I was eating lunch yesterday when the Pope quit, the first pontiff to step down since the Middle Ages. The news here is that the media rarely rarely references the Middle Ages, a time of stake burnings, religous wars (we still have those)and the high risk of death associated with childbirth. But this year we’ve had two hits for the Middle Ages. Recently the remains of King Richard III were found under a parking lot in England. He was a ruthless monarch who ruled from 1483 to 1485 before he was killed in battle.
Pope Benedict and King Richard the III are an odd historical pairing. Of course, there are people who think of the Middle Ages as someone reaching their 45th birthday. Life marches on.
