Unusual moments in papal history
Published On: Feb 11 2013 09:56:59 AM PST
Updated On: Feb 12 2013 08:12:12 AM PST
From resignations to drownings and beheadings, the papacy is full of unusual and surprising moments.
Pope Stephen VI (May 896-August 897) -- Fueled by his anger with Pope Formosus, his predecessor, Pope Stephen VI exhumed Formosus' body and put him on trial in the so-called "Cadaver Synod" in January 897. The corpse was found guilty, stripped of its sacred vestments, had three of its fingers cut off and was tossed in the Tiber River.
