Sexual scandal and the clergy: A medieval blueprint for disaster

Once upon a time in the early fifth century there was a holy man named Sylvanus, the bishop of Nazareth. Sylvanus was a good bishop with a reputation for sanctity. So imagine the shock of a noble matron when she found Sylvanus under her bed, presumably planning to take her by force. The woman called out in alarm, and Sylvanus responded with a string of foul language loud enough to wake the neighborhood. When the outraged public drove Sylvanus from their midst, he was forced to seek refuge at the tomb of his friend, St. Jerome. The crowd was out for blood and armed assailants stepped forward. But Sylvanus overpowered each of them, turning the sword against its owner. Eventually the pontiff collapsed and died.