Monday, September 30, 2024

*** This is a rough transcript of today’s show ***

It is September 30th, 2024. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org. I’m Dan van Voorhis.

A very happy Monday to you- as is the case I head to the mailbag to answer questions sent by you- to me, for answering.

And there is no “trick” to getting your question answered- I tuck them all away, and when I start to see a theme or happen to be reading in a place where a question comes up, I might jump to it. Of course, flattery and favorable references to things I like are helpful. So- Steven wrote that he didn’t give me a location… But he told me that he had one, Dr. Rob Price, as a professor at BIOLA. Hey, that’s my brother-in-law! Mindy’s husband! And Steven told me that he had developed some of his theological ideas with a chaplain called Charlie Mallie. What? I’ve known Charlie since he was a Young Life leader coming to University High School in the mid-90s.  

Wild. And, Steven told me he likes Robin Hood- the animated version. Real quick- in the scene where they steal from King John the first time a fight breaks out with college football music- the songs for USC and Wisconsin- who played this weekend. We took care of things in the second half.

Steven wrote to ask about the Pope- I have had a bunch of “pope” questions come in. We had some “Pope” shows recently, and people are curious- who is this fella? And if you aren’t Catholic, what of him? Steven wrote: “When did the Roman Pope come to be recognized as THE Pope by the Western church and elevated over the other metropolitan bishops?  Follow-up: was he ever recognized by the churches of the east as their leader as well, prior to the Great Schism?”

So- Pope- or “Il Papa” was a term of respect for church leaders in the early church- there were “brothers” and “sisters” and “fathers” and “mothers” and Il Papa became a title of veneration. By the 4th century, the Bishop of Rome was taking the term “Pope,” and by the 6th century, the “Pope” and the Bishop of Rome became synonymous. And they were called this by other church leaders- the term didn’t have the baggage of authority it would come to have. By the time of Gregory VII in 1073, the term “Pope” was officially restricted in the Western Latin church to the Bishop of Rome alone.

That’s 1073, the Great Schism starts in 1054- so the Patriarch of Constantinople and the Bishop of Rome are fighting. But, as we’ve noted before, these are the final two standing after five leaders were initially representing different regions. Those were Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexandria, Constantinople, and Rome. The Bishop of Alexandria was also called “Pope” for a time, too, before that center was subsumed by the last big two standing: Catholic and Orthodox (to oversimplify)  

And there was (and sometimes still is) mutual respect for the office because of who they represent. And having a few, or one, represent the whole is keeping with human experience and history. The beef with the Pope, or any authority, isn’t that they have authority- we dole it out all the time for people to work in lieu of ourselves. It’s a question of inappropriate authority. As the Pope was under duress from the Protestant Reformation, the baggage with the Eastern churches began to develop a response that elevated the office of the Pope above all others- this is part of the 19th-century expansion of Papal authority.

Those of us outside can choose how to relate to the authority of another body—we can respect them as representatives of other Christians, look to them for wisdom even when we disagree with them on some issues, and note the historical developments and why we may or may not choose to grant any one person or group that kind of authority.

It’s tricky—at the Reformation, some harsh words were said—but it should be noted not against the person but against the office. Not against those represented by the office, but a perceived audacity to withhold the forgiveness of sins from the penitent—this was the issue.

I saw conservative Protestants laud Pope Benedict and progressive Protestants laud the new Pope Francis- so perhaps we’re all able to find those things to praise and criticize.

The last word for today is from the daily lectionary and the Benediction from 1 Peter:

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 30th of September 2024, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man who loves it when you call Big Poppa- he is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man glad the dumb baseball season is over—good riddance, and sell the team Arte… 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.