The Vatican is the oldest multinational in the World. Its origins lay in the first Christians communities in Rome. It took a few hundred years to convince the Romans that the message of the Bible was much more interesting than their almost obsolete cult of antique gods and goddesses. And of course, the final outcome was unsure, but the first christian community members were hardliners in every sense and they endured suffering and torture without hesitation about the common goal: the dominion of their god above those of their - what they saw as their – pagan neighbours.
Their leader was the fisherman whom Christ indicated as the one to bring his message to the world: Simon, or Peter as he was called in later years. He was the first pope of Christianity, although in his days that title did not exist. After 2000 years specialists still debate about the meaning of his appointment. Was it Christ’s goal to create a new belief outside the Jewish religion? Or was Simon/Peter only to spread the message within the framework of the existing system? You are Peter (Petros), and on this rock (petra) I will build my church, Christ told his disciple on one occasion. Did he speak about a church on earth or in heaven? We will never know.
Christians however read the message literally and the result is an institution that already lasts for two millennia and that survived the confrontation with Islam in later centuries and the schism as a result of Martin Luthers actions against the sale of indulgences, his ninety-five theses nailed to the door of All Saints’ Church in Wittenberg on 31 October 1517 and the resulting success of the Reformation. The pope, as leader of the Church, was the first soldier of Christianity and he was supposed to defend his flock against enemies of the faith and grant it a place in a society that would evolve and change and not always accept the political and religious positions taken by the Vatican. The result was a continuous battle, inside and outside the Church, and to defend himself and his Roman residence against all too greedy adversaries (the German emperor, the French king, The Turkish sultan) the pope built his own army and took part in European battles as if he were a warlord among warlords. Some of his colleagues accumulated gold, silver and luxurious goods in the same way foreign knights and kings did, and they used politics to their own advantage in order to guarantee the independence of the Papal States in a hostile environment. The image they spread was not always that of a religious leader and certainly not that of the successor of Peter, but we must not forget that to survive in the dangerous and treacherous Europe of their time, they had little choice, although the accumulation of gold and luxury, the Inquisition, the gulper parties and the endless sex orgies definitely blotted the reputation of the catholic church and the Holy See.
In The Popes. A History the English historian and member of the House of Lords, John Julius Norwich, tells the story of the popes, starting with Peter in the first century and ending with pope Benedictus XVI who took office in the Vatican in April 2005. It is a huge enterprise with no less than 265 popes to write about, but the author tells the reader in the introduction that the book has no scientific pretentions and is meant for people interested in the history of the catholic church and the persons who were in charge in the Vatican (and in the papal castle in Avignon) in the course of two millennia. All 265 popes (except pope Francis who came into office in 2013) are mentioned in the book, but not all of them are important or interesting enough for an in-depth treatment. The ones who make the pages of this book are those who stood out in one way or another as intelligent and dedicated man of the church, enlightened and humanist spirits or cruel and irresponsible bandits who used the power and the riches of the church for their own benefit. An avalanche of names, absolutely, but written in an easy and understandable language with facts that keep the attention and funny anecdotes that make the text on every page interesting and captivating. According to his own words in the introduction of The Popes. A History, author John Julius Norwich is an Anglican protestant, but that does not influence his opinion concerning the people in this book, or at least not in a way that one has the impression that they are criticized by a subjective outsider. His approach is concise and pragmatic and related to the methods of many illustrious predecessors. And yes, some chapters could use more political and/or social information as a backdrop, but with more than 550 pages The Popes; A History is already an impressive study.