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Pope

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The Pope is the head of the Roman Catholic Church in religious contexts, and politically of the Papal States and later Vatican City State.[1][2] After Francis's death in April 2025, the papacy is currently vacant until a new pope is chosen in the upcoming 2025 papal conclave.

Bishop of Rome

Pontifex maximus

Pope
Catholic
Emblem of the Holy See and Vatican City
Emblem of the Holy See
when sede vacante
Incumbent:
Sede vacante
since 21 April 2025
StyleHis Holiness
Location
Ecclesiastical provinceEcclesiastical Province of Rome
Residence
HeadquartersApostolic Palace, Vatican City
Information
First holderSaint Peter[3]
DenominationCatholic Church
Established1st century
DioceseRome
CathedralArchbasilica of Saint John Lateran
GovernanceHoly See
Website
vatican.va/holyfather
Francis, pope 2013-2025

Since Pope Francis died on April 21, 2025, Vatican City and the worldwide Catholic Church has been in a state of sede vacante until the election of his successor.[4]

Popes are elected by Cardinals of the Catholic Church. Once they are elected, they hold the position until they die or resign. The Pope can’t be an organ donor.[5] Usually they do not resign, though; Pope Benedict XVI is the only Pope to resign in the last 500 years. A newly elected Pope chooses a regnal name. Everyone is told this new name when the Habemus Papam is read out. The late pope (Francis) was called Jorge Bergoglio before he became a pope.

The name Pope comes from the Greek word pappas, meaning "father".[2] Catholic doctrine holds that when making statements ex cathedra, that is official statements teaching about faith and morals, the Pope is infallible - which means God will not allow his followers to be misled by allowing their leader to make a wrong statement. Only two of any Pope's statements have been ex cathedra.[6]

Popes today travel to many countries around the world preaching as well as one of the two ways to represent the Holy See, the other being through the presence of an apostolic nuncio on some Catholic-related events serving as the Pope's representative or spokesperson to a country.

Statue of Pope Sylvester I before a church in Pisa. He is the bishop of Rome 314–335

The Pope and the Bishop of Urgell of Andorra are the only Catholic religious figures in the world who both leads the church and government. Like the bishops, archbishops, and cardinals of the Catholic Church, he wears a big hat called a mitre and holds a staff called a crosier.

As head of the Holy See having governance over the Catholic Church and Vatican City, the pope is protected by Swiss Guards and Vatican Gendarmerie every time he made public appearances within Vatican and around the world to protect him from assassinations and other events that are against the Holy See, making him the only Catholic religious figure with security guards for protection.

Recent popes

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Some recent Popes, and the time they were Pope:

The Popes in Avignon

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During parts of the Middle Ages, the French kings had a lot of influence in Europe. For this reason, seven popes (and two anti-popes) lived in Avignon, rather than Rome. The Avignon Papacy was from 1309 to 1377. During that time, the popes were known for their greed and corruption.[8] These popes were allies of France; the enemies of France were also their enemies.[9]

The Bishops of Rome who lived in Avignon were:

  1. Pope Clement V: 1305–1314
  2. Pope John XXII: 1316–1334
  3. Pope Benedict XII: 1334–1342
  4. Pope Clement VI: 1342–1352
  5. Pope Innocent VI: 1352–1362
  6. Pope Urban V: 1362–1370
  7. Pope Gregory XI: 1370–1378

Two antipopes were based in Avignon as well:

Antipopes were people that were elected by small groups who did not like the official choice. Catherine of Siena convinced pope Gregory XI to move back to Rome. Unfortunately, he died shortly after moving. The cardinals then elected Urban VI to be the next pope. The French cardinals did not recognise this election as legitimate. They declared the papal see as vacant; which led to the Western Schism. The schism lasted until the Council of Constance in 1417. During this time, there was a pope in Rome, an Antipope in Avignon, and for some time, a second antipope. Each of the three was recognised as legitimate pope by different European powers. This led to a big split in the church as a whole. The council elected Pope Martin V as a new pope, recognised by all parties.

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References

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Emblem of the popes
  1. ↑ Cite error: The named reference Reese10 was used but no text was provided for refs named (see the help page).
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Pope," 'Catholic Encyclopedia (2009); retrieved 2013-4-1.
  3. ↑ Wilken, p. 281. "Some (Christian communities) had been founded by Peter, the disciple Jesus designated as the founder of his church. ... Once the position was institutionalized, historians looked back and recognized Peter as the first Pope of the Christian church in Rome."
  4. ↑ "Vacancy of the Apostolic See," 'Vatican official site; retrieved 2025-4-21.
  5. ↑ Herald, The Catholic (2011-02-05). "Pope cannot be organ donor, Vatican official says". Catholic Herald. Retrieved 2024-09-07.
  6. ↑ Apostolic constitution Munificentissimus Deus, written by Pope Pius XII, 1 November 1950 "Munificentissimus Deus".; Apostolic constitution Ineffabilis Deus, written by Pope Pius IX, 8 December 1854.
  7. ↑ Lizzy Davies. "Pope Benedict XVI resigns," Guardian UK). 11 February 2013; retrieved 2013-2-11.
  8. ↑ Durant, Will. The Reformation. New York: Simon and Schuster. 1957. "Chapter I. The Roman Catholic Church." 1300-1517. p. 3-25
  9. ↑ Durant, Will. The Reformation. New York: Simon and Schuster. 1957. "Chapter II. England: Wyclif, Chaucer, and the Great Revolt." 1308-1400. p. 26-57

Other websites

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Media related to Popes at Wikimedia Commons


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