This century can be considered the most difficult period for Christianity. Historians call it the Iron Century or Pornocracy, meaning power derived from servile relationships and sexual relations. During this time, major Roman families, both in Rome and beyond, began to interfere directly in Church power, such as the Tusculans, the Crescentii, and the Theophylacts.
The Church began to mix deeply with temporal power. Nobles intervened in Church affairs through corrupt relationships driven by money and excess, including widespread sexual misconduct. It was a period of great hardship and is also called the saeculum obscurum, the dark age of the papacy.
At least five popes can be highlighted as having played very troubling roles during these days of the Church. The first was Pope Stephen VI, whose papacy spanned the end of the previous century and the beginning of this one. He was the central figure in the Cadaver Synod. At the time, there were many disagreements among religious leaders, often ending in complex trials. Pope Stephen ordered the exhumation of his enemy, Pope Formosus, who had already been buried. Formosus was accused of heresy and of having become pope through questionable means. His corpse was dressed in papal vestments, placed on a throne, put on trial, condemned, mutilated, and his remains were thrown into the Tiber River in Rome, nine months after his burial.
What many see as the law of cause and effect soon followed. Pope Stephen VI was judged to be even worse than Pope Formosus. After a popular revolt, he was imprisoned, tortured, and eventually strangled to death. It was a terrible chapter in Church history.
The second pope, Sergius III, may have been the most troubling of all. He became deeply involved with the powerful Roman family of the Theophylacts, especially with two women, mother and daughter, Theodora and Marozia. These women effectively controlled the pope. The family dictated Church decisions, appointments, and the practice of simony, the sale of Church offices and goods. Marozia, the daughter, was very young and only fifteen years old.
The third pope, John X, was elected under the influence of Theodora but attempted to resist noble interference. He was eventually imprisoned and suffocated to death by order of the Theophylact family.
According to tradition, from the relationship between Pope Sergius III and the young Marozia, a son was born. This child later became Pope John XI through family influence. Thus, a pope had a son who later became pope. Celibacy is a Church rule, but not all are able to follow it easily. It is important to note that celibacy was not always mandatory and was established gradually through various councils.
From the seventh and eighth centuries onward, the Church officially adopted celibacy in order to prevent Church properties from being disputed by heirs of popes, cardinals, bishops, and priests.
This century was marked by severe turmoil driven by wealth, land ownership, and sexuality, far removed from the original Gospel spirit of early Christianity. The Church faced an extremely difficult period and struggled to return to its original values and teachings.
At that time, the printing press did not exist. Sacred texts were copied by hand in monasteries by scribes. Groups of monks lived isolated from society, dedicated to copying biblical texts onto parchment, producing large volumes of Scripture. Some scholars suggest that many scribes themselves were illiterate, simply reproducing symbols. This made the preservation of texts very fragile. The Bible could not be purchased freely and was not accessible to the general population.
The faithful followed religious traditions without access to sacred texts. Although the Gospels existed, they were not available to ordinary people. The population was not permitted to read or possess them. Faith was therefore blind.
Another pope, John XII, was elected at the age of seventeen, also under the influence of the Theophylact family. Historians report that he treated the papacy as a Roman principality, becoming involved in moral and political scandals. This period forced the Church to begin a deep process of reflection and reform.
This invites a moment of reflection without judgment. Entrusting the leadership of the entire Church to a seventeen year old reveals how little spiritual importance was placed on the papacy at that time. The role had become primarily political rather than spiritual. Unlike earlier centuries, where the message of Jesus was clearly visible in Church actions, during this century the presence of Jesus’ teachings is difficult to perceive. What stands out is the institution itself, not the Gospel.
Yet from the ashes arose a glimmer of hope, because humanity has never been abandoned, even in its darkest moments. Noble spirits emerged to renew spiritual commitment and restore hope. The Middle Ages were not entirely dark, but this century represents a peak of materialism and neglect of spiritual values.
A ray of light appeared in the year 910 in Burgundy, when monks founded the Abbey of Cluny. This Benedictine initiative sought to restore the Rule of Benedict of Nursia, pray and work, communal life, and faithful living of the Gospel. They believed that without this reform, Rome itself would destroy Christianity. The Abbey of Cluny aimed to live on Earth as one would live in Heaven, through mutual support, prayer, work, and spirituality.
This movement spread throughout Europe, leading to the creation of around eight hundred monasteries. It became a counterbalance to the excesses of Rome and sought to free Christianity from material excess through the Rule of Benedict, which contained seventy three articles and a prologue.
During this century, the construction of Romanesque style churches began. Various architectural styles exist, such as Gothic, Baroque, Rococo, and Neoclassical. The Abbey of Cluny inaugurated this movement with monumental and solid structures designed to inspire spiritual refuge.
A brief clarification: a cathedral is the church where the bishop’s seat is located, representing the highest local religious authority, such as the Metropolitan Cathedral of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. A basilica is usually dedicated to honoring a specific event or figure, such as the Basilica of Our Lady of Aparecida in Brazil. A basilica can also be a cathedral, but not every cathedral is a basilica.
This century also saw major scientific growth in Islam. The House of Wisdom, founded in the previous century, continued to flourish and reached its peak. Scholars such as Avicenna were active, along with many others. While Islam experienced a golden age of knowledge and science, Christianity lagged behind during this period.
In 969, the Fatimid Caliphate founded the city of Cairo in Egypt. Baghdad was no longer the main center, nor Alexandria as before. Cairo became the new political and religious hub, and future Crusades would pass through Egypt because the Sultan resided there.
During this period, Central and Eastern Europe underwent more effective Christianization. Hungary, Poland, Scandinavia, and Russia embraced Christianity. In 988, Prince Vladimir I of Kiev converted, making Christianity the dominant faith in the region.
As a result of later divisions, Russians and Ukrainians became Orthodox Christians.
Russia and Ukraine, two territories and one people, are today divided.