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A traitor to the faith declared the Eternal City the capital of the newly formed United In enriching his own family, the Gaetani—especially Pietro, a Kingdom of Italy. The Papal States, with 15,774 square miles and son of very doubtful character—Boniface VIII entered into a three million taxpaying inhabitants, were thus removed from the bitter quarrel with the Colonna, a powerful family responsible for Vatican's investment portfolio and vanished forever from the map constantly driving the popes from Rome. When Stephen Cardinal of Europe—and from history. The Church, with the exception of Colonna, the brother of James Cardinal Colonna, seized a cargo of 108 acres of the Vatican City, no longer had any ill-gained the pope's gold and silver destined for the Gaetani family, Earthly European dominion to rule and its temporal sovereignty Boniface VII excommunicated the entire Colonna family and came to an end. declared a crusade against it. The family replied with a manifesto But the story of Boniface VIII is not yet over. The article on in which it accused Boniface VIII of acquiring the papacy by him in the Catholic Encyclopedia runs to nine pages, and these fraud and appealed against him to the judgement of a General are nine pages of uselessness with admissions of character faults Council. Under the leadership of one of his cardinals, Boniface's but desperate evasions of serious charges. However, early army destroyed the property of the Colonna and scattered the editions of Encyclopaedia Britannica reveal the truth about this family members all over Europe. pope, and the entry about him is written by Professor Rockwell, a In some chronicles, Boniface VIII is distinguished ecclesiastical historian. He accused of intimacy with a French countess. explains the hostility towards the pope by We cannot confirm this, but against the saying: "Avarice, lofty claims and frequent Catholic report of his learning and goodness exhibitions of arrogance made him many we put the undisputed fact that his nepotism foes ... he was believed by many to be in and simony were scandalous. So were his league with the Devil" (Encyclopaedia papal bulls, which were designed to assert Britannica, 3rd ed., 1797). the absolute supremacy of his authority. It's interesting to note that after the Early in his seven-year papacy, in 1296 publication of the 11th edition in 1898, the Boniface issued the first of two of the most Catholic Church purchased Encyclopaedia famous bulls in Christian history. Its tone The Church under Britannica and in a few short years new Vit U0ys oe thunderbolts oF Gregory Boniface Vill became editions devoit of “offending” maverial -85), and its opening words, superseded earlier versions that had now Clericis laicos, gave it a name. Its first a worldly ruler and been ordered destroyed (History in the sentence made a truthful admission and seized vast territories Encyclopedia, D. H. Gordon and N. L. reveals the moral ugliness within that it called the Torrey, New York, 1947); also, The Christianity: "Antiquity reports that Good News of the Kingdoms, Norman "States of the Church". laymen are exceedingly hostile to the Segal, Australia, 1995). In due course, papacy, and our experience certainly in 1943, Encyclopedia Britannica was shows this to be true at present." assigned to the Roman Catholic Distaste for the popes probably University in Chicago (Encyclopedias: reflected a secret doubt as to their claim Their History Throughout the Ages, of a divine origin to their religion. This 1966, two editions; the second edition bull was aimed particularly at the king pays particular attention to of France, Philip IV, the grandson of St Encyclopaedia Britannica). In Louis, but failed to achieve its purpose. subsequent decades, Church Then, on 18 November 1302, Boniface missionaries went door to door the VIII issued his iniquitous "Bull of Two world over selling the sanitised Swords" (Unam Sanctam, "The One Encyclopaedia Britannica into millions Holy"), which formalised the of unsuspecting households. Persons in framework of Christianity's core structure for centuries to come. a position to compare earlier editions with "under Church The pope's bulletin declared that the Church controlled "two management" editions should do so for personal confirmation that swords", that is, two powers: a new and fictitious Christian history was written and published, "Both swords are in the power of the Church, the spiritual and omitting the previous damaging information. Negative comments the temporal; the spiritual is wielded in the Church by the hand of about Boniface VIII were some that were deleted and other the clergy; the secular is exerted for the Church by the hand of its sentences modified, but Professor Rockwell's name was retained. military...and the spiritual power has the right to establish and The Cambridge Mediaeval History (eds Gwatkin and Whitney, guide the secular power, and also to judge it when it does not act = The Macmillan Co., 1911-13, vol. vii, p. 5), which records the rightly... Consequently, whoever opposes the two swords of the general sentiment or judgement of modern historians, says that Church opposes the law of God." "the evidence seems conclusive that he [Boniface VIII] was (Bull Unam Sanctam, Boniface VIII, 18 November 1302; doctrinally a sceptic and concealed under the mitre the spirit of overview in Catholic Encyclopedia, xv, p. 126) mockery". King Philip IV of France, supported by civilian lawyers concerned to exalt his authority against that of the pope, The Church under Boniface VIII became a worldly ruler and opposed the Bull Unam Sanctam of Boniface VII. He seized vast territories that it called the "States of the Church". It summoned his Parliament in Paris and laid before it an wasn't until 1870 that Italian patriot bayonets finally recovered the impeachment of the pope for heresy, simony and rapacity. stolen regions and restored them to a united Italy. At that time the Boniface was specifically accused of "...wizardry, dealing with Italians, under Victor Emmanuel II, king of Sardinia and the Devil, disbelief in Jesus Christ, declaring that sins of the flesh Piedmont, took back Rome and the adjacent papal territories and were not sins, and causing the murder of Pope Celestine and a worldly ruler and seized vast territories The Church under Boniface VIII became a worldly ruler and seized vast territories that it called the "States of the Church". It wasn't until 1870 that Italian patriot bayonets finally recovered the stolen regions and restored them to a united Italy. At that time the Italians, under Victor Emmanuel II, king of Sardinia and Piedmont, took back Rome and the adjacent papal territories and NEXUS = 43 i The Church under Boniface VIII became that it called the "States of the Church". FEBRUARY — MARCH 2007 www.nexusmagazine.com