Gregory the Great
Formative Years Before the Papacy
Gregory the Great was born as Gregory, sometime between 540 and 545, to parents of good station. He grew up in Rome, and was educated as best as was possible. At the time, the (College of Rome?) had fallen from prominence into ruin after losing all of its grants and incomes from the Emperor Justinian and the educational culture of Rome was diminishing quickly as the city was torn between wars and invasions. Still, Gregory was educated to the educational standards that remained and it is important to remember that he was gifted with intellect and acumen and always showed the highest prowess at his studies. The purpose of this paper is to delineate Gregory’s pontificate, and the ways in which he used or empowered papal authority during the middle ages. It is, therefore, appropriate to begin this paper with a review of the formative years that foreshadow his appointment to the papal see. Due to his lineage, Gregory was as, a young man, in a fortunate position of wealth, education, and popularity. This position was made all the more rare considering the overall health of the city of Rome, at the time, was in great disrepair after many years of war and political upheaval. Although it would decline in the following century, the office of Urban Prefect held the highest secular power in Rome as Gregory entered adulthood. In 573, he was appointed as the Urban Prefect of Rome, and became an overseer of all civil responsibilities and concerns. Within the same year, both the Patrician Narses and Pope John III died, and Gregory alone was left to face the Lombard invasions, pestilence, poverty and famine. Perhaps this unwanted, unforeseen position of sole responsibility provided Gregory’s resistance to political office for the rest of his life, because shortly after, Gregory rescinded his wealth and station and become a monk. He spent three years in spiritual solitude in a monastery, where he most likely practiced monasticism under
Gregory the Great was born as Gregory, sometime between 540 and 545, to parents of good station. He grew up in Rome, and was educated as best as was possible. At the time, the (College of Rome?) had fallen from prominence into ruin after losing all of its grants and incomes from the Emperor Justinian and the educational culture of Rome was diminishing quickly as the city was torn between wars and invasions. Still, Gregory was educated to the educational standards that remained and it is important to remember that he was gifted with intellect and acumen and always showed the highest prowess at his studies. The purpose of this paper is to delineate Gregory’s pontificate, and the ways in which he used or empowered papal authority during the middle ages. It is, therefore, appropriate to begin this paper with a review of the formative years that foreshadow his appointment to the papal see. Due to his lineage, Gregory was as, a young man, in a fortunate position of wealth, education, and popularity. This position was made all the more rare considering the overall health of the city of Rome, at the time, was in great disrepair after many years of war and political upheaval. Although it would decline in the following century, the office of Urban Prefect held the highest secular power in Rome as Gregory entered adulthood. In 573, he was appointed as the Urban Prefect of Rome, and became an overseer of all civil responsibilities and concerns. Within the same year, both the Patrician Narses and Pope John III died, and Gregory alone was left to face the Lombard invasions, pestilence, poverty and famine. Perhaps this unwanted, unforeseen position of sole responsibility provided Gregory’s resistance to political office for the rest of his life, because shortly after, Gregory rescinded his wealth and station and become a monk. He spent three years in spiritual solitude in a monastery, where he most likely practiced monasticism under