Translation of Die Päpste.

I. The Church of the fishers of men, Christianity a product of the East: The oldest people believing in one God -- The trial of Jesus of Nazareth -- Peter the poor fisherman deputizes for his Lord -- The wolf of Damascus approaches the sheep of Jerusalem -- The charge to Simon, called the Rock -- Should Gentile and Jew eat together? -- Was Peter ever in Rome? -- The Christians of Rome go underground: Bishop Clement, the first organizer of the church -- The first Bible critic takes up residence in Rome -- Schism arouses the Fathers of the church -- Christian controversies unshared by Rome: For the first time Peter's chair is unoccupied -- The church in the East and West: The Emperor Constantine -- Civil War on behalf of religion: The foundations of the church of Rome -- The first head of the whole church: Pope Leo the Great -- The popes victimized by the clergy and the emperors -- The saintly band led by Benedict of Nursia -- II. The church of the popes and kings: Pope Gregory the Great -- Shift of power from East to West -- Charlemagne, ruler of the West -- The East is lost -- Peter unchained -- The 'regiment of women' in the Lateran -- The holy Roman Empire of the German nation -- The first German and the first French pope -- III. Church against church, Popes and anti-popes: Leo IX -- Hildebrand, the Cluniac monk, as Gregory VII -- The religious genius of the twelfth century: Bernard of Clairvaux -- IV. The church in glory, the greatest power in the Western world: Innocent III, ruler at the age of thirty-seven -- Tragic memories of the fourth crusade -- Secrets and laws of the papal elections -- The struggle between papacy and empire: Frederick II and Gregory IX -- A friend of the emperor becomes his next opponent -- Of the truth of faith and reason: Thomas Aquinas -- Angelope and imperator -- V. The church divided, Avignon, the asylum of the French popes -- Two visionaries: Bridget of Sweden and Catherine of Siena -- Schism in the papacy -- The blind popes: Florence as God's city -- Savonarola -- Father Borgia: Alexander VI -- A condottiere with a mitre: Julius II -- The "crazy" Christians, The golden age: Leo X -- The Reformation becomes a national problem -- The last Netherlandish-German pope: Adrian VI -- VI. The struggling church: Catholic renewal -- The great reform Council of Trent -- Pope Paul IV -- The Council of Trent completed under Pius IV -- Sixtus V, pope of reform -- The church and the Thirty Years' War -- The patrimonium near bankruptcy -- A fresh revival of Christianity: The most popular of popes: Benedict XIV -- VII. Church and nation: Pope Clement XIV faced with a decision -- The Canossa of Pius VI: his journey to Joseph II -- Napoleon's harsh treatment of Pius VII -- The choice between throne and altar -- Pius IX and the end of the temporal power of the papacy -- VIII. The church -- the conscience of 450 million Catholics, The pope of social welfare: Leo XIII -- A pontifical disciplinarian: Pius X -- Pope Benedict XV struggles for peace -- The pope of the concordats: Pius XI -- The 259th pontificate: Pius XII -- Pope John XXIII "Shepherd and sailor." -- 1962: The Second Vatical Council.

Covers the period from Peter to Pope Paul VI, including an account of Vatican Council II, the death of Pope John XXIII and the accession of Paul VI, a chronological list of the popes, a summary of the 21 ecumenical Councils to 1962, and a comprehensive index.