.855) - but his election was due mainly to political interference, and he was deposed.

St. Nicholas I (r.24/4/858 - 13/11/867) - this was Hadrian, who previously refused his election - this time the issue was forced by Emperor Louis II.
Hadrian II (r.14/12/867 - 14/12/872) - not to be confused with Pope Nicholas I - he was, however, related to both Popes Stephen IV and Sergius II.
John VIII (r.14/12/872 - 16/12/882) - one of the first Popes to be assassinated.
Marinus I (r.16/12/882 - 15/5/884) - election approved by Emperor Charles III.
Hardian III (r.17/5/884- 17/9/885 - mysterious death.
Stephen V (VI) (r. September 885 - 14/9/891) -deposition of Emperor Charles III (887).
Formosus (r.6/10/891 - 4/4/896) - notorious for the circumstances following his death (see: Pope Stephen VI).
Boniface V (r. April 896) - twice defrocked for immorality.
Stephen VI (r. May 896 - August 897) - notorious exhumation and trial of predecessor, Formosus.
Romanus (r. August - November 897) - deposed, imprisoned and murdered.
Theodore II (r. November - December 897) - rehabilitated Formosus and denounced Stephen VI.
John IX (r. January 898 - January 900) - irregularity of election - one Sergius was elected then expelled prior to John’s accession.

The Chroniclers of the times make no mention of a Pope Joan - the Papacy was in a constant state of factional turmoil. Popes were being elected and deposed with an unseemly regularity. Their reigns were often not deserving of the sometime saintly aura with which they are remembered. And add to this the controversy surrounding the enthronement of Empress Irene on the Imperial throne in Constantinople (800), no women would easily ascended the Papal throne without her sex going unnoticed.

The Theophylact women of Rome "ruled" the papacy for a period of approx. 30 years over 100 years after Pope Joan was said to have reigned. However, the Papacy has a (centuries) long history of Imperial and political domination and manipulation by men. No Pope John Doe legends abound - just plenty of Anti-Popes!

Wikipedia, though not a source that I would rely upon, has a rather interesting little note in it's Pope Joan article:

It is also notable that enemies of the Papacy in the 9th century make no mention of the female Pope. For example, Photius I of Constantinople, who became patriarch in 858 and was deposed by Pope Nicholas I in 863, was understandably an enemy of the Pope. He vehemently asserted his own authority as patriarch over that of the Pope in Rome, and would certainly have made the most of any scandal of that time regarding the Papacy. But he never mentions the story once in any of his voluminous writings. Indeed, at one point he mentions "Leo and Benedict, successively great priests of the Roman Church".

So, just like today, scandal makes the headlines - and in this instance, there was no mention of the scandalous reign of a female Pope. And also like today, making political mileage of ones enemies was a powerful political tool in the 9th Century, and it was a tool that was used without remorselessly.

Acquisition of the Papal throne was just as important as the attainment of any secular throne. It meant power and prestige, and for some, it meant the achievement of sainthood. It was not accepted lightly, and when attained, it was not given up without a fight.

• "The Woman Who Was Pope: A Biography of Pope Joan 853 - 855" by Clement Wood
• "Pope Joan: A Riddle of the Dark Ages" by Chris Olsen
• "Pope Joan: In Search of the Truth" by Peter Stanford
• "Vicars of Christ: The Dark Side of the Papacy" by Peter de Rosa (Lives of the Popes)
• "The Female Pope: The Mystery of Pope Joan" by Rosemary and Darroll Pardoe
• Catholic Encyclopedia - Pope Joan
• Looking For Pope Joan
• Pope Joan: A Novel by Donna Woolfolk Cross

~~~ Melisende (first pub: 29/12/2005)