Perhaps no single institution commands the devotion of more believers than the Papacy. Many believe the Pope of Rome possesses an infallible authority instituted by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. But, is this indeed the case?

Engaging for scholars and laymen alike, The Rise and Fall of the Papacy is a groundbreaking analysis of the origin and ecclesiastical transformation of the pre-schism Church of Rome. Century by century, author Patrick Truglia combs through an array of sources spanning the entire first millennium, including the Talmud, Holy Scriptures, Oecumenical Councils, and new translations of Papal correspondence. Uncovering the jurisdictional subterfuge of the Easter Controversy, the untold story of the Church of Rome reforming Pope Stephen's sacramentology, the depositions and anathematization of Popes, and much more, one discovers the macrohistorical importance of Anastasius the Librarian. Once shrouded in mystery, this backroom actor rises from the status of laicized cleric to anti-Pope and finally to the puppet-master behind the most influential Papal chanceries of the 9th century. Due to this one man's extensive work, the Papacy was reinvented and western Christianity has never been the same since.