Everyone knows that we as Catholics abstain from meat on Fridays during Lent, but have you ever wondered why? Why Friday? Why meat? Why can we have fish? Fasting has become one of the most underrated spiritual practices. By giving up something we enjoy in dedication to God fasting acts as a heartfelt way of …
Give me the scoop on Pelagius I. Pelagius I was born in Rome to a noble family, where his dad, John, served as grand poobah of one of the city’s two civil districts. Pelagius first comes on the scene in his journey to Constantinople with Pope Agapetus I (three popes ago), where he was eventually …
Give me the scoop on Vigilius. Pope Vigilius is a rare case, having been one of the only popes to have been an antipope prior to being consecrated legitimately as a successor of Peter. Though elected and enthroned on March 29, 537, he wasn’t recognized by the Roman clergy as true pope until after Silverius’ …
Give me the scoop on Silverius. Pope St. Silverius was the legitimate son of Pope St. Hormisdas, who had been married prior to his priesthood (the practice was allowed at that time). He was but a mere subdeacon when the Gothic king Theodahad forced his election and consecration, on the eve of the war between …
Give me the scoop on Agapetus I. Agapetus was getting on in years, given that sources say his diaconate ordination came as early as 502. Elected pope on May 13, 535, St. Agapetus I had a busy pontificate, despite only being in office for 11 months. In confirming the canons of a council at Carthage …
Give me the scoop on John II. Though we don’t know when the second “Pope John” was born, we know he was a Roman by birth and he served as a priest in St. Clement’s Basilica prior to becoming pope. He was finally elected more than two months after the death of Boniface II, his …
Give me the scoop on Boniface II. Boniface II was the first pope in history to be of Germanic ancestry, having been a descendent of the Ostrogoths. As we read yesterday, Boniface II was serving under Pope St. Felix IV when he was suddenly nominated as the next successor of Peter. After Felix’s death, only …
Again, what’s the deal with the name? If you’ll remember, an antipope styled himself “Felix II” during the reign of Pope Liberius in the mid 4th Century. Since his name was mistakenly on the papal books for a while afterward, when the real second Pope Felix came around, it was easier to refer to him as “Felix …
Give me the scoop on John I. The first of over 20 popes to be called “John” was born in Tuscany in 470, but moved to Rome at a young age. He served as a priest for most of his life, and was already sickly and somewhat frail at his election on August 13, 523. …
Give me the scoop on Hormisdas. This pope was born into a wealthy Roman family and was married prior to receiving major orders (that was still allowed back then). As a result, being pope became somewhat of the family business, as Hormisdas’ son, Silverius, ascended to the Chair of Peter just 13 years after his …