Secular Power Quotes
The Christian world was in a great struggle with Islam. The Sultans were trying to take over Constantinople—the seat of the Eastern Orthodox Church. The Western Catholic Church in Rome also yearned for unification but under the Pope and his Cardinals. Notaraus feared them more than the Ottomans. Howeer, it was the latter who conquered Constantinople (Byzantium) in 1453 and executed the “first family” when Notaras would not deliver his children to Sultan Mehmet as hostages for assuring “good behavior” by the Greek community.
Pippin had the opportunity of expanding his empire by conquering the Lombards whose cavalry he could use if and when the Saracen Muslims would invade again. But he would be seizing another Christian country, contrary to the Pope’s edicts, thus losing the blessings of the Pope. Hence the question. He decided to go for the cavalry. Later, Joseph Stalin asked the same question in much different context. See {627524}. Some historians question whether Pippen actually uttered the quotation or just considered it.
Justinian, like many civil political leaders before and after him, took great pains to minimize the civil authority of the church. Separation of church and state is not a modern notion, though it was harder to accomplish in antiquity. Rulers would want to coopt the religion to help legitimize their rule, but tried to keep the church as weak as they could unless another religion was challenging for supremecy.
