Saint Gregory VIIHildebrand
Pope (1073-1085). Holy Catholic Church. He finally approved celibacy in the Catholic Church - celibacy of the clergy. Fought for political dominance in Western Europe with the German emperors. He forced one of them, Henry IV, to appear in repentance at the Tuscan fortress of Canossa.
Hildebrand was born around 1020 in Savona, Italy. In his youth he was sent to study in Rome, where his uncle was the abbot of the monastery on Aventine Hill. Among his mentors were Lawrence, Archbishop of Amalfi and the future Pope Gregory VI. After the deposition of the latter, he and his patron went to Germany. There, in Cologne, he continued his education, and after Gregory’s death he moved to the Cluny monastery, famous for its strict morals.
In January 1049, in Besançon, Hildebrand met with the Bishop of Tula Bruno. After his election as pope, Leo IX took the capable priest with him to Rome, where he proved himself to be a talented administrator and managed to quickly fill the empty papal treasury. Soon the Pope appointed him “strengthener of the faith” in the monastery of St. Paul. The abbey was in extreme desolation. The monks were served in the dining hall by women, and cattle were free to enter the churches through broken doors. And here he showed himself at his best, restoring the strict way of monastic life.
After the death of Leo IX in 1054, Hildebrand looked like the most likely contender for the papal tiara, but he himself refused election and went to Germany to petition the emperor for the candidacy of Gebhard of Eistadt, the future Pope Victor II.
The authority of Hildebrand, who already had the rank of cardinal-subdeacon, continued to grow. In 1057, he again went to Germany to ask the regent Agnes de Poitiers to approve the choice of Stephen IX, but the pope died in the meantime, bequeathing to elect Hildebrand as his successor. During this period, the party of the Counts of Tuscolo tried to seize power in Rome and installed their candidate Benedict X on the Holy See; the legitimate Pope Nicholas II managed to stay on the throne.
During his pontificate, Hildebrand's talent as a politician and church reformer was fully demonstrated. In the spring of 1059, the Lateran Council adopted new rules for electing the pope, which should put an end to the endless attempts by the powers that be to interfere in the election process.
Then Hildebrand negotiated with the leaders of the Normans who occupied southern Italy, and in June 1059 an alliance was concluded in Melfi, which allowed the papacy to feel more confident in disputes with the imperial court. In the same year he received the rank of archdeacon of the Holy Roman Church. Under Alexander II he headed the papal curia. He supported the Patara movement in northern Italy, thereby gaining another ally in the fight against the German king.
During Alexander's funeral, a cry was heard from the crowd: “We want Hildebrand as pope!” The call was unanimously supported by both ordinary townspeople and cardinals. Despite the archdeacon's protest, he was escorted to St. Peter's Church in Vincoli, where the cardinals formally elected him pope. According to the resolution of the Easter Synod of 1059, the election results must be confirmed by the King of Germany.
Hildebrand pointedly delayed his initiation while awaiting confirmation from Henry IV. Thus, the pope made it clear that he intended to end the confrontation with the imperial court. Despite the opposition of the German bishops, the king approved the election. The dedication ceremony took place on June 29, 1073 in St. Peter's Basilica. Hildebrand took the name Gregory VII, thereby emphasizing the legitimacy of the election of his longtime patron as pope.
First of all, to strengthen his own positions, Gregory enlisted the support of the Norman nobles Pandulf of Benevento, Richard of Capua and Gisulf of Salernitan. However, their leader Robert Guiscard, who was suspicious of the pope, was excommunicated from the church in 1075. In 1074, he actively developed a project for a crusade against the Seljuk Turks. One of the goals of the campaign was the possibility of reuniting the Western and Eastern churches. However, the project was met with hostility, and the Pope directed his energy to cleansing the church of two long-standing vices: corruption and adultery of priests.
At his first synod in March 1074, Gregory VII issued a short but harsh decree. Henceforth it was forbidden to trade in church positions. Priests who have purchased their position, or who live with a woman, must leave the service. Believers are prohibited from receiving communion from married or selfish priests. Similar decrees were issued more than once by previous popes. Each time they caused a storm of indignation among the immoral priests and, in fact, were ignored by them.
However, Gregory’s reputation as an energetic and persistent person indicated that this time severe measures would actually be taken against the violators. The indignation of the German bishops was especially strong, who even cited the words of the Apostle Paul that “it is better to marry than to be burned.” At their council, they informed the papal throne that they would rather renounce their rank than their wives.
Primate of Germany Siegfried of Mainz gave the bishops six months to think, but they remained unshaken. The bishops treated the demands of the papal legates with indifference. There were no less serious unrest among the clergy in France. At the Council of Paris, the Roman decrees were condemned, and the pope's supporters exposed their lives to serious danger. However, the zeal of the Pope did not diminish at all, and he sent his legates to all countries of Europe with the right to depose immoral clergy.
In the spring of 1075, Gregory VII formulated the so-called "Dictate of the Pope", a short program aimed at elevating the pope above all bishops and even above the secular authorities. Bearing the title of “pope” is made the exclusive prerogative of the Roman bishop. The pope was recognized as immune from jurisdiction and received the exclusive right to appoint and crown the emperor. Secular authorities are deprived of investiture, that is, the right to appoint and remove bishops, and the clergy are prohibited from receiving positions from secular rulers. All this could not but arouse the wrath of Henry IV.
The king declared Gregory a usurper and false monk. In response, the pope excommunicated Henry, stripped him of his royal dignity, and released his subjects from their oath to the king. The German princes gathered in Tribur to elect a new king, but only a lack of agreement in their ranks allowed them to retain the throne.
Instead of negotiating with the princes, Henry unexpectedly decided to make peace with the pope. Having secretly fled from Germany, he headed to Italy, where Gregory was awaiting an embassy from the princes in the castle of Canossa. The king appeared to the pope as a repentant sinner and began to beg for forgiveness. Having exchanged his royal clothes for rags, he stood at the castle gates for three days, until finally the pope deigned to let him in.
Henry IV on January 28, 1077 begged the pope for forgiveness on the condition that he would negotiate with the princes and agree with the decision of the congress. However, the king's inconsistency caused a negative reaction among some of the princes, and on March 15 of the same year, Rudolf of Swabia was elected king. Others remained faithful, especially since his punishment was lifted.
Gregory defiantly adhered to neutrality, but after Rudolph won a victory at Flarchheim on January 27, 1080, he again excommunicated Henry. However, repeated weaning did not have the desired effect. The princes announced that from now on they no longer considered him pope. At the end of May, the king convened a council of German bishops in Mainz, at which the pope was deposed.
They were joined by the Brixen Council of Italian prelates. In June, the former Archbishop of Ravenna Vibert was elected pope, taking the name Clement III. Henry and Rudolph clashed in battle near Merseburg on October 16, 1080. Henry's army was defeated and fled in panic, but his enemy was seriously wounded and soon died.
Encouraged, Henry headed to Italy in March 1081 to establish Clement III in Rome. The king found allies not only in Lombardy, where they openly did not like Gregory, but even in Tuscany. In May he approached Rome, but the faithful Tuscans and Normans came to the aid of the pope. Having devastated Tuscany, he again approached Rome in 1082. The siege lasted more than a year, but still in June 1083 Rome was taken.
The Pope took refuge in the Castle of Sant'Angelo and, despite Henry's attempts to enter into negotiations, adamantly demanded that he resign as king. Finally the king's patience ran out. In St. Peter's Basilica, on March 24, 1084, Clement III was consecrated pope, and a few days later he crowned Henry emperor.
However, soon after learning of the approach of the Normans under the command of Robert Guiscard, Henry fled from Rome to Città Castellana. The Normans freed Gregory, but subjected Rome to such brutal sack that even the townspeople who supported the pope began to curse him.
Gregory could not stay in Rome after this and retired to the Abbey of Monte Cassino, and then sailed to Salerno. Three days before his death, he canceled the decrees excommunicating all his opponents, except Emperor Henry and Antipope Clement.
Pope Gregory VII died on May 25, 1085 . He was buried in the Church of St. Matthew.
In 1584, Gregory VII was beatified by Gregory XIII.
In 1728, Pope Gregory VII was canonized by Benedict XIII.
27.01.2020
Salvemus!
July 25
FEAST OF ST. JAMES, APOSTLE
Two of the Apostles bore the name “James.” To distinguish them, they are called “Bigger” and “Smaller” or “Elder” and “Younger”. This probably did not mean their age, but the order of entry into the apostolic group. This distinction is already used by St. Mark (Mk 15:40). The name "Jacob" comes from the Hebrew skeb, which means "heel." According to the first Book of Moses, when Jacob, Abraham's grandson, was born, he held the heel of his twin brother Esau (Gen. 25:26).
St. James the Elder is always mentioned in the list of Apostles before the other James. He was called by Jesus along with his brother John as one of the first among the disciples (Matthew 4:21-22): St. Matthew and Luke mention him in third place, and St. Mark is in second. James and his brother John were sons of Zebedee; they were fishermen and lived on the shores of Lake Tiberias. The exact name of the place is not mentioned in the Gospels. Perhaps they came from Bethsaida, like St. Peter, Andrew and Philip (John 1:44), for we see them fishing together. St. Luke seems to indicate this directly when he says that James and John were “comrades of Simon” (Peter) (Luke 5:10). The mother of John and James was Salome, who was one of the most faithful companions in the wanderings of the Lord Jesus (Mark 15:40; Matthew 27:56).
James was called to be one of the disciples of Christ already on the banks of the Jordan River, for there we meet his brother John (John 1:37). However, Jesus called him a second time while fishing. This is mentioned by St. Luke (Luke 5:1-11), adding a new detail: that this happened after the first miraculous catch of fish.
James, together with Peter and John, belonged to the number of the closest disciples of the Lord Jesus, who witnessed the resurrection of Jairus’s daughter (Mk 5:37; Luke 8:31), the transfiguration of the Lord on Mount Tabor (hence the word “favorites”) (Matt 17:1 ff. ; Mk 9:1 ff.; Lk 9:28 ff.), as well as prayers in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mt 26:37). The living nature of James and John prompted the Lord Jesus to call them “sons of thunder” (Mk 3:17). After all, they wanted to bring fire down from heaven on one village in Samaria, where they were not received (Luke 9:55-56). James was among those disciples who specifically asked Jesus when the end of the world would come (Mark 13:3-4). He was also a witness to the second miraculous catch of fish after the resurrection of Christ, when the Lord made Peter the head and shepherd of His sheepfold (John 21:2). In total, the Gospels mention James the Elder 18 times, amounting to a total of 31 verses. Compared to the rest of the Apostles, except Peter, this is a lot.
In the Acts of the Apostles, St. James is mentioned 2 times: in the general list of the Apostles (Acts 1:13) and in the message about his martyrdom (and the Holy Scripture does not contain any information about the death of the other Apostles. - A.M.). St. Luke writes about it this way: “At that time King Herod raised his hands against some of those belonging to the church to do them harm, and killed James the brother of John with the sword” (Acts 12:1-2). Jacob was executed in 44 without any trial - obviously, in order not to remind people of the trial of Christ and thereby not cause any reaction undesirable for the authorities. Of course, for the same purpose, Jacob was not publicly executed by stoning, but his head was cut off in prison. Eusebius of Caesarea, the first historian of the Church (IV century), writes that St. Jacob kissed his executioner and touched him so much that the executioner also confessed himself to be a Christian and was immediately subjected to martyrdom for this. James was the first among the Apostles and the second, after St. Stephen, among the disciples of the Lord, a martyr of the Church (in accordance with the prediction of Christ - Mark 10:39).
In the Middle Ages a legend arose, allegedly St. James, before becoming bishop of Jerusalem, immediately after the Descent of the Holy Spirit went to Spain. This tradition arose due to the fact that in the 7th century. The relics of St. were brought there. James, who is the first patron of Spain and Portugal. It is not known whether he visited the Iberian Peninsula during his lifetime, but it is reliably known that he was the first bishop of Jerusalem.
The relics of the saint, initially delivered to the Spanish city of Iria, were then lost and found only in the 9th century by a local bishop in the field where a miraculous star led him. The word "Compostela" comes from the Latin campus stellæ ("field of the star"), the Spanish word Santiago means "Saint James", hence the current name of the place - Santiago de Compostela. The grave of St. remains here to this day. Jacob. In the Middle Ages, Santiago de Compostela was the third center of pilgrimage in the Universal Church after the Holy Land with Jerusalem and Rome. Santiago de Compostela retains its significance as the most important pilgrimage center to this day. In the Genoese Cathedral you can see an artistically executed reliquary containing the hand of St. Jacob, which is on rare occasions exhibited for veneration and viewing.
Being the patron saint of Spain and Portugal, St. Jacob, in addition, is the patron of knightly orders that fought against Islamic conquerors, cap makers, shelters for the dying, hospitals, hat makers, pilgrims, orphans.
In iconography he is depicted as an old man of strong build, in a long tunic and a cloak, or as a pilgrim in a soft hat with a wide brim. His attributes: waterskin, pilgrim's staff, book, sword, shell, bag, Turkish turban, scroll.
Source: ILG
Conciliar Prayer (Collecta)
Omnípotens sempitérne Deus, qui Apostolórum tuórum primítias beáti Iacóbi sánguine dedicásti, da, quæsumus, Ecclésiæ tuæ ipsíus confessióne firmári, et iúgiter patrocíniis conf overi. Per Dominum nostrum Iesum Christum, Fílium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti, Deus, per ómnia sæcula sæculórum. Amen.
[Translation: Almighty and eternal God, who sanctified the first fruits of Your Apostles with the blood of blessed James, grant, we ask, Your Church to be strengthened by his confession and continually consoled by his protection. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, Who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever. Amen.]
Vladimir Putin answered questions from reporters on Wednesday afternoon in Geneva after his first summit with President Biden. The President of Russia spoke for more than 55 minutes and answered more than two dozen questions. He never used the teleprompter during the press conference.
Biden/Putin summit has ENDED in Geneva, after about 3 hours—shorter than expected. It began at 1:44p, ended 5:05p. Smaller meeting lasted about 90 minutes. Bigger bilat ended after about an hour. Putin's press conference will be 1st, then Biden's, which has a teleprompter. pic.twitter.com/VP2D53lggI
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) June 16, 2021
Soon after, Biden took just seven questions from the press, but first spoke for 11 minutes, reading from a teleprompter.
“The Biden-Putin summit ended in Geneva after about 3 hours - it lasted less than expected.
It started at 13:44 and ended at 17:05.
The meeting lasted about 90 minutes. Bilateral negotiations in an expanded format ended after about an hour.
"Putin's press conference will come first, followed by Biden's press conference, which will have a teleprompter."
pic. twitter. com/VP2D53lggI — Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) June 16, 2021
“I will answer your questions,” President Biden said, moving from a speech read from a teleprompter to answering questions. “And, as usual, guys, they gave me a list of people to whom I would give the floor.”
Well, yes. The leader of the free world just (again) essentially declared that he was incapable of randomly selecting journalists to ask questions after that's how Putin, a bloodthirsty killer who bans a free press in to your country.
Biden selected just seven reporters in the room to answer their questions and left the stage after 30 minutes, including the time of his pre-recorded speech.
If you are wondering why the US President's aides refused to hold a joint press conference with Putin, the answer is: because you know very well that Putin would try to drag out such a press conference with Biden for several hours. To (a) prevent Biden from giving the floor only to those journalists who had been selected for him in advance, and (b) to demonstrate his superior psychological endurance.
Le Figaro 06/16/2021 The Washington Post 06/16/2021 CBS News 06/16/2021 The Washington Post 06/15/2021 In such a situation, our president continues to demonstrate that when answering questions, he often must use a “cheat sheet”, read “from a piece of paper” , which is equal parts clumsy and a sign of weakness.
It wasn't always like this. Take a look back at his 2012 vice presidential debate with Wisconsin GOP candidate Paul Ryan: Biden, then vice president, was aggressive, energetic, witty and in control.
And then watch this press conference again... it seems like you are seeing and hearing a different person.
"Biden seems to have a 'cheat sheet' during his summit with Putin." https://t. co/cNaSCPwr5Z pic. twitter. com/1oC1yKSv1Y — New York Post (@nypost) June 16, 2021
Biden appears to have 'cheat sheet' at summit meeting with Putin https://t.co/cNaSCPwr5Z pic.twitter.com/1oC1yKSv1Y
— New York Post (@nypost) June 16, 2021
After answering these seven forgettable questions, Biden tried to leave the press conference. But that's when things got really awkward when CNN correspondent Kaitlan Collins shouted a reasonable question after him: "Mr. President, why are you so confident that [Putin] will change his behavior?" .
“I'm not sure I can change his behavior. What the heck? “What do you do all the time?” asked an angry Biden, pointing his finger at Collins. - When did I say that I was sure? I said... what I said, let's be clear, I said what would change their behavior if the rest of the world reacted to them would weaken their position in the world. I'm not sure of anything. I'm just stating the facts."
CNN's @KaitlanCollins: “Why are you so confident [Putin] will change his behavior, Mr. President? Biden: “I'm not confident I'm going to change his behavior. What the hell? What do you do all the time? When did I say I was confident? I said….let's get it straight….” pic.twitter.com/h3wctccQRz
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) June 16, 2021
Collins continued: “But given that his previous behavior has not changed, and at that press conference, after he spoke with you for several hours, he stated that he was not involved in cyber attacks. He hushed up the issue of human rights violations. He even refused to name Alexei Navalny. So how does this relate to the fact that the meeting, as President Putin put it, was constructive?”
The President switched to a mentoring tone, demonstrating complete disrespect for the journalist, and began to “teach her life.” “If you don’t understand this, you’ve chosen the wrong profession,” he replied dismissively.
And in that single moment, when Biden attacked the female reporter with criticism, he showed more harshness than, probably, in a conversation with Putin.
Diplomatic summits, like political debates, boil down to a few key points that carry over into future news cycles.
I am sure that such a moment will be that Biden was unable to answer the question on the merits and became a sort of Grandpa Simpson in the Oval Office. “Biden had been so coy before that he found this question inconvenient.”
— David Harsanyi (@davidharsanyi) June 16, 2021 “During an aggressive end to the press conference, Biden slammed CNN's Kaitlan Collins, saying she appeared to have 'chosen the wrong profession.' https://t. co/o6xvyAjzr9
— Mediaite (@Mediaite) June 16, 2021 “In Geneva, President Biden lost his temper, lashing out at CNN reporter Caitlan Collins after answering questions at a press conference that was about half as long as the press -conference of Vladimir Putin.
“What the hell?” he blurted out in response to her question. After the next question, Biden added: “If you don’t understand this, you’re in the wrong profession.” https://t. co/xBbHUVxYF2 — Steven Nelson (@stevennelson10) June 16, 2021
The Biden-Putin summit is over. There has been a lot of hype, but don't expect much change in Russian behavior. The Kremlin will likely continue to hack our cyber infrastructure and continue to interfere in our elections, as it did in 2016.
And it will soon benefit from the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, on which the Biden administration lifted sanctions, handing a major victory to Putin.
On this trip to Geneva, the 46th President looked weak. Then, at the end of his press conference, he became defensive and angry while discussing how he handled issues with Putin (who ran his press conference for almost twice as long, giving the impression of another easy victory for the Russian leader). And all this in front of the whole world.
InoSMI materials contain assessments exclusively of foreign media and do not reflect the position of the InoSMI editorial staff.
