Benedict is the regnal name of the current Roman pontiff, Pope Benedict XVI (2005–present) and has been the name of fourteen other popes (and three antipopes):
- Pope Benedict I (575–579)
- Pope Benedict II (684–685)
- Pope Benedict III (855–858)
- Pope Benedict IV (900–903)
- Pope Benedict V (964)
- Pope Benedict VI (972–974)
- Pope Benedict VII (974–983)
- Pope Benedict VIII (1012–1024)
- Pope Benedict IX (1032–1044, 1045–1046 & 1047–1048)
- Pope Benedict XI (1303–1304)
- Pope Benedict XII (1334–1342)
- Pope Benedict XIII (1724–1730)
- Pope Benedict XIV (1740–1758)
- Pope Benedict XV (1914–1922)
- Pope Benedict XVI (2005–present)
Two or three antipopes also called Benedict:
- Antipope Benedict X (considered by some to be pope, but officially an antipope)
- Antipope Benedict XIII
- Antipope Benedict XIV
Famous quotes containing the words pope and/or benedict:
“I wouldn’t take the Pope too seriously. He’s a Pole first, a pope second, and maybe a Christian third.”
—Muriel Spark (b. 1918)
“The mere fact of leaving ultimate social control in the hands of the people has not guaranteed that men will be able to conduct their lives as free men. Those societies where men know they are free are often democracies, but sometimes they have strong chiefs and kings. ... they have, however, one common characteristic: they are all alike in making certain freedoms common to all citizens, and inalienable.”
—Ruth Benedict (1887–1948)