J
Johannes_de_S
Guest
Dear all
As I’m new to this forum I’ll briefly introduce myself; I’m a 23 year old man from the UK currently considering formal instruction in the Catholic faith. I was raised as an Anglican but grew apart from the church as a teenager, and came to consider myself an atheist until a year or so ago when I became fascinated with, and eventually drawn to Roman Catholicism (partially prompted by events in my personal life, and a re-reading of Evelyn Waugh’s ‘Brideshead Revisited’!).
One thing which is really bothering me at the moment is the existence of ‘immoral’ or seemingly downright evil Popes throughout history. Dante’s ‘Inferno’ talks of the inner circles of Hell being occupied by certain Popes, and a quick history lesson reveals figures such as Pope Benedict IX not only sold the papal office, but was supposedly described by St. Peter Damian as “feasting on immorality”.
Firstly - I realise Catholics are perfectly happy to admit that certain Popes were great sinners, and that this is not some Protestant invention. But it seems to me (and I’d especially welcome any guidance here!) is that the Catholic conception of apostolic succession teaches that the Pope is the living representative of Christ on earth, as a direct spiritual descendant of St Peter.
The worry, stated as simply as I can, is therefore this: if we accept that certain Popes were downright evil, how does this square with the doctrine of apostolic succession? If a human mistake is made in electing a deeply sinful man Pope (Benedict IX for example), how can we be sure that this mistake is not made in the election of every Pope? How, in other words, can we be sure that any given Pope really is the true representative of Christ on Earth?
I apologise in advance if my question rests on some clumsy misunderstanding or confusion, I am very keen to hear the thoughts of others on this, so as to strengthen my current leanings towards formally seeking entry to the Church.
As I’m new to this forum I’ll briefly introduce myself; I’m a 23 year old man from the UK currently considering formal instruction in the Catholic faith. I was raised as an Anglican but grew apart from the church as a teenager, and came to consider myself an atheist until a year or so ago when I became fascinated with, and eventually drawn to Roman Catholicism (partially prompted by events in my personal life, and a re-reading of Evelyn Waugh’s ‘Brideshead Revisited’!).
One thing which is really bothering me at the moment is the existence of ‘immoral’ or seemingly downright evil Popes throughout history. Dante’s ‘Inferno’ talks of the inner circles of Hell being occupied by certain Popes, and a quick history lesson reveals figures such as Pope Benedict IX not only sold the papal office, but was supposedly described by St. Peter Damian as “feasting on immorality”.
Firstly - I realise Catholics are perfectly happy to admit that certain Popes were great sinners, and that this is not some Protestant invention. But it seems to me (and I’d especially welcome any guidance here!) is that the Catholic conception of apostolic succession teaches that the Pope is the living representative of Christ on earth, as a direct spiritual descendant of St Peter.
The worry, stated as simply as I can, is therefore this: if we accept that certain Popes were downright evil, how does this square with the doctrine of apostolic succession? If a human mistake is made in electing a deeply sinful man Pope (Benedict IX for example), how can we be sure that this mistake is not made in the election of every Pope? How, in other words, can we be sure that any given Pope really is the true representative of Christ on Earth?
I apologise in advance if my question rests on some clumsy misunderstanding or confusion, I am very keen to hear the thoughts of others on this, so as to strengthen my current leanings towards formally seeking entry to the Church.