The Encyclopedia of World Religions

papacy, the S 333

Curia, and the College of CARDINALS , whose mem bers he appoints. He also appoints the heads of the regional churches throughout the world. They are known as bishops. The papacy’s claims to power go back to the N EW T ESTAMENT . There J ESUS tells P ETER that he is the rock upon which the church will be built (Mat thew 16.18–19). He also gives Peter the power to forgive SINS on Earth, or not, as he chooses. According to Roman Catholic tradition, Peter was the first Pope. He passed down to future popes the powers that Jesus had given to him. In the view of the Roman Catholic Church, the Pope is the vicar of C HRIST on Earth. He sits on the throne of Peter. According to a controversial decree of the First V ATICAN C OUNCIL (1869–70), the Pope is infal lible. That means that when he speaks on matters of church teaching or practice, he cannot make a mistake. His pronouncements must be accepted. The actual powers of the popes has varied. When C HRISTIANITY first spread, Rome was the capital of an empire that ruled the entire region of the Mediterranean Sea. Early on, the Roman church was influential. But other churches were influential, too, for example, the churches at Antioch, Alexandria, and, from the fourth cen tury, Constantinople. During the fifth century C . E . invaders from northern and eastern Europe sacked Rome: the Visigoths in 410, the Vandals in 477. The papacy filled the political vacuum that was left. It spoke with unquestioned authority in the Latin-speak ing, western half of the empire. But the bishop of Rome claimed more. He claimed universal prestige. At the Council of Chal cedon, Leo I (pope, 440–461) mediated a dispute between two warring factions of Greek-speaking theologians. Gregory I (pope, 590–604) argued strenuously for the Pope’s claim to rule the entire church. The Orthodox churches never accepted this claim. In 1054 the Pope and the Patriarch of Constantinople excommunicated one another. The schism remained until 1965, when each revoked his decree of excommunication. In 1076 Gregory VII (pope, 1073–85) excommu nicated and humiliated the Holy Roman emperor,

called Dianic ( see D IANA ), are entirely made up of women. Those that are composed of both men and women usually have equal parts for both genders, as priests and priestesses or as participants. To them this is an important corrective to the male centered practices in many conventional religions. Third, many Pagans, as they revive the gods and goddesses of ancient times, see them as repre senting parts of themselves and thus helping them understand themselves. Often deities are viewed as archetypes, as in the psychology of Carl Gustav J UNG . If Pagans accept P OLYTHEISM , belief in many gods and goddesses, that belief reflects their sense of the divine’s nuance and complexity both in nature and in themselves. Modern Paganism has no central organization but is expressed through numerous local groups. Many are now linked through Pagan Internet sites. Estimates of the number of Modern Pagans in the United States vary widely. Further reading: Margot Adler, Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers and Other Pagans in America (New York: Penguin USA, 1997); Sarah Pike, Earthly Bodies, Magical Selves: Contemporary Pagans and the Search for Community (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2001); Starhawk, The Spiral Dance: A Rebirth of the Ancient Religion of the Goddess (San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1999). papacy, the The institution that governs the Roman Catholic Church. The papacy centers on a man known as the Pope. (Women are not allowed to hold this office.) The word comes from the medieval Latin word papa , which means “father.” In R OMAN C ATHOLICISM the Pope is the bishop of Rome. According to Roman Catholic teachings, he is superior to all other bishops. Therefore, he should govern the church throughout the world. The congregations that acknowledge his suprem acy make up the Roman Catholic Church. In addi tion to governing this church, the Pope also rules a small territory in Rome known as Vatican City. He is assisted by an administrative unit, known as the