dinals if they did not do what the mob wanted. Terrified, the cardinals elected an Italian, Urban VI. However, for centuries there had been a clause that if a papal election came under undue influence it was to be declared null and void ... and there was no doubt in anyone's mind that Urban's election had come under undue influence. Besides, Urban was a vulgar man and few liked him. So the majority of the cardinals, all Frenchmen, departed back to Avignon where they promptly held another papal election and put another pope on the throne. The problem was, however, that Urban refused to resign. Thus for decades Christendom laboured under two popes (and sometimes three), the French and its allies supporting the pope in Avignon, the English and their allies supporting the pope in Rome. Two popes, two papal courts, two archbishops or abbots likely to turn up to fill a vacancy ... the entire thing was a farce, and seen as such by all Europe. By the end of the century the Roman Catholic Church was becoming the laughing stock of Europe, and many no longer believed that the Church spoke the will of God. How could it, when it was so beset by corruption? 3) General CorruptionThe final problem was one that had bedevilled the church for centuries - corruption. Any Church or historical scholar could write about this for several book lengths, but I shall just sum it up here:few clerics took any notice of their vows of celibacy, and many parish priests kept wives or mistresses; most of the high Church offices (abbots, bishops, archbishops etc.) were bought and sold,and thus tended to be held by less than devout, but very rich men. Meanwhile, the humble parish priest was rarely paid, and often had to take a second job in order to survive. there were many other orders of clerics who lived like parasites on society: wandering friars, for example, who lived off what they could steal from honest folk. few priests ever 'taught', or preached instructive sermo...
