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Which is, of course, against the canyons. >> in the 11th century, conclaves had not yet been invented. popes are often chosen by brute force or nepotism. >> buying church power was considered one of the worst sins there was, so the fact that he had actually sold the papacy in return for money was appalling to everyone. >> for the first time in recorded history, a pope resigns in exchange for money, which catapults the papacy into the world of dirty politics. >> the papacy becomes a pawn in the politics of central italy. >> but though the young pope accepts the cardinal's bribe, this will not b...

Throne back. >> and the awkward thing now is that there were two popes, and both of them were claiming to be the heir of st. peter. benedict, however, had a wealthier family than sylvester, and so his family rallied behind him, gave him an army. he marched back into rome and drove sylvester iii out. >> you find yourself bewildered by this. it is so far from the apostles or how any christian leader should be, but that was the way the church was. it's about spiritual power, uncomfortably mixed with worldly power. >> six months after accepting the cardinal's bribe to resign, benedict ix is reinst...

Pope. self. >> now their positions had reversed. benedict is if rome and sylvester iii is in compile, but they're both still claiming to be pope. >> benedict ix was the first pope that comes back and they have to decide, well, who's the real pope now? >> with rome's allegiances split between benedict and sylvester, the church faces a crisis of faith. how does one decide who holds the legacy of st. peter? the romans will not have long to figure it out. only one month into benedict ix's second papacy, he complicates the matter even further. >> benedict then, in the way of impetuous young men, he...

Office passed on from one pope to the next. but can two men hold the legitimate claim to one godly office? >> 'left us with this situation of a pope and an extra pope, and that's always going to change the nature of an institution. >> who's the real pope? >> in 2013, millions of people watch as benedict xvi phasefully hands the papacy over to pope francis. but in the past, two living men with claim to one legacy has resulted in nothing but chaos. >> in the 10th and 11th centuries, if you've got two popes, you've got two factions. >> it is an extraordinary episode. >> benedict ix was a teenager...

Again. >> benedict was pope three times in the end. after benedict's reign sends the church into a tail spin. all this becomes a real problem for the church and you got to sort it out. >> july of 1048, benedict ix is ousted once and for all. the cardinals decide the fairest way to consolidate the power is ignore sylvester's claim to the flow. cle throne. clear the deck and elect a new pope. >> there was no clear way of choosing a pope. >> it was an answer frequently murdered. bribery. also, relationships. the sons of pope sometimes became popes, choosing a pope is