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[Actually, it's not clear whether he was VI or VII; sources disagree. Is it that hard to count these things?] His predecessor was a certain Pope Formosus, who consecrated Stephen as a bishop. How Stephen became pope is apparently a bit unclear, though it had much more to do with feuding factions within Rome than it did with any sort of will of the Church or God. What is clear is that he and Formosus did not see eye to eye. Now, civil unrest in the Holy Roman Empire was very common at the time, and it seems that in early 897, shortly after Formosus had been buried some nine months, Rome was taken over by a faction loyal to Stephen VII. His distaste for his predecessor, borne from the politics of this local situation, compelled him to rob Formosus of every last shred of dignity he could. From "Popes Through the Ages" by Joseph Brusher (Electronic version (c) 1996 New Advent, Inc.): Stephen VII herded together some of the Roman clergy into a synod. Terrified and aghast, they watched a grisly scene unfold. The decaying corpse of Pope Formosus was carried into the hall. Clad in pontifical vestments it was seated in a chair. A quaking deacon stood by the corpse as defense attorney while a series of charges against the late pope were read. The synod then condemned Formosus because he had exercised his functions after having been deposed and because he had left the see of Porto for that of Rome. His ordinations were declared invalid. Then the three fingers used by a Pope in blessing were cut off and the pontifical vestments were torn from the poor corpse. Underneath the ceremonial splendor was found a hair shirt. The body was then buried in a pilgrims' cemetery, but a gang dug it up and threw it into the Tiber. Just remember that next time some nut claims that the church should get back into the business of politics! Don't worry, this sicko got his. The Britannica remarks: In a few months an insurrection removed Stephen from office. Deprived of papal insignia, he was imprisoned and strangled, but his party found another leader in the murderous pope Sergius III. Twelve years of blood, intrigue, and terror followed. Bibliography- Joseph Brusher. Popes Through the Ages.
(referenced online at http://www.cfpeople.org/Books/Pope/CFPtoc.htm)
The Library: Catholic Books Online, 1996.
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