century which elapsed from the days of Gregory VII to those of
Innocent III the papal power was becoming an increasing reality in the
Church. It is indeed a little difficult to see wherein it was possible
for any successor of Gregory VII to make an advance upon the claims
put forward by that Pope. Gregory in fond of pointing out that the
power of binding and loosing given to St. Peter was absolutely
comprehensive, including all persons and secular as well as spiritual
matters. Innocent tells the Patriarch of Constantinople that the Lord
left to Peter not only the whole Church, but the whole world to
govern. To the Karolingian age it was the Emperor who was the Vicar of
God. The Church reformers, while attacking this title, do not seem to
have claimed in words for the Pope a higher title than Vicar of St.
Peter. Innocent, however, more than once asserts that he is the
representative "not of mere man, but of very God." In fact, such
development as is to be found in the papal office during the twelfth
century consists merely in making rather more explicit positions which
have already been asserted. Gregory, in writing to William the
Conqueror, had used the figures of the sun and moon to illustrate the
relations of Church and State. Innocent draws out the analogy in much
detail: "As God, the builder of the universe, has set up two lights in
the firmament of heaven, the greater light to rule the day and the
lesser light to rule the night, so for the firmament of the universal
Church, which is called by the name of heaven, He has set up two great
dignities, the greater to rule souls, as it were days, and the lesser
to rule bodies, as it were nights; and these are priestly authority
and royal power. Further, as the moon obtains its light from the sun,
seeing that it is really the lesser both in quantity and quality, and
also in position and influence, so royal power obtains the splendour
of its dignity from priestly authority." He points out on another
occasion that "individual kings have individual kingdoms, but Peter is