Pius III (1503) 217th Pope
His ill health forced him to celebrate Mass while sitting
Julius II (1503-1513) 218th Pope
Though not too pastoral, he was an energetic pope
He led a series of campaigns to retake the Papal States
He established the first diocese in Latin America
He declared that bribery nullified papal elections
He was a patron of the arts
He commissioned Michangelo’s frescoes on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel
He completed the construction of St. Peter’s
Leo X (1513-1521) 219th Pope
He was generous to a fault
He had a love of secular amusements of all kind
Rome became a haven for artists, scholars, poets, playwright, musicians
He emptied the treasury. He created offices and sold them
He was loved in Rome and by the Humanists
Priests were living in sin. Clerics of all sorts were no longer wearing clerical garb. Many bishops and abbots were more concerned with revenue collection. Many places neglected catechetical teaching. Knowledge of church dogma hardly existed.
This vacuum caused heresy and witchcraft to flourish
Pawn shops for the poor were created for the issuance of low interest loans’
Luther nailed his 95 Theses. Luther was initially annoyed with the Church’s abuse of indulgences
Luther preached salvation through faith alone. He preached private judgment that the Holy Spirit will tell each person what the bible means (sola scriptura). This would provide the starting point for New Age philosophy (create your own reality)
Luther called upon princes to reform the Church by taking over complete control of it in their respective realms
The Reformation merged private judgment and state control. Anyone may believe what they like, so long as it is private. The state maintains absolute power to legislate right and wrong.
The power of the papacy was destroyed in virtually all countries in Europe
Adrian VI (1522-1523) 220th Pope
He would be the last non-Italian pope elected until 1978
He immediately set to reform the curia
He could do little about the Protestant threat
Clement VII (1523-1534) 221st Pope
He was a very indecisive person
He wanted to convert all the Americas, reform the Church conciliate the Lutherans, reunite with the Eastern Church and launch a crusade
All over the Protestant world, enemies devastated churches, desecrated the Blessed Sacrament, and destroyed priceless artwork
Nuns were raped and clerics were killed
The Reformation was spreading beyond imperial boundaries
He refused to approve of King Henry VIII’s marriage
He commissioned Michaelangelo to do the famous last judgment for the Sistine Chapel
He approved formation of the Capuchins
Paul III (1534-1549) 222nd Pope
He was very pious
He faced opposition with the reform he put into place
He wanted to reaffirm the Church’s teachings as clearly as possible
The council of Trent defined the Catholic teaching on scriptures, the sacraments, and other matters
He approve the formation of the Jesuits
He was a great patron of culture and the arts
Julius III (1550-1555) 223rd Pope
Reform had progressed
The Jesuits flourished
Marcellus II (1555) 224th Pope
He was renowned for his love of piety and learning
He stamped his own sense of austerity and justice to the curia
Paul IV (1555-1559) 225th Pope
He joined the Dominican orders
He continued the work of reform
He used the Inquisition to oppose the Lutheran heresy
Pius IV (1559-1565) 226th Pope
He issued a bull summarizing the doctrines Catholics must believe
He pardoned all sinners
St. Pius V (1566-1572) 227th Pope
He help to spread liturgical reform
As a Dominican, he continued to wear the white habit of his order. The popes have worn white ever since
He issued the Catechism of Trent
Some say he launched the Counter-Reformation, a movement of orders that reformed and purified the Church
Preaching and doctrinally rich hymns became a priority
Baroque architecture would develop
He promoted culture among people to prevent the spread of heresy
He decreed the use of the Roman missal
Gregory XIII (1572-1585) 228th Pope
His major goals were to combat the spread of Protestantism, reconvert those nations fallen to it, evangelize the Americas, Asia, and Africa
He further the work of reform in the Church
He appointed a commission to correct the Julian calendar, creating the Gregorian calendar
He opened seminaries throughout Europe
Sixtus (1585-1590) 229th Pope
He made many improvements in the Roman infrastructure
He organized the system of congregations
Urban VII (1590) 230th Pope
He ordered that a list of all the poor in Rome be made up in order to relieve them
He required his entourage make sacrifices to pay for these expenses
He left all his wealth for works of charity
Gregory XIV (1590-1591) 231st Pope
He was known for his piety
He confirmed an order whose special vocation was to assist the dying
He ordered the freedom of all slaves made by the Spanish in the Phillipines
He is partly responsible for the Phillipines being a Catholic nation
Innocent IX (1591) 232nd Pope
He wrote many writing attacking Machiavelli’s idea of pragmatism
Clement VIII (1592-1605) 233rd Pope
He was know for his personal holiness
He immediately began visiting all the churches, hospitals, charitable and educational institutions in Rome
He instituted 40 hours devotion before the Blessed Sacrament
He fought the lawless Roman nobility