Customer Reviews

Sex Lives of the Popes: An Irreverent Expose of the Bishops of Rome from st Peter to the Present Day

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2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This book emphasizes on the attitude of the popes towards the sex lives of their priests. Many popes were concerned with the celibacy of their priests and forbade marriage for priests. However, they used to sell them licenses for keeping mistresses. Usually, they were prepared to tolerate priests who kept incestuous relations with female relatives or raped women in the church. "When a woman fainted during confession and the priest seized the opportunity to rape her, the Inquisition found that this, technically, was not a case of soliciting." The pope's only concern was that priests would defile the sacrament when handling it afterwards.
The passages about the sex lives of the popes themselves are mainly based on hearsay. Cawthorne accuses several popes of incest with either their sisters or bastard daughters, like pope Alexander VI Borgia, who retired with his daughter to "an interior room and remained locked up together for more than an hour". In secret she gave birth to a baby that was hidden, but that doesn't prove that her father was the father. Many other popes seem to have had preferences for young boys, prostitutes or sex-and-food orgies in general.
Despite many unproven accusations, the book clearly shows that many popes were mainly concerned with their own pleasures and did not give a damn about Christian values. Anyway, the book is good reading stuff.

The author managed to keep an excellent sense of humor throughout the entire book, starting from Peter and ending with the late Jean Paul II. Fascinating, revealing, exposing -- great in one word.

Taboos are shattered, beliefs given new horizons. I recomend this book to any reader. Interesting read.

I liked the phrase "Julius II was an insatiable bisexual"...

This book emphasizes on the attitude of the popes towards the sex lives of their priests. Many popes were concerned with the celibacy of their priests and forbade marriage for priests. However, they used to sell them licenses for keeping mistresses. Usually, they were prepared to tolerate priests who kept incestuous relations with female relatives or raped women in the church. "When a woman fainted during confession and the priest seized the opportunity to rape her, the Inquisition found that this, technically, was not a case of soliciting." The pope's only concern was that priests would defile the sacrament when handling it afterwards. The passages about the sex lives of the popes themselves are mainly based on hearsay. Cawthorne accuses several popes of incest with either their sisters or bastard daughters, like pope Alexander VI Borgia, who retired with his daughter to "an interior room and remained locked up together for more than an hour". In secret she gave birth to a baby that was hidden, but that doesn't prove that her father was the father. Many other popes seem to have had preferences for young boys, prostitutes or sex-and-food orgies in general. Despite many unproven accusations, the book clearly shows that many popes were mainly concerned with their own pleasures and did not give a damn about Christian values. Anyway, the book is good reading stuff.

This book was very interesting but gory--I had to put it down a few times. I thought it was just because I am a female but the male friend who refered it to me, said the same thing. This book is actually very freeing. I also find it amazing how these men made up all these "rules", that they did not live by, themselves. I am furthur convinced that nobody had a choice but be a "christian".


To think they would actually murder each other just to be in power...hmm so much for "thou shall not kill"

I realize the interpretation of these events could be part of the author's imagination, but I dont think he is very far off IF he is at all with the facts.

This book contains everything you ever really wanted to know about the sex lives of the popes and anti popes. (Apparently there were anti popes in Rome as well as in Avignon.) The book is interesting and even humorous, but not a serious work of history. Easy reading. It's also a good review of which pope was which and what sort of people they were personally.

When there's a long line at the supermarket check-out, I pass the time by reading the Enquirer, the Star, and Soap Opera Digest. This book fullfills that illicit pleasure of getting the inside merde on the inhabitants of Peter's Throne. If one believes that the Pontiffs are next to God in the human order of things, then one must be offended by the nature of this free-flowing and eminently readible selection of papal history.

If one wishes a "serious" history of the Papacy, then one should go to McBrien's "Lives of the Popes" or Eamon Duffy's "Saints and Sinners." But if you like the Star, or the New York Post, then this is the book for you, since it is totally uncluttered with footnotes and proofs of scholarly accuracy. In that respect, it rivals Woodward's histories of Boy Clinton. A sheer delight to have and to hold, from this day forth.

"Sex Lives of the Popes" reads fluidly and easily. Others may find that a weakness in the lack of endless "scholastic" efforts to document every work by reference to "previous scholars." Well, for the minority among us who are "academia," that may be of interest. But for the ordinary reader, there is sufficient substantiation, and the book retains its vitality instead of succumbing to mind-numbing scholarly endedavor. It's real, and revealing, and surely an anathema to all the scholars of the "Holy Mother Church," to which the work may lend a new meaning. If one isn't a hidebound statistician, or a blindly faithful Catholic Cleric, then this book will be a great source of wondrous information, with relevance to the religious events and practices of the past centuries as well as to the present day's less than presentable (reported and unreported) practices of many of the Church's selected clergical leaders. By all means, everyone should read this book, in the interests of presentation of all the facts, whether they agree with the book or not. For example, do you know why the new pope must sit on the "saddle" before he's confirmed by the Cardinals? And did you know that there was a female Pope? It's a great book. Rush out and read it.

I received this book as a Christmas present and just recently finished reading it. Overall, I thought it was a wonderful read. I've read quite a few salacious history books, but not any on popes until now. Overall, I agree with the latest reviewer, that a lot of it is speculation, hearsay or gossip, but on the other hand, that's also one of its best features.

It does have a slow start, starting with the foundations of Christendom and sex and stewards of the early Church, but once it gets into the medieval and Renaissance periods, things really kick into high gear. There are some popes that are definitely given a bit of extra weighting compared to others, so it does make for a somewhat imbalanced read once you get about three-quarters of the way through. (You'll wonder - "Why am I still reading about Alexander VI, six pages later? In the third chapter, there were at least 30 popes!")

Overall, I thought it was enjoyable, but probably not very factual. If you like gossipy, salacious history of figures of power, (or popes at least), then I definitely recommend this book. If you're extremely picky about rumors or gossip and want 'just the facts', then you'll probably be wanting to look elsewhere.

It may be the 21st century, but things in the world of the Catholic clergy haven't changed much. Although the title is Sex Lives of the Popes, it really covers not only the popes, but also their entire supporting cast as well.

One of the chapters lists four questions posed to every priest about to be consecrated a bishop:
Have you sodomized a boy?
Have you fornicated with a nun?
Have you sodomized any four-legged animals?
Have you committed adultery?

I guess that about sums it up. And, after reading the book, every one of them was a liar. If they got rid of everyone who answered the questions honestly, there would be no one left!

As Pope Innocent IV put it, "When we came we found three or four brothels. We leave behind but one. But it extends without interruption from the eastern to the western gate."

The nuns weren't any better. In France, convents were known as palaces of pleasure.

The popes were no different from the kings. They craved power and materialism, and they even had an army. Religion had nothing to do with it. What is surprising is how many popes were killed by irate husbands who found them in bed with their wives.

The book skips over some popes, then goes into great depth on others. It is hard to keep up with who's doing what to whom.

Cawthorne writes well, in an easy-to-read style that is generally enjoyable. The problem starts about half way through the book when you begin to wonder if it is possible for almost every single Vicar of Christ to have been a corrupt degenerate. Was it something in the food they ate, or the air they breathed? Or, you begin to suspect, is this book simply a compilation of rumours? I still don't know the answer to that, and after a while I didn't care as I found my interest waning as yet another innocent virgin or wanton hussy (or sometimes both) ended up in the papal bed. At least I learned that too much of a good thing becomes a boring thing!