Read Saints and Sinners: A History of the Popes; Fourth Edition Online
Authors: Eamon Duffy
It was clear that the Papa Francesco was by instinct and pastoral conviction a reformer, a priest of the streets not, like his scholar-predecessor, a man of the study and the sacristy. But it seemed equally clear that he was not a systems man. In the week after his election, he personally phoned his newsagent in Buenos Aires to cancel the newspapers, and his habit of making spontaneous mobile-phone calls to astonished Catholics who had written to him about their troubles soon became famous. This open-hearted directness was undoubtedly endearing, and it sent a clear signal about the pope’s pastoral priorities. It was entirely in keeping with his refusal to live in the narrowing ‘funnel’ of the Apostolic Palace. But it was not necessarily the best recipe for maximizing the time at the disposal of a septuagenarian with only one lung, and one of the most demanding jobs in the world, and it was not clear whether Bergoglio would be able to carry through the deep structural changes he seemed to favour in the Vatican’s entrenched and byzantine bureaucracies. Many suspected that the pope’s age and lack of Vatican experience might in the end frustrate even the best intentions. Behind the scenes, some feared, the temple police need only regroup, and wait for the flood tide of reform to ebb away. Those familiar with his record as Jesuit Provincial and as Archbishop of Buenos Aires insisted, however, that Bergoglio’s canniness and determination would be a match even for the grey eminences of the Vatican, and that a process had begun whose momentum might well survive its initiator.
Only time will tell.
APPENDIX A
CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF POPES AND ANTIPOPES
Dates for the first fifteen popes are approximate, and for the first five (excluding Clement) are arbitrary. Following the convention of the most ancient lists, the Apostle Peter is not reckoned as a pope.
The names of popes are given in capital letters, preceded by a number giving their place in the succession. The names of the antipopes are indented, without number, and in plain type. Where a pope assumed a new name on election, his baptismal name is given in square brackets.
1 | S | |
2 | S | |
3 | S | c. 96 |
4 | S | |
5 | S | |
6 | S | c. 116–c. 125 |
7 | S | c. 125–c. 136 |
8 | S | c. 138–c. 142 |
9 | S | c. 142–c. 155 |
10 | S | c. 155–c. 166 |
11 | S | c. 166–c. 174 |
12 | S | c. 175–c. 189 |
13 | S | c. 189–c. 199 |
14 | S | c. 199–c. 217 |
15 | S | c. 217–222 |
St Hippolytus 217–c. 235 | ||
16 | S | c. 222–230 |
17 | S | 21 July 230–28 Sept. 235 |
18 | S | 21 Nov. 235–3 Jan. 236 |
19 | S | 10 Jan. 236–20 Jan. 250 |
20 | S | Mar. 251–June 253 |
Novatian | Mar. 251–258 | |
21 | S | 25 June 253–5 Mar. 254 |
22 | S | 12 May 254–2 Aug. 257 |
23 | S | Aug. 257–6 Aug. 258 |
24 | S | 22 July 260–26 Dec. 268 |
25 | S | 3 Jan. 269–30 Dec. 274 |
26 | S | 4 Jan. 275–7 Dec. 283 |
27 | S | 17 Dec. 283–22 Apr. 296 |
28 | S | 30 June 296–?: died 25 Oct. 304 |
29 | S | c. 308–309 |
30 | S | 18 Apr.–21 Oct. 310 |
31 | S | 2 July 311–10 Jan. 314 |
32 | S | 31 Jan. 314–31 Dec. 335 |
33 | S | 18 Jan.–7 Oct. 336 |
34 | S | 6 Feb. 337–12 Apr. 352 |
35 | L | 17 May 352–24 Sept. 366 |
St Felix II | 355–365 | |
36 | S | 1 Oct. 366–11 Dec. 384 |
Ursinus | 366–7: died 385 | |
37 | S | 17(?) Dec. 384–26 Nov. 399 |
38 | S | 27 Nov. 399–19 Dec. 401 |
39 | S | 21 Dec. 401–12 Mar. 417 |
40 | S | 18 Mar. 417–26 Dec. 418 |
Eulalius | 418: died 423 | |
41 | S | 28 Dec. 418–4 Sept. 422 |
42 | S | 10 Sept. 422–27 July 432 |
43 | S | 31 July 432–19 Aug. 440 |
44 | S | 29 Sept. 440–10 Nov. 461 |
45 | S | 19 Nov. 461–29 Feb. 468 |
46 | S | 3 Mar. 468–10 Mar. 483 |
47 | S | 13 Mar. 483–1 Mar. 492 |
48 | S | 1 Mar. 492–21 Nov. 496 |
49 | A | 24 Nov. 496–19 Nov. 498 |
50 | S | 22 Nov. 498–19 July 514 |
Laurence | 498–499, 501–506: died 508 | |
51 | S | 20 July 514–6 Aug. 523 |
52 | S | 13 Aug. 523–18 May 526 |
53 | S | 12 July 526–22 Sept. 530 |
Dioscorus | 530 | |
54 | B | 22 Sept. 530–17 Oct. 532 |
55 | J | 2 Jan. 533–8 May 535 |
56 | S | 13 May 535–22 Apr. 536 |
57 | S | 8 June 536–11 Nov. 537: deposed, died 2 Dec. 537 |
58 | V | 29 Mar. 537–7 June 555 |
59 | P | 16 Apr. 556–3 Mar. 561 |
60 | J | 17 July 561–13 July 574 |
61 | B | 2 June 575–30 July 579 |
62 | P | 26 Nov. 579–7 Feb. 590 |
63 | S | 3 Sept. 590–12 Mar. 604 |
64 | S | 13 Sept. 604–22 Feb. 606 |
65 | B | 19 Feb.–12 Nov. 607 |
66 | S | 15 Sept. 608–8 May 615 |
67 | S | 19 Oct. 615–8 Nov. 618 |
68 | B | 23 Dec. 619–25 Oct. 625 |
69 | H | 27 Oct. 625–12 Oct. 638 |
70 | S | 28 May 640–2 Aug. 640 |
71 | J | 24 Dec. 640–12 Oct. 642 |
72 | T | 24 Nov. 642–14 May 649 |
73 | S | 5 July 649–17 June 653: deposed, died 16 Sept. 655 |
74 | S | 10 Aug. 654–2 June 657 |
75 | S | 30 July 657–27 Jan. 672 |
76 | A | 11 Apr. 672–17 June 676 |
77 | D | 2 Nov. 676–11 Apr. 678 |
78 | S | 27 June 678–10 Jan. 681 |
79 | S | 17 Aug. 682–3 July 683 |
80 | S | 26 June 684–8 May 685 |
81 | J | 23 July 685–2 Aug. 686 |
82 | C | 21 Oct. 686–21 Sept. 687 |
Theodore | 687 | |
Paschal | 687: died 692 | |
83 | S | 15 Dec. 687–9 Sept. 701 |
84 | J | 30 Oct. 701–11 Jan. 705 |
85 | J | 1 Mar. 705–18 Oct. 707 |
86 | S | 15 Jan.–8 Feb. 708 |
87 | C | 25 Mar. 708–9 Apr. 715 |
88 | S | 19 May 715–11 Feb. 731 |
89 | S | 18 Mar. 731–28 Nov. 741 |
90 | S | 3 Dec. 741–15 Mar. 752 |
91 | S | 26 Mar. 752–26 Apr. 757 |
92 | S | 29 May 757–28 June 767 |
Constantine | 767–768 | |
Philip | 768 | |
93 | S | 7 Aug. 768–24 Jan. 772 |
94 | H | 1 Feb. 772–25 Dec. 795 |
95 | S | 27 Dec. 795–12 June 816 |
96 | S | 22 June 816–24 Jan. 817 |
97 | S | 24 Jan. 817–11 Feb. 824 |
98 | E | 5/6 June 824–27 Aug. 827 |
99 | V | Aug.–Sept. 827 |
100 | G | end of 827–25 Jan. 844 |
John | 844 |