Pope Gregory VII Quotes

A collection of quotes by Pope Gregory VII.

Pope Gregory VII, born as Hildebrand of Soana in 1020, was a prominent figure of the Catholic Church during the late 11th century. Serving as Pope from 1073 until his death in 1085, he is best known for his significant reforms that aimed to combat simony, the practice of buying and selling religious offices. Gregory VII also fervently advocated for the independence of the Church from secular powers through his struggle with the Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV. His papacy greatly influenced the future of the Church and left a lasting impact on the institution's governance.

Who does not know that kings and rulers sprang from men who

Who does not know that kings and rulers sprang from men who were ignorant of God, who assumed because of blind greed and intolerable presumption to make themselves masters of other men, their equals, by means of pride, violence, bad faith, murder, and almost every other kind of crime? Surely the devil drove them on.

Pope Gregory VII


It is the custom of the Roman Church which I unworthily serv

It is the custom of the Roman Church which I unworthily serve with the help of God, to tolerate some things, to turn a blind eye to some, following the spirit of discretion rather than the rigid letter of the law.

Pope Gregory VII


I have loved justice and hated iniquity: therefore I die in

I have loved justice and hated iniquity: therefore I die in exile.

Pope Gregory VII

Exile