The Fisherman's Net: The Influence of the Popes on History
The papacy is the oldest non-hereditary monarchy in the world. Over its two thousand years history, it has influenced the lives of billions of people, Christian and non-Christian. The influence of the papacy has by no means been limited to the religious sphere, however. Popes have been directly involved in setting up the Holy Roman Empire, the demise of paganism and global politics. As patrons of the arts, popes have commissioned some of the finest masterpieces, including the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica. In the area of politics, Pope Alexander VI divided the map of the newly discovered territories of the Americas in the late 15th century. In the area of temporal calculation, a sixth-century pope changed the global calander and in the 16th century, Pope Gregory XII reformed the calendar of Julius Caesar. From the earliest forays of the Muslim world westwards, the popes have launched crusades to stop their advance. Most recently, Pope John Paul II, in his 25-year pontificate, has raised the profile of the papacy immeasurably. Finally, THE FISHERMAN'S NET brings the story up to date with a chapter on the new pope, Benedict XVI. +
Format:Paperback
Language:English
ISBN:1587680335
ISBN13:9781587680335
Release Date:September 2005
Publisher:HiddenSpring
Length:288 Pages
Weight:0.79 lbs.
Dimensions:0.9" x 5.5" x 8.2"
Customer Reviews
1 rating
What an extraordinary tale.
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 19 years ago
The Fisherman's Net brings back images of Antony Quinn in the Shoes of the Fisherman. This book is not however, a novel. It is a quirky overview of the papacy from the angle of its influence on most things except religion. Rather surprising but the author, Irish priest Fr. Michael Collins craftily weaves the story in and out of the Church's history. It is really the tale of saints and sinners. I enjoyed the book very much.It has a nice flow, but does not go too deep into the issues. A bit like Thomas Cahill's book How The Irish Saved Civilization. This is a cracking good read, although it seems to leave out more than it puts in. Maybe that was the editors choice. HOwever, it really made me think a lot about the papacy, especially after reading the Da Vinci Code.
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