Friday, August 11, 2023

It is the 11th of August, 2023. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org. I’m Dan van Voorhis.

The trope of the evil Pope was common in the 16th century. If you’ve seen any of the recent documentaries on church scandals with mega-pastors and the like, you might see a parallel. Yes, there are people in power doing very bad things, and they should be booted from any position of authority. At the same time, there comes a counter-reaction wherein revisionists suggest “maybe it’s all bad press, fake news, and the like”. Well, we are going to have to struggle through the stories and rumors of a Pope so notorious he is, I believe, the only Pope to be the center of a Showtime miniseries and portrayed by Jeremy Irons.

Yes, he was Pope Alexander VI- a member of the Borgia’s (of whom the Showtime series called “the Original Crime family”).

He was born Rodrigo Borgia into the Spanish Borgia’s, and when he was a teen, his Italian uncle- a Bishop and later Cardinal- brought him to Bologna where he could be raised as an Italian and with church benefices. When his uncle, Alfonso Borgia, was named Pope Calixtus in 1455, he would make Rodrigo a Cardinal. Despite his lofty ecclesiastical position, he lived more like an Italian prince. His selling of church positions (called Simony) made him rich, and lived in luxury. And his exploits were such that he received a letter from a later Pope condemning the stories of his many mistresses. This is incontrovertible and acknowledged by even his greatest defenders.

It was on this, the 11th of August in 1492, that Rodrigo Borgia was surprisingly elected as Pope in the middle of the night. Stories of massive amounts of gold and silver changing hands are told- whatever the story, promises were certainly made, and there was now a new Pope- Alexander VI.

The Italian peninsula in the 15th century was a prime target for the major powers of Europe. France and Spain would be especially keen on exploiting the quarrels between the Italian city-states in order to take control of that choice of real estate.

And this is where the apologists for Pope Alexander play up his greatest strengths. He stood up to the king of France, and through diplomacy, he pacified the Spanish kingdom under Ferdinand and Isabella. But it was his Spanish connection that made Italians uncomfortable. He enlarged the College of Cardinals, eventually naming 43 new cardinals, 17 of them Spanish. He famously signed the Treaty of Tordesillas, which divided the New World between Portugal and Spain, giving Spain the lion's share of North America (although it’s important to note that no other European leaders would abide by this arrangement). Tragically, this would lead to the “doctrine of discovery,” the principle that gave European nations the perceived right to whatever new lands and people they came across.

His son, Cesare, would be infamous- a model of the Machiavellian ruler praised by Machiavelli himself. But it was his other son, Juan, which gives us some insight into Alexander. Juan was famously murdered, found floating in a river with numerous stab wounds. Upon hearing this, Alexander decided that this was God’s judgment on him and that he needed to institute a reform of the church- many of the reforms that would occur in the following century- but this was short-lived. He directed his attention elsewhere- namely, creating a powerful and impressive Vatican and Rome. But his short “fit of godliness” affirms that he himself understood the rot in the church at the time. 

The stories of his immorality are difficult to confirm as he had many enemies who were willing to spread or believe the worst about him. Part of this was his Spanish blood which Italians resented- believing the Papacy was some kind of Italian right. Some of the stories, which I will not recount here- this is a family podcast- are so salacious that if they are only partially true, it would be astounding. But, as one historian has noted, “no depravity appeared beyond the Borgia’s,” and this perception has become the lens through which Alexander has been seen historically. As Catholics can point out, it was St. Leo the Great who claimed that “The dignity of Peter suffers no diminution even in an unworthy successor.” And Protestants can see the exploits of this Pope- exaggerated or not- as part of that which contributed to the rise of the Reformation in the next few decades. He was more a prince than a Pope, probably not as bad as some have suggested but certainly indefensible in his various lusts- today, we remember Rodrigo Borgia, who became Pope Alexander VI on this day in 1492.

The last word for today comes from the daily lectionary and Mark 9:

And they brought the boy to him. When the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. 21Jesus asked the father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. 22It has often cast him into the fire and into the water, to destroy him; but if you are able to do anything, have pity on us and help us.” 23Jesus said to him, “If you are able! — All things can be done for the one who believes.” 24Immediately the father of the child cried out, “I believe; help my unbelief!”

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 11th of August 2023, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man who knows Jeremy Irons primarily as the voice of Scar in the Lion King and as the lesser Alfred in the DC universe- he is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by who remembered that yesterday was his 22nd Anniversary with just hours to spare… I’m Dan van Voorhis.

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.