Below is Chapter 8 of my book on religion, “Disbelief”.
THE DIVINE MONEY MACHINE
As Lord Acton famously said, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men.”
This has been especially true throughout the history of the Catholic Church. Many “holy men” have used their priestly camouflage to incite mob violence, lead holy wars, or torture critics in the name of God. These zealots don’t seem to be truly religious in nature but, rather, absorbed by the narcotic of power. Their goal is, apparently, to advance the organization (i.e. the Church) and its hegemony, at any cost. These Worker Bees for Christ seem to ascribe to the Communist motto, “The end justifies the means”.
In the process of glorifying the Mother Church, however, there is the opportunity for charlatans to use the license and trust given to them to glorify their own ego, satisfy their lusts, and line their pockets. Unfortunately, there have been too many of these dregs, who have busied themselves with fleecing the faithful.
The Catholic Church is probably the wealthiest business corporation on earth. From the humble beginnings of a carpenter’s son, a religious money machine evolved through the efforts of some very clever and ruthless confidence men. Hardly any stone was left unturned in the frenzied dash to acquire and enjoy the fruits of their parishioners’ labors.
It is an ironic fact that the original Levite priests (in the Old Testament) received no pay for their services to the faithful Hebrews, nor did the pagan priests that were shown the door by the new Christian religion in the 4th century.
Jumping on the Bandwagon
Emperor Constantine’s embrace of Christianity set in motion a stampede of self-serving uppergclass citizens to enlist in the new Church hierarchy.
There had been no professional priestly class in pagan Rome. The priests (haruspices) that pagans had were elected or co-opted from prominent citizens, laymen not experts, and their chief function was to propitiate the relevant gods to ensure continued good fortune. They did this through proper ceremony; belief did not really come into it. Christianity introduced organizational structure into religion, and, with it, a way to wealth and career outside of the only real alternative – the army.
By the end of the 4th century, what remained of Rome’s old senatorial class looked with envy on the Imperial generosity that was being showered on the Christian clergy. By that time, there was a cost, both financial and penal, for remaining a pagan. So, “the best and brightest” moved wholesale into the higher ranks of the Church, where they could feed at the Imperial trough.
Ironically, it happened at the worst time for the Empire. Thanks to Constantine’s “religious revolution” and the subsequent establishment of a state-endorsed Catholic Church, the manpower that might have defended the Empire was drawn increasingly into the higher ranks of the priesthood. Bright, young men who would have normally become military officers found comfortable positions in the Church bureaucracy, at the very time that militaristic tribes from Northern Europe were looking covetously at Rome.
Within the Church, these high-born hierarchs often clashed with and drove out puritan and “heretical” individuals. At the same time, they brought into the Church much of the familiar ritual and regalia of paganism. Thus entrenched, the new Christian grandees became the recipients of Imperial largesse, took up residence in palaces and appeared resplendent in the finest costumes. By and large, the 5th century bishops of western Europe were the old Roman aristocracy wearing a new hat.
“Privilegia Ecclesiastica”
As historian Edward Gibbon noted, the foolish Constantine was perhaps the first of a thousand monarchs who “too easily believed that he should purchase the favour of Heaven if he maintained the idle at the expense of the industrious”. By the “idle”, he meant the clergy.
The revolution of Constantine transformed the Church beyond recognition. Bishops and priests, no longer elected or acclaimed by the faithful but members of a self-perpetuating “order”, enjoyed exemption from taxation and all other public service. As state officials they received generous stipends. These Church custodians couldn’t “own” property, but they enjoyed a privileged and exclusive use of ever-grander riches and property that accrued to the Church.
Bishops and priests schemed to receive bequests from those who died or were just enamored with the Church. The temptation for Church officials to take advantage of their new-found positions of trust was great, particularly with grieving families and widowed women.
The Senatorial class that once made laws in Rome wasted no time in seeking legal protection as members of the clergy. In 321, Constantine began the process by which the clergy were exempted from the jurisdiction of civil law, and the decisions of bishops became binding on civil magistrates. As Gibbon noted, “Even in a capital accusation, a synod of their brethren were the sole judges of their guilt or innocence…Constantine was satisfied that secret impunity would be less pernicious than public scandal, and the Nicene council was edified by his public declaration that, if he surprised a bishop in the act of adultery, he should cast his Imperial mantle over the Episcopal sinner”. So, if a bishop or presbyter was caught cheating someone out of property or valuables, he didn’t have to worry about legal ramifications.
This came in handy in 366, when an ambitious presbyter named Damasus had his sights on the papal throne. Unfortunately for Damasus, a rival presbyter named Ursinus beat him to the punch, getting his followers to elect him pontiff. Not to be undone, Damasus had his partisans besiege the Ursinus gang, holed-up in the basilica of the Church of Mary Maggiore in Rome. Unable to break in, they climbed onto the roof of the building, forced a hole and began raining masonry onto the heads of their rivals. When the Ursinus clan capitulated after three days, one hundred and seventy-seven dead and dying were brought out of the wrecked church. Damasus had won the battle, and was declared the true Pope. But, the charge of murder hung over Damasus for years. His name was further blackened in the eyes of many when he renounced his wife and family, became involved in running Rome’s city brothels, and was later accused of misappropriating inheritances of wealthy spinsters.
Luckily for Damasus, “privilegia ecclesiastica” reared its head in 378 when, Emperor Gratian, in a political move, saved the Pope’s bacon when he exempted the Bishop of Rome from secular law.
Pope Damasus I, the boss of a gang of murderers, was later proclaimed a “Saint” of the Catholic Church.
Imperial Favor
Money, property, and treasures began flooding the Catholic Church after the Christian religion was legalized under Emperor Constantine and made his “favored” religion.
In the beginning, Church big-shots had to be satisfied with minor positions at the Imperial court and the good life that came with them. Later, as Constantine and his followers cracked down on heretic Christians, real estate from seized churches and the treasures within them were appropriated by the Church.
Once Catholicism became the official religion of the Empire, Christian fanatics and monks, acting as de-facto Imperial agents, sacked thousands of pagan temples and shrines. An astounding amount of wealth poured into the coffers of the Church, much of it plundered from the treasuries of pagan sanctuaries.
Imperial entourages in Rome and Constantinople became bloated with Church parasites. Being a Church heirarch was now a very lucrative and powerful profession. This is the period when the Roman upper class jumped ship en masse to the Christian cause.
Ammianus Marcellinus, a noted 4th century Roman historian, commented on these religious carpetbaggers: “I do not deny, when I consider the ostentation that reigns at Rome, that those who desire such rank and power may be justified in labouring with all possible exertion and vehemence to obtain their wishes; since after they have succeeded, they will be secure for the future, being enriched by offerings from matrons, riding in carriages, dressing splendidly, and feasting luxuriously, so that their entertainments surpass even royal banquets.” (Res gestae, 27.3)
Squeezing Grapes
The Catholic Church, having secured it place at the Imperial banquet table, next devised nefarious means to extract filthy lucre from their gullible parishioners. They are called the “Sacraments” of the Church.
The term derives from the Latin word, sacramentum, which referred to the sacred oath of fidelity sworn by Roman soldiers. The idea in some bishop’s mind was to achieve unflinching loyalty and obedience from the “soldiers of Christ”. So, the “sacraments” of the Church were developed for a venal purpose: to make the priesthood indispensible to the communities on which it fed.
Baptism: In the early Church, converts had been adults or at least adolescents. Baptism, or a spiritual rebirth, came after a probationary period during which the convert displayed his knowledge of the mysteries and ability to respond to pagan critics. Since the convert was expected to live his life in pursuit of sinless purity, some held off baptism until late in life. Emperor Constantine, for example, waited until he was on his deathbed, finally convinced that he would no longer commit “sin”.
The need for infant baptism came about after a couple of creative theologians (Cyprian and Origen) devised the Original Sin and “pollution of birth” doctrines. In essence, the idea was that since all humans are descended from Adam, and he had sinned, then all humans are infected with that sin, and need to be baptized to remove that stain. That neither the Original Sin nor infant baptism ideas were supported by the New Testament mattered little to Bishops Cyprian and Origen.
Saint Augustine further developed the fiction, with the cruel notion that un-baptized babies went straight to Hell, effectively terrorizing parents into seeking out the priest. In 416, the Council of Mela, presided over by the fanatical Augustine, issued a curse on the opponents of infant baptism.
In Rome, bishops enthusiastically endorsed the idea, a doctrine that efficiently delivered newborns into the hands of the Church, where they could be indoctrinated from an early age. As part of the baptismal ritual, “spiritual parents” were appointed for the infant convert, particularly where the child had been born to pagan parents. Often these “god parents” were deacons from the local Catholic hierarchy. Fees were paid for services rendered.
In 416, an Imperial edict made infant baptism compulsory throughout the Roman Empire. Millions of customers were now assured to the Church, whether the parents liked it or not. And, they had to pay the clergy for the service…a divine inoculation against sin.
The Church now controlled the youth of the Empire, filling their heads with nonsense and recruiting them for religious mischief. As Saint Ignatius of Loyola later said, “Give me a child until he is seven and I will show you the man.”
This corporate indoctrination policy was copied a thousand years later when the Nazis formed the “Hitler Youth”.
Confirmation: Infant baptism had its limitations. How could the Church be sure that many, in adulthood, might not fall away from the true religion? The answer was to confer “additional grace” when the communicant had achieved the use of reason.
The ritual of confirmation had little history before Pope Innocent I, in the 5th century, decided that here was a sacrament that could be profitably administered by fellow bishops. In essence, true believer parents would be purchasing the bishop’s sincere and personal blessing of their children, who would now become official “Soldiers of Christ”.
Eucharist: Ritual meals, in which the revered deity was said to be present, were commonplace in pre-Christian religions. Early Christians (actually, Jewish-Christians) had such a love feast (agape), which was spontaneous and indulgent. The celebration commemorated the imminent messianic kingdom, i.e. the world passing away.
The Catholics gave new meaning to the agape celebration; it was now to be a somber event, exercising quiet humility, always attended by the bishop. The morsel of bread and sip of wine represented the “body and blood” of the Savior, a gift to each communicant by the Holy Spirit.
The eucharist is central to the ceremonies of the Church, the regular gathering of the flock for an obligatory dose of self-discipline, pastoral chastisement, and encouragement in the faith. Parishioners leave the church envigorated, more fit for heaven. And, the Church achieves its purpose: marshaled ranks of dutiful and obedient servants.
In order to acquire this weekly dose of grace, the faithful had to attend church, and once again pass the collection plate.
Penance: The Christian ideas of “salvation” and “heaven” were new concepts, especially to pagans and Jews. Heretofore, existence had been day-to-day, and the assistance of God was requested to help out with worldly matters. The moral compass of “do unto others…” was known and practiced before Christianity.
The Church’s “Original Sin” doctrine basically declared all human beings criminals in the eyes of God…from birth. The entire purpose of the doctrine was to make mankind beholden to the Church, the only place where guilt could be assuaged. It was extortion, pure and simple.
The “Heaven” and “Hell” constructs were the carrot and the stick to induce parishioners into the confessional booth. If one confessed sins, Divine Grace would be given, and the believer would go to Heaven. If not, the individual could expect a pitiless, eternal torment. To terrified parishioners in the Dark Ages, the choice was obvious.
The hapless Christian was goaded into admitting and confessing every possible “sin”, whether in thought or deed. Churchmen became privy to human weaknesses, dark secrets, and valuable confidences. Thus informed, the priest was empowered to offer, or withhold, “absolution” and set penalties. Or the priest might order the contrite believer to make a payment, supposedly almsgiving to the poor or “service to the altar”. There was an obvious conflict of interest inherent in the process.
The venality, licentiousness and impurity of much of the priesthood at that time was apparent to the congregation. Many of the priests taking confessions were bigger sinners than their parishioners, and the issue arose as to whether they were fit to represent Christ in such matters. In a clever stratagem, the Church ruled that the sacrament was efficacious (with the capacity to have effect), even if the priest administering it was a known bad guy. In this case, the Church opined, the sacrament acted ex opere operato (by the very act of being performed), and were independent of the morality of the minister. This may have been the origin of the saying, “Do as I say, not as I do”.
In the early days, priests were known to take liberties with their flock during confession. The scandal of priests too free with their hands (solicitatio ad turpia) would later force the adoption of the confessional box to afford the penitent some protection.
The absurdity of the penance sacrament reached an all-time high during the Crusades. Private armies, comprised of thugs and criminals, were granted penance in-advance for sins that they would commit in the Holy Lands on behalf of the Church. These so-called “indulgences” excused the burning and looting of towns, raping of women, and massacres of whole communities. As far as the Church was concerned, these activities were “just” and the mercenaries were “Soldiers of Christ”. Thus, the heinous acts were no bar to salvation.
Annointing: One of the great mysteries of life is death, and may be the ultimate reason why religion was developed. There is great fear and apprehension as death approaches, and much grief to be dealt with when it occurs. Since the beginning of time, priests have positioned themselves as “gatekeepers on the door to eternity”.
The supposed ability of holy men to cure the sick and forgive the sins of the dying is a card that is well-played by the Church. Annointing, also known as “extreme unction”, or last rites), is a sacrament devised to ensure the presence of the Church at the moment of truth. With the right words uttered over the death bed, sins can be forgiven, and a comfortable life in the ever-after can be assured.
The dying are quite vulnerable at this time, as are family members of the soon-to-be-departed. Will the dead be buried in hallowed ground? What will become of the widow? What would become of his estate? What better management of these matters than the trusted hands of the Church…as if God himself is taking care of things.
It became obvious to the Church at an early time that the new Christians would pay handsomely for their ticket to Heaven. Very early on in Christianity, the Church sought, and was granted by Emperor Constantine, the legal right to accept bequests to the Church. This law had a particular angle: it stressed the validity of a man’s deathbed legacies to a church’s funds, a topic which was particularly sensitive because of the clergy’s special presence at the moment of death.
Over the centuries, the Holy Mother Church grew immensely rich through the inheritance of land, property, and portable riches from deceased Catholics. Estates and assets not commandeered by churchmen for their own uses were leased to those who could pay a levy, and the Church entered the business of landlordism.
Matrimony: Marriage was not, of course, invented or even practiced by Jesus. In pre-Christian times the marriage ceremony might be sanctified by a priest, but essentially mutual agreement in the presence of witnesses was the only prerequisite. A high-status wedding would involve banquets, dowries and property transfer, while among the peasantry an acclamation at a grove or shrine might dignify the occasion.
The adoption of matrimony as a holy sacrament was politically and economically useful to the Church, extending its dominion over the faithful. In order to receive the Church’s blessing to marry, the couple would have to promise to raise the children “in the faith”. The children would then become loyal servants of the Church, and the vicious cycle of exploitation would continue.
Over time, the Church found ways to make a lot of money from this sacrament. Marital discord meant penance, which meant offerings to the Church. “Blood marriages” (i.e. marriage with blood relations) was declared a sin, but dispensations could be purchased by those who had extractable wealth. Divorce was a sin, but a priest could grant an annulment if the proper fee was paid.
Procreation, and lots of it by Catholics, was then, and always has been, a major objective of the Church. More babies mean more baptisms, more confirmations, more seats filled at mass, more weddings, and more last rites. All of these occasions produced income for the Church. And, as the population of Catholic citizens in a parish or state grew, so did the political power of the priest, bishop, cardinal, and Pope. Along with political power came spoils, including property and position at court.
Accordingly, the Church has insisted on controlling procreation by the Catholic faithful. The Church’s stand on contraception and abortion, while cruel and unfair to married couples, is totally self-serving. No parishioner (even a raped women) has a say in the management of the Church’s lucrative customer base. As the Mafia saying goes, “It’s not personal, it’s business.”
It is commonly believed that Catholic priests cannot marry (i.e. they remain celibate) so that they can remain steadfast and true to their primary purpose of serving God. The same goes for the chaste and celibate nuns, who are supposedly “married to Christ”. But, actually, the Church doctrine requiring priestly celibacy was not instituted for those lofty purposes. What actually happened was that the Church got very rich very quick. Some of the high-styling bishops and priests, accustomed to living a life of luxury, began to think of their church’s possessions and benifices as their own. This led to the thought that their children might “inherit” the goodies that their father had grown accustomed to. Emperor Justinian I (who died in 565) basically forbade church officials from having children, and if they did, the children would be considered illegitimate on the same level as those “procreated in incest and in nefarious nuptials”. That pretty much ended any thoughts of inheriting Church property or treasures.
Despite this and numerous other attempts by authorities to end priestly sexual shenanigans, many, if not most, rural priests were married well into the 12th century. And, many continued to have children, as well, who fed from the Church trough.
The Second Lateran Council (1139 A.D.) is often cited as having for the first time introduced a general law of celibacy, requiring ordination only of unmarried men. And, they couldn’t have a concubine on the side, either.
The policy said nothing, however, about a priest having sex with a woman, a man, or a child. Not surprisingly, many priests, bishops, cardinals, and popes have used this loophole.
Holy Orders: The ordination of bishops, priests, and deacons is a sacrament of the Church called Holy Orders. The officiating officer is essentially vesting in the recipient the cloak of Christ’s stature. As Ignatius said to the Ephesians, “Plainly therefore we ought to regard the bishop as the Lord Himself.”
Receipt of holy orders was an honor and carried with it serious obligations regarding the welfare of the parish and upholding the trust that the parishioners had in the Church. Holy orders also placed the recipient in the reception line for the bounty of riches that flowed to the Church, much like a named partner in a law firm.
The credibility of the holiness of such orders was diminished somewhat with the flood of ex-Roman aristocrats into the Church beginning in the 4th century. The conversion of these ex-Senatorial plutocrats into the Catholic fold was less theological than simply a changing of attire. There was a political and economic imperative for them to do so, and the Church benefitted as well, by the stature that these individuals and families brought to the table. It wasn’t long before these carpetbaggers began to secure ecclesiastical preferments for family members, with several members of the same family simultaneously holding holy office. As the Who song, We Won’t Get Fooled Again, goes, “…meet the new Boss, same as the old boss”.
Rule by a group of elders or presbyters, which had characterized the early Church, faded from the scene. The bishop who had previously received his office by acclamation of his parishioners now received his holy appointment courtesy of existing bishops in neighboring sees. Nepotism ran rampant.
The new princes of the Church were used to high-living and enjoying the finer things in life. Many flaunted the accoutrements of their lofty Church appointments. Church historian Sulpicius Severus, in 403 A.D., penned these words of disgust: “For to the Levites, who had been set apart for the priesthood, no portion was given, in order that they might the more freely serve God. I desire not, in silence, to pass over the example thus set, but I would earnestly bring it forward as well worthy of being read by the ministers of the Church. For these seem to me not only unmindful of this precept, but even utterly ignorant of it – such a lusting for possessing has, in this age, seized, like an incurable disease, upon their minds. They gape upon possessions; they cultivate estates; they repose upon gold; they buy and sell; they study gain by every possible means…they look for gifts; and, have corrupted the whole glory of life by their mercenary dispositions, while they present an appearance of sanctity, as if even that might be made a source of gain.”
The patrician-bishops lacked sophisticated religious sensibilities, but they were politically adroit and had skills at power-brokering. Pastoral matters were devolved to the deacons, sub-deacons, and priests so that the bishop could concentrate on developing the power, wealth, and reach of the Catholic Church. The diplomatic skill of the new Church hierarchs was skillfully used when, between the 4th and 8th centuries, western Europe was ruined by invasion and warfare. Church officials had to nimbly deal with the spate of petty kings, dukes, barons, and counts who wrestled for lands and power. While these “conquerors” might possess the land (temporarily, in many cases), the Church possessed spiritual control of the populace. So, agreements were reached wherein the Church could go about its business so long as it supported the political leadership. Eventually, the Church became part of the political establishment.
The cozy relationship between Church and state was critical because it perpetuated business dealings that brought a lot of income to the parishes. Vast tracts of land were owned by the Church, accumulated through centuries of death-bed bequests and regal sweeteners, or simply stolen from “witches” and “heretics”. Not merely peasant-farmers but whole towns and cities were subjected to fierce church rents and levies. Newly-cleared land was tithed, as was cut wood and slaughtered livestock. In medieval Europe, for example, it was not uncommon for churches to request a tithe (ten percent of income or produce) from local peasants.
In 779 A.D., Charlemagne (the “Holy Roman Emperor”) rewarded his ally Pope Hadrian I by issuing the Capitulary of Herstal, ordering all men within his realm (essentially all of Europe) to pay tithes to the Church. In 1400, the Church decreed it a mortal sin not to leave at least ten percent of one’s estate to the Church in a will.
Commonly, the largest building in a village, after the church itself, was the barn that held the tithes. Ceremonies throughout the year obligated generous gifts to the clergy. The church hierarchy might dictate (in time of war, pestilence, coronation, etc.) special prayers, for which again payments were required. In 1188, for example, an obligatory levy in England and much of France, was the Saladin tithe, raised to finance the warrior monks off on the Third Crusade. Those who had no wealth to give gave instead their labor, toiling away in fields and vineyards or slaving as kitchen hands or personal servants to the local clergy.
Receiving “holy orders” was, indeed, a blessing from God. It was, in essence, divine permission to shear the flock. At the top of the food chain was the Pope, who was on the receiving end of a divine pyramid scheme. Popes lived as well or better than kings and emperors. Answerable to no one, they made their own rules. They could ignore Church policy about celibacy and nepotism, for example. A basic rule of the papacy, it seems, was to gather as much wealth for yourself and your family as possible. Some of the best practitioners of this were the following Popes:
Sabinian – when Rome was threatened by invasion and plague, this Pope sold grain to the populace at exorbitant prices
Sergius II – famous for simony, i.e. selling of Church offices
Sergius III – his illegitimate son later became Pope John XI
Benedict IX – a famous hedonist and homosexual, this Pope sold the papacy to his godfather
Nicholas III – famous for repeated nepotism (granting Church offices to his relatives), he had himself named Senator for life
Boniface VIII – used the office in ruthless support of the interests of his family
Clement VI – moved the Papal offices to Avignon, France, where he lived in grandeur within a fancy palace
Sixtus IV – awarded gifts and benefices, including a cardinalship, to male court favorites for sexual favors
Innocent VIII – had three illegitimate children; lived in a grand style while the Vatican was practically insolvent; created Church offices solely in order to sell them to the highest bidder; pawned the papal tiara to a Roman merchant for extra cash
Alexander VI – had nine illegitimate children through many mistresses; poisoned several Cardinals; son, Rodrigo, the model for Machiavelli’s Prince, carved a personal empire out of Church real estate with his father’s help
Leo X – famous for saying, “God has given us the Papacy; let us enjoy it!”; lived in lavish splendor and left the Vatican bankrupt; sold “indulgences” to fund his extravagant parties
Paul III – strong supporter of nepotism… promoted two grandsons to Cardinal, one was 14 years-old and the other was 16; fathered four illegitimate children; made his illegitimate son Pier Luis Farnese the first Duke of Parma
Julius III – devoted himself to a life of luxury; famous for promoting a 16 year-old boy to be a cardinal because of the boy’s courage when bitten by the Pope’s pet monkey
Paul IV – used his office to enrich his family; made his nephew a cardinal and gave other relatives benefices and estates taken from those who supported Spain; was so despised that when he died, a mob tore down his statue
Urban VIII – known for “reckless nepotism”, made his brother and two nephews cardinals; most famous for condemning Galileo who claimed, correctly, that the earth revolves around the sun
Innocent X – allowed his sister to sell Church offices and benefices, and made her son a cardinal
Clement X — allowed his nephew to run the day-to-day affairs of the Papacy, while he concentrated his energies enriching his family and reducing the powers of other officials
Benedict XIII – surrounded himself with a cabal of Dominican monks who engaged in corrupt practices, selling church offices and taking bribes; spent most of his time in the Papacy enriching himself and his buddies
As someone famously said (maybe it was a Pope?), “the Lord helps those who help themselves”.