Then-President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump depart Joint Base Andrews in Maryland Jan. 20, ahead of then-President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration. (CNS/Carlos Barria, Reuters)
In the 14th century, the papacy was exiled for 68 years (1309-77) at Avignon, France. In many ways, the leadership of the Catholic Church continued to function normally: Bishops received their apostolic mandates, diplomatic relations were maintained, papal bulls were issued as needed, cardinals were created and conclaves were conducted. Six popes followed Clement V in taking up residence at the Papal Palace along the banks of the Rhone, and the legal title to that palace was clearly in the pope's name, as surely as the Lateran or Vatican palaces. The influence of the French king was profound but not total; still the spiritual strength of the church was subservient to the political interests of France.