[Dr. Sivana]

supposedly unholy lifestyle

When the pope is a great-grandfather, you can take the "supposedly" away. Besides his sins of the flesh, he was infamous for Machiavellian political machinations which were not always in the interest of Holy Mother Church.

We can hope that he set things right before his death, but I wouldn't use him as an example of a pope being treated unfairly, the scandal alone risks so many souls for which he is responsible. Whether he likes it or not, he is always gong to be Exhibit A for bad popes.

[Pollster1]

Alexander Pope.

Pope Alexander VI.

I always get those two confused.

[markomalley]

There is little if anything to praise about Rodrigo Borgia. It's pretty bad when even the Catholic Encyclopedia cannot find any way to defend the man:

…Notwithstanding these and similar actions, which might seem to entitle him to no mean place in the annals of the papacy, Alexander continued as Pope the manner of life that had disgraced his cardinalate (Pastor, op. cit., III, 449 152)…So little have Catholic historians defended him that in the middle of the nineteenth century Cesare Cantù could write that Alexander VI was the only Pope who had never found an apologist…

Interestingly, though, there is one benefit that we can see from the Rodrigo Borgia papacy: if Holy Mother Church can survive such an evil man without permanent doctrinal damage, it demonstrates, in a way, that the Holy Spirit must be with the Church (while still allowing Her children to make bad choices).

[Verginius Rufus]

Francis Borgia was a widower when he became a Jesuit. One of his descendants was Queen of England—Catherine of Braganza, wife of King Charles II. They had no children so none of the later British monarchs are descended from Alexander VI (unless through another line).

[kitkat]

Notice that the Pope is not kneeling before a picture because he’s holding Jesus’ foot in his hand.

How could Pope Alexander VI be kneeling before the Christ Child when there could be no pope before Jesus was old enough to create the Catholic church?

[Romulus]

Alexander VI has suffered in historical memory also because he was a Spaniard in the midst of Italians, and because of Anglo fear and loathing of all things Spanish, going back to the reformation.