331:, since, after Emperor Otto had left Rome to return to Frankfurt with his army, Pope John XII, with his remaining supporters, returned to Rome, overthrew Pope Leo VIII, excommunicated all involved in the Synod, ordering many of them to be mutilated, and Pope John XII held his own synod to declare the acts of the Synod invalid. However, since he was no longer the true and valid pope, his acts and new synod were therefore themselves invalid. Shortly thereafter Pope John XII died on 14 May 964, at the age of 27, seemingly in the manner described by Liutprand of Cremona.
148:
entirely legal and canonical. The real issue, subsequently, for the theologians was not his right so to call a Synod but whether such a Synod could declare a pope self-deposed for crime alone or whether, as later
Doctors of the Church have held, the self-deposition should arise from heresy. There is consensus among the Doctors that a pope may be declared self-deposed for heresy but whether he can be declared self-deposed solely for crime is an open question. The Synod of Rome of 963 declared Pope John XII self-deposed for crime.
218:
the pope was a criminal and a traitor. He then turned to the Synod and announced, “Now let the holy Synod pronounce what it decides upon the matter.” The Synod responded by declaring “We therefore beg your
Imperial Highness to drive away from the Holy Roman Church this monster, unredeemed from his vices by any virtue, and to allow another to be put in his place, who may merit by the example of a good conversation to preside over us.” Otto then proposed
240:
144:. Otto then entered Rome on 2 November 963. After reminding the clergy and nobility that they were not canonically permitted to ordain, or even elect, a pope without the imperial consent, and compelling them to renew that oath, on 6 November 963 Otto convened a synod in St Peter's to deal with the irregularity of Pope John XII and his misconduct of the Papacy.
96:
a female pope. The bastard son, two grandsons, two great grandsons, and one great great grandson of
Marozia — a rare genealogy — were seated in the Chair of St Peter." Pope John XII was her grandson. From this description, the term "pornocracy" has become associated with the effective rule in Rome of Theodora and Marozia, through their male surrogates.
66:("the Dark Age") of the Papacy, when the Holy See was dominated by two courtesans of the family of the Counts of Tusculum, Theodora and Marozia. These two courtesans effectively ruled papal Rome and the Papal States and dominated papal elections ensuring that only their lovers, family and allies were elected pope.
217:
According to canon law, an accused bishop must be summoned three times; the
Emperor satisfied himself with two citations. Therefore, on 4 December, the Synod met for the final time. In the absence of John XII (who was apparently hunting in the Catanian hills), the emperor recited the arraignment that
95:
Edward Gibbon wrote that the "influence of two sister prostitutes, Marozia and
Theodora, was founded on their wealth and beauty, their political and amorous intrigues: the most strenuous of their lovers were rewarded with the Roman tiara, and their reign may have suggested to darker ages the fable of
295:
The 963 Synod of Rome was, in all respects, conducted in accordance with canon law. Attempts to call it a "show trial" are without foundation and are based upon a false understanding of the imperial power which, from the very earliest days of the Church, since the days of the
Emperor Theodosius, had
323:
It is also suggested that the election of a layman to the Papacy was illegal but that, too, is unsustainable since it has been done more than once validly and the candidate was simply ordained prior to coronation. Leo was ordained to the Holy Orders of Porter, Lector, Acolyte, Subdeacon, Deacon and
307:
Still less can the Synod merely be dismissed as a political manoeuvre of the emperor, as secularist and
Protestant historians are apt to do not only with imperial interventions but also with the acts of popes and bishops. Emperor Otto and the Synod of Rome in effect saved the Church and the Papacy
213:
anyone involved in raising a new pope while he still lived. The Synod met again on 22 November and drafted a new letter to the pope, declaring that if he did not present himself to the Synod, he himself would be excommunicated. But the bearers of this letter could not locate John XII who had gone
147:
It was the special pre-rogative of the Roman
Emperor to convoke, set the agenda of, and preside over, councils of the Church and the first eight Ecumenical Councils of the Church were so convoked and presided over by the Roman Emperor. Thus Otto's claim to call a Synod to deal with the crisis was
179:
in a stable, and out of the appointed times. Another cardinal-priest bore witness that he had seen him celebrate Mass without communicating. Others accused him of murder and perjury, of sacrilege, of incest with members of his own family, including his sisters. They accused him of
319:
It is also claimed that Pope John XII was not accorded a defence, but that claim, too, fails since he was given three opportunities to attend the Synod and arrogantly refused even to recognise there was a problem, preferring to go hunting in the
Catanian hills instead.
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Firstly, Pope John XII was called forth to present himself before the council. As he was not present, Emperor Otto declared: “It appears to us just that the accusations should be set forth one by one; then what we should do can be decided on by common advice.”
315:
Some still ignorantly claim that a layman could not convene the Synod but only a bishop which, if true, would invalidate the first eight
Ecumenical Councils of the Church among others, all of which were convened and presided over by the emperor, not the pope.
99:
Marozia was born about 890. She was the daughter of the Roman consul Theophylact, Count of Tusculum, and of Theodora, the real power in Rome, whom Liutprand of Cremona characterized as a "shameless whore... exercised power on the Roman citizenry like a man."
192:
into a brothel, of a life mostly spent hunting, of unjustly ordering men to be mutilated, of arson and of wearing armour and training for war and battle. Finally, they declared that he drank a toast to the Devil, and while playing at dice invoked the name of
311:
The validity of the Synod continues to be debated over the issue of papal self-deposition for crime. However, papal self-deposition for heresy is commonly recognised by the Doctors of the Church such as St Robert Bellarmine and St Alphonsus Liguori.
296:
the power, recognised by popes for centuries, to convoke and preside over Church councils. This, in turn, had been encapsulated into theological terms by the teaching of Pope Gelasius I on the "Two Swords" or Dyarchy, set out in his letter,
106:, in imitation, also led a shameless and corrupt life, according to Liutprand of Cremona who records that he "turned the papal court into a brothel". According to Liutprand, Pope John XII was eventually murdered by his mistress's husband
204:
The Synod then drafted a letter to John XII, detailing the charges against him, and asking him to come to Rome to answer the accusations. The letter promised that nothing would be done that was contrary to
324:
Priest by Sico, the cardinal-bishop of Ostia, who then proceeded to consecrate him as Bishop on 6 December 963. These ordinations were all canonical. He was then consecrated pope in proper form.
124:
In the middle of 963, Pope John XII had been in communication with Emperor Otto regarding the emperor's concerns over John's pontificate, and the pope's meddling in the conflict between Otto and
712:
The Roman plebeians were represented by the heads of the Roman militia, led by Peter Imperiola. The emperor himself was also accompanied by a number of dukes and counts of Germany and Italy.
430:
406:
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from a corrupt pope and, indeed, a long line of corrupt popes. The successor pope, chosen by the Synod, Pope Leo VIII is recognised by the Church as a valid pope.
304:("there are two"), written in 494 to Byzantine Emperor Anastasius I Dicorus. This set out, in general terms, the boundaries of power of the popes and emperors.
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as a possible successor to John XII, and, no other candidate being put forward, the Synod voted and elected him. The Synod was then closed by the Emperor.
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582:
835:
121:, who threatened to bring his army to Rome from Frankfurt, then the imperial headquarters, and rectify the situation.
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249:
113:
Pope John was repeatedly warned about his corrupt misuse of papal power and his misconduct of the Papacy by the
840:
665:
607:
542:
820:
The Lives of the Popes in the Early Middle Ages, Vol. IV: The Popes in the Days of Feudal Anarchy, 891–999
668:. Also present were a gathering of Roman nobles, who were aligned to the imperial party. These included:
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Some, nevertheless, continue to argue that some of the acts of the Synod were invalid.
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32:
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into Rome, he marched on the city. After defending Rome and driving Otto back to the
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There were 13 cardinal priests who attended the synod, one of whom was the future
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was one of a long line of popes elected in the period called by Church historian,
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At this point John of Narni declared that he had seen Pope John XII ordain a
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It is unsurprising that the acts of the Synod were condemned at a new
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657:
363:, the highest ecclesiastical authority in the west after the pope.
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from 6 November until 4 December 963, under the authority of the
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Present were all of the officers of the papal court, as well as
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76:– 937), was a Roman noblewoman who was the alleged mistress of
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Marozia, born Maria and also known as Mariuccia or Mariozza (
24:
132:. When Otto learned that John had allowed Berengar's son
569:. An unknown number had fled with Pope John XII. Their
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Possibly uncanonical synod held in St. Peter's Basilica
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After convening the Synod, Otto appointed John, the
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813:The History of Rome in the Middle Ages, Vol. III
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43:. The events of the synod were recorded by
263:. Please do not remove this message until
184:, of consecrating a ten-year-old child as
283:Learn how and when to remove this message
259:Relevant discussion may be found on the
140:, John fled the city and took refuge in
80:and was given the unprecedented titles
828:
781:Gregorovius, pp. 346–347; Mann, p. 261
772:Mann, p. 260; Gregorovius, pp. 347–348
754:Gregorovius, pp. 346–347; Mann, p. 258
583:Basilica di Sant'Anastasia al Palatino
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164:to act as the pope's accusers, while
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300:, also known by the Latin mnemonic
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1:
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708:Benedict and his son Bulgamin
346:were the following prelates:
329:synod held the following year
230:Canonical status of the synod
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50:
836:10th-century church councils
543:Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen
7:
618:Santa Cecilia in Trastevere
438:The Bishop of Forum Claudii
265:conditions to do so are met
23:was a possibly uncanonical
10:
867:
678:Demetrius, son of Meliosus
359:Rodalph, representing the
672:Stephen, son of John the
811:Gregorovius, Ferdinand,
799:Gregorovius, pp. 344–345
790:Gregorovius, pp. 343–344
727:Gregorovius, pp. 340–342
715:
533:Germany and West Francia
419:Bishop of Velletri-Segni
349:
338:Composition of the synod
342:Present along with the
298:Famuli vestrae pietatis
699:Giovanni de Primicerio
633:Santi Quattro Coronati
407:Bishop of Silva Portus
201:and other pagan gods.
841:History of the papacy
623:San Lorenzo in Lucina
588:San Lorenzo in Damaso
374:Archbishop of Ravenna
361:Patriarch of Aquileia
435:The Bishop of Gabium
188:, of converting the
166:Liutprand of Cremona
108:in flagranto delicto
45:Liutprand of Cremona
29:St. Peter's Basilica
705:Pietro de Cannapara
696:Theodorus de Rufina
527:Bishop of Terracina
486:The Bishop of Norma
482:Bishop of Ferentino
441:The Bishop of Bleda
401:Bishop of Praeneste
368:Archbishop of Milan
252:of this section is
84:("senatoress") and
21:Synod of Rome (963)
690:Giovanni de Mizina
644:Other participants
344:Holy Roman Emperor
115:Holy Roman Emperor
33:Holy Roman Emperor
818:Mann, Horace K.,
763:Mann, pp. 259–260
693:Stephano de Imiza
628:San Sisto Vecchio
515:Bishop of Falerii
509:Bishop of Gallese
476:Bishop of Treviso
389:Bishop of Cremona
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395:Bishop of Ostia
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160:and John, the
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138:Tiber River
126:Berengar II
90:Pope John X
88:of Rome by
830:Categories
806:References
654:Regionarii
547:Landward,
411:Giovanni,
378:Hubertus,
372:Peter IV,
250:neutrality
74: 890
51:Background
39:to depose
674:Superista
385:Liutprand
366:Walpert,
273:July 2022
261:talk page
207:canon law
660:and the
658:notaries
302:Duo sunt
254:disputed
134:Adalbert
86:patricia
82:senatrix
56:John XII
27:held in
684:of the
664:of the
650:deacons
553:Otgar,
539:Adaldag
417:Leo I,
195:Jupiter
822:(1910)
815:(1895)
573:were:
393:Sico,
357:Deacon
182:simony
177:deacon
62:, the
37:Otto I
716:Notes
350:Italy
199:Venus
142:Tibur
25:synod
525:The
519:The
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507:The
501:The
495:The
489:The
480:The
474:The
468:The
462:The
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851:963
220:Leo
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