And you learned this nonsense from what anti-Catholic pulpit? Or did you learn it from whimsical novels like the 'DaVinci Code'? Or was it learned from the trustworthy media? Perhaps from the revisionist, anti-Catholic history books that permeate the earth? Or was it on PBS television? Maybe the BBC aired a "special" you saw? It's odd though, many on these threads condemn the Church for being too much in favor of the 'common' people. But the Church has been attacked, maligned and bloodied from day one, it will never change because Satan never rests.
Maybe I learned it when the King of France appointed the French Popes..
Maybe how Reagen working with the Pope and church to end communism or how the church and government help in WWII and through the French revolution.
Is your point that the church in its 1,000 of years of history is not connected - both good and bad.
My point was power always tries to keep the people down no matter who it is.
Maybe it was learned from the collusion between church and state that some Protestant churches followed as well. It was King James, answering the Puritans, who replied, “No Bishop, No King”. He had learned from Scotland that someone who rejected church ecclesiastical authority would soon reject political authority. If one can choose your own elders, why not choose your own political rulers as well?
Also note that Wycliffe’s preaching resulted in rebellion by the poor against their political masters, just as Luther’s did - with 50,000 dead in the latter case. Neither Wycliffe or Luther understood the political implications of their religious views.