Editing First Council of the Lateran (section)

==Results of the council==
Lateran I was the first of four Lateran Councils between the years 1123–1215. The first was not very original in its concept, nor one called to meet a pressing theological question. For the most part, [[Pope Callixtus II]] summoned the council to ratify the various meetings and concords which had been occurring in and around Rome for several years. The most pressing issue was that of the [[Investiture Controversy]] which had consumed nearly a century of contention and open warfare. At the heart of the question was the ancient right of the [[Holy Roman Emperor]] to name the pope as well as bishops and priests. These would be invested with some secular symbol such as a sword or scepter and the spiritual authority represented by a ring, miter and crosier.  To an illiterate population, it appeared the bishop or abbot was now the king's inferior and owed his position to the king.  This issue came to the fore in the first part of the eleventh century when Rome and the pope sought autonomy from the Holy Roman Emperor. It had been a central issue in the reign of [[Pope Gregory VII]] and his battles with [[Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor]].<ref>Bellitto, Christopher M., pp 49–56  “The General Councils: A History of the Twenty-one Church Councils from Nicaea to Vatican II”, Paulist Press, Mahway, N. J. 2002</ref> The issue was never settled. Years of teaching by Roman trained priests and bishops in Germany had led to an educated generation which rejected the idea of [[divine right of kings]]. [[Image:Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire front.jpg|left|thumb|[[Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor]] died leaving his kingdom in a much weakened condition.]] 
The [[Third Lateran Council]] and the [[Fourth Lateran Council]] are generally considered to be of much greater significance than Lateran I.  However, Lateran I marked the first time a general and large Council had been held in the West.  All previous Councils had been in the East and dominated by  Greek theologians and philosophers.<ref>Latourette, K. S.  P. 475, 484–85 “A History of Christianity”, Eyre and Spottiswoode Ltd. London, 1955</ref>
In the struggle between [[Stephen of England]] and [[Empress Matilda|Matilda]], the daughter of [[Henry I of England]], the  English Church slipped away from the close control the Normans had exercised.  Stephen was forced to make many concessions to the Church to gain some element of political control.  Historians have largely considered his rule to be a disaster, calling it [[The Anarchy]].<ref>Thorndike, L. p. 294 et seq "The History of Medieval Europe, Third Edition", Houghton, Mifflin, 1956</ref>

Because of political necessity, the Holy Roman Emperors were restrained from directly naming bishops in the kingdom. In practicality, the process continued to a certain extent. The issue of [[separation of church and state]] was simply recast in a different direction. Of all the [[Gregorian Reforms]] which were embodied by Lateran I, celibacy of the clergy was the most successful. [[Simony]] was curtailed. As time progressed, secular interference into the politics of the Church was seen to continue, albeit in different ways from that of the [[Investiture Controversy]].

It has been argued by some historians that the [[Concordat of Worms]] and its reiteration by Lateran I were little more than face saving measures by the Church. [[Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor]] continued to name bishops within his kingdom. His control over the papacy was definitely abated.<ref>Dahlmus J. pp. 225–229, "The Middle Ages, A Popular History", Doubleday and Co., Garden City, New York, 1968</ref> At the time, the Concordat of Worms was proclaimed as a great victory for Henry V inside the Holy Roman Empire.  It did serve to constrain much of the most recent warfare in and outside the empire. In the end, Henry V died the monarch of a much diminished kingdom.<ref>Gontard, F.  pp. 240–241, ''The Chair of Peter, A History of the Papacy'', Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, 1964</ref>