Popes are military leaders as much as religious leaders

What if the title Pope despite being the spiritual and religious figurehead of Catholic faith also develops into being a kind of magister militum akin to a commander of the faithful ? There is also a Papal armor for every Pope in charge.
 
I suppose that Christianity should be quiet different before you can get pope as military commander. More militarist Jesus?
 
Why would the pope put himself in harms way, when A) he is elected on his Christian faith and service rather than military knowledge. B) There are enough kings princes and generals in Christendom to lead an army in foreign land against heretic barbarians?
 

Artaxerxes

Banned
If the Pope starts donning armour and riding around at the head of armies you start to undermine the doctrine of Church + Nobility + Servants, if the Church can interfere in the physical realm whats to stop the odd Lord messing with the spiritual?

Of course you did have some Popes don armour, and plenty of bishops do the same but the main barrier to the Pope doing so is of course the age of the Popes and its insular, more Urban (haha...) raised candidates.
 
Well, the Pope was a secular ruler for a very long time.

I don't see that happening as a tradition, as in a majority of Pope doing it, but I can certainly see a couple do that, especially during the crusades
 
Pope Julius II, known as "the Fearsome Pope" and "The Warrior Pope" as in addition to an active military policy, he personally led troops into battle on at least two occasions.

What if as a POD, Pope Julius II places a cause in elevation of cardinals, stating that at least two members of Christendom's military?
 
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