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Pope Benedict XII

Type Figure Region France Time 1285–1342 Also known as Benedict XII、Jacques Fournier、雅克·富尼耶

Benedict XII (1285–1342), born Jacques Fournier, a French Cistercian friar, was the fourth pope of the Avignon period (1334–1342), known for reformin…

Timeline

  1. 1285–1327Saverdan · OccitaniaFournier was born at Saverdan in Languedoc; after entering the Cistercian Order he became renowned for his theological learning, served as abbot of the monastery of Foix, and later became Bishop of Montpellier, gradually earning a reputation for rigorous scholarship and monastic reform.
  2. 1327–1334Avignon · ProvenceRaised to cardinal in 1327 and sent to serve at Avignon, he was commissioned to try surviving cases of the Cathar heresy in Languedoc; his interrogation records survive, revealing meticulous logic and a thorough familiarity with heresy questions.
  3. 1334–1342Avignon · ProvenceElected pope after the death of John XXII, taking the name Benedict XII, he reformed papal expenditures, regulated theological disputes, and continued to address church difficulties such as relations with the imperial emperor and the Franciscan poverty controversy, consolidating papal authority at Avignon during his reign.

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