What do Fidel Castro, Henry VIII, and Napoleon have in common? Aside from their penchant for power and natty hats, they have all been excommunicated.
Excommunication is the harshest punishment available to the Roman Catholic Church, and essentially means that the excommunicated person must be shunned by their community and, unless they clean up their act, they will probably be going to Hell. Pretty strong stuff.
Crimes that warrant excommunication include physically attacking the Pope, violating the seal of confession (if one is a priest), or stealing the host for a sacrilegious purpose. However, the most common reason for excommunication is heresy, which—as you will see from the following instances—can come in many guises.
