Facts of Faith

The Heruli

The Heruli under Odoacer had established themselves in Italy, 476 A. D.; and while this Arian king ruled all his subjects impartially, he endeavored to shield his people from the persecution inaugurated by the combined efforts of the pope and the emperor. Pasquale Villari, writing of the period between 468 and 483A. D., says: FAFA 37.5

At that time the Pope was morally, and even more than morally speaking, the most powerful personage in Italy. If Odovacar [Odoacer], as an Arian, had openly opposed him, Simplicius [the Pope] could have easily roused the whole country against him, and made it impossible for him to maintain his position in Italy.” — “The Barbarian Invasion of Italy,” Vol. I, pp. 145, 146. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1902 FAFA 38.1

And just such an opportunity soon presented itself: FAFA 38.2

“Pope Simplicius died on the 2nd of March, 483, whereupon Odovacar made a false move, of which he felt the consequences before long. Undoubtedly it was very important for him to control the choice of a new Pontiff. He sought not only to prevent the riots which had often caused bloodshed in the streets of Rome on similar occasions, but also desired a Pope well disposed to himself. Thus when the preliminary assembly failed to agree in the choice of a candidate, the Pretorian Prefect, Cecina Basilius, suddenly intervened in Odovacar’s name, and declared that no election would be valid without the King’s voice.... A decree was likewise issued prohibiting the alienation of Church property and threatening anathema on all who failed to respect it. After this the Assembly was summoned to sanction the decree and decide the election, which resulted in favor of Felix II (483-492), the candidate recommended by Odovacar.” — Id., p. 146.

“His interference in the Papal election has cast into the Roman Church the seed of a deep and threatening distrust towards him.” — Id., p. 147. FAFA 38.3

Rome could never forgive such an affront, and through its faithful ally, the emperor, another barbarian nation, the Ostrogoths, were called in to destroy the hated Heruli. Niccolo Machiavelli relates how the popes used such a method. He says: FAFA 38.4

“Nearly all the wars which the northern barbarians carried on in Italy, it may be here remarked, were occasioned by the pontiffs; and the hordes, with which the country was inundated, were generally called in by them. The same mode of proceeding still continued, and kept Italy weak and unsettled.” - FAFA 38.5

“History of Florence,” p. 13. Washington and London: Universal Classics Library, 1901. FAFA 39.1

Villari says that Theodoric at the head of the Ostrogothic hordes entered Italy in the autumn of 488, backed by the authority of the emperor and the Church. Because the discord that had now broken out between Odovacar and the pope had weakened the former and consequently made him less formidable, after two disastrous battles he retreated toward the city of Rome for safety from the Ostrogoths, but “the gates of Rome were shut in his face, and the inhabitants of Italy began to show him marked hostility; partly on account of his recent conflict with the Church, partly for the increased deeds of spoliation.... The Church had taken advantage of all these causes of discontent in order to excite the populace against him; and before long it was openly said that the clergy had organized a general conspiracy against him somewhat, it would seem, in the style of the Sicilian Vespers.” — “The Barbarian Invasion of Italy,” 2-vol. ed. of 1880. Vol. I, pp. 153-156. FAFA 39.2

John Henry Cardinal Newman, D. D., says: FAFA 39.3

“Odoacer was sinking before Theodoric, and the Pope was changing one Arian master for another.” — “An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine,” Part II, p. 320. London: 1878.

Villari continues: “On the 5th of March, 493, Theodoric entered Ravenna in triumph, all the clergy coming forth to meet him, chanting Psalms, and with the Archbishop at the head of the procession.” -“The Barbarian Invasion of Italy,” Vol. I, p. 158. Ten days later Odoacer was murdered in cold blood. FAFA 39.4

Hodgkin points out that this coming of the archbishop to meet the Ostrogoths was staged so as to “impress vividly on the minds both of Italians and Ostrogoths that Theodoric came as the friend of the Catholic Church.” — “Italy and Her Invaders,“ 8-vol. ed., Vol. III, book 4, pp. 234, 235. Hodgkin further states that the Roman clergy were privy to a terrible secret plot of murdering the followers of Odovacar all over Italy. (Id., pp. 225, 226.) FAFA 39.5

The Heruli disappeared from history. Thus the first of the three horns of Daniel 7:8 was “plucked up by the roots,” and history leaves no room for doubt but that the Papacy through its allies engineered this act because of its opposition to Arianism. FAFA 40.1