I too have been teaching my students about the “year of three popes”—meaning of course the most recent such year, 1978! To them, almost equally ancient history, although it helps when I tell them that Star Wars was the year before, Superman was that year, and Alien was the following year. (Very few of them have seen Superman, but I mention it anyway.) Much less sordid history, even if the actual history of 1503 is less sordid than it is often remembered, as helpfully documented here!
Nepotism is as old as the hills. The Church invented the term because, for the first time, it was regarded as something wrong. Prior to this, a man putting all his relatives in high position might arose envy but not indignation.
I too have been teaching my students about the “year of three popes”—meaning of course the most recent such year, 1978! To them, almost equally ancient history, although it helps when I tell them that Star Wars was the year before, Superman was that year, and Alien was the following year. (Very few of them have seen Superman, but I mention it anyway.) Much less sordid history, even if the actual history of 1503 is less sordid than it is often remembered, as helpfully documented here!
Nepotism is as old as the hills. The Church invented the term because, for the first time, it was regarded as something wrong. Prior to this, a man putting all his relatives in high position might arose envy but not indignation.
A fascinating time for the Church and the world.