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PDF versionPopes of the 20th century
by Richard McBrien on Aug. 09, 2010
When I was a lot younger, we assumed that all popes, with the exception of the infamous Alexander VI, were great popes, like the ones who reigned during the 20th century.
Leo XIII, who died in 1903 after a 25-year pontificate, was known to us as the author of the landmark social encyclical, Rerum Novarum, in 1891. We didn't know much else about him, particularly his ten encyclicals on the Rosary, his efforts to recover the Papal States, or his declaration in 1896 that Anglican orders were "absolutely null and utterly void."
We knew that Pope Pius X was a canonized saint, but what we didn't know was that he had waged an often cruel campaign against Catholic theologians, biblical scholars, and church historians, lumping them all under the umbrella of Modernism -- a campaign from which the Catholic Church did not begin to recover until the pontificate of John XXIII and the Second Vatican Council a half-century later.
We also knew nothing of the pope's refusal in 1910 to grant an audience to ex-President Theodore Roosevelt because Mr. Roosevelt was scheduled to speak at the Methodist church in Rome, or his disapproval of trade unions that were not exclusively Catholic.
We heard little or nothing about one of the 20th century's truly good popes, Benedict XV. Although his pontificate was overshadowed by the First World War, during which he was vilified by both sides, it was Pope Benedict who called a halt to the internecine warfare within the Church that had raged throughout the reign of his predecessor, Pius X.
Needless to say, we were not informed that the Muslim Turks had erected a statue to Benedict XV in Istanbul that hailed him as "the great pope of the world tragedy ... the benefactor of all people, irrespective of nationality or religion."
I recall the papal blessing on my grandmother's dining room wall that my priest-uncle had obtained for her. It had a photo of Pope Pius XI on it, from whom the blessing was derived.
I knew nothing, however, of Pius XI's obsessive fear of Communism, so intense, in fact, that he had signed agreements or concordats with two of the most notorious Fascist leaders of the time, Italy's Benito Mussolini and Germany's Adolf Hitler, and gave his full support to another, Spain's Francisco Franco.
Neither did we know much about his encyclical Mortalium animos in 1928 that forbade any Catholic involvement in ecumenical conferences. But, of course, that policy represented the conventional wisdom of the Catholic Church at the time. Protestants were heretics, and any form of cooperation with them implicitly gave aid and comfort to the enemy.
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On the other hand, those of us in Catholic schools, and especially in seminaries, had known of, and extolled, Pius XI's social encyclical, Quadragesimo anno, issued in 1931, on the fortieth anniversary of Leo XIII's Rerum novarum.
It was in that encyclical that the pope introduced one of Catholic social thought's most important principles, the principle of subsidiarity, which holds that nothing is to be done by a higher agency that can be done as well, if not better, by a lower agency.
In recent years Catholic theologians have applied this principle to the Church itself in order to challenge the growing trend toward recentralization of authority in the Vatican.
The pope of my youth was Pius XII. Catholics assumed that, soon after his death, he would be canonized a saint, so deeply ingrained by then was the intimate connection between the papacy and sanctity.
We knew nothing, of course, of the strong influence that Sister Pascalina played in Pius XII's pontificate, so strong, in fact, that she had cardinals quaking in their watered silk, so strong indeed that she earned the nickname, La Popessa.
And so resented was her influence that, immediately after Pius XII's death, the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Domenico Tardini, expelled Sister Pascalina from the papal apartment and sent her into the piazza to hail a taxi.
We also knew nothing of the controversy that would becloud the memory of Pius XII and remove him, at least for now, from consideration for eventual canonization, namely, his alleged silence during the Holocaust of the Second World War period when six million Jews were sent to their deaths by the Nazis.
At the same time, we sensed that Pius XII prepared the way for Pope John XXIII and Vatican II with his two encyclicals in 1943, Divino afflante Spiritu, on the renewal of Catholic biblical studies, and Mystici Corporis, on the Church as the Mystical Body of Christ, and in 1947, Mediator Dei, which promoted liturgical renewal.
Related columns:
- Popes of the 20th Century: Paul VI, Aug. 23, 2010
- Popes of the 20th Century: John XXIII, Aug. 17, 2010
- Popes of the 20th century: Introduction, Aug. 9, 2010
© 2010 Richard P. McBrien. All rights reserved. Fr. McBrien is the Crowley-O'Brien Professor of Theology at the University of Notre Dame.
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thank you Fr. Mc
thank you Fr. Mc Brien..........
If you really want your hair
If you really want your hair to curl, read Eamon Duffy's "Saints and Sinners: A History of the Popes." If the Holy Spirit guides the election of these guys, She must have been on a lonnnng sabbatical throughout the centuries.
An interesting summary of
An interesting summary of 20th Century Popes in terms of what we knew and didn't know, especially about Sister Pascalina during Pope Pius XII's reign. How come Pope Paul VI and John Paul II were not included or is it too early to reveal what we "didn't know" especially about John Paul II? I recall being so hopeful when JPII was elected and then so absolutely disappointed as I realized we were going back instead of forward. I find John Paul II very much a puzzle and would really like to know more about him, especially his psychological profile. Much has been written about the Popes in terms of their spiritual lives, their encyclicals but very little about their personalities.
You should read George
You should read George Weigel's Witness to Hope, you'll find a lot about JP2's personality in there. JP2 led us backward? Thats a joke right? Other than his influence in the fall of communism, unbelievable impact on Catholic youth (of course I might be biased since i'm in the JP2 generation), his unwavering defense of the unborn, groundbreaking Theology of the Body, visiting just about every square inch of the planet, and you say he led us backwards? John Paul the Great only led us forward in holiness, and in understanding of the dignity of humankind, and in the powerfull graces that flow from the heart of Christ into husband and wife in a marriage modeled after the Holy Trinity itself. John Paul the Great has already gone down as one of the greatest Popes, maybe even greatest Saints in History my friend.
There have been two, possibly
There have been two, possibly three popes who are called "great." J2P2 has earned the title "the terrible" in my book.He worked very hard, and did forgive the man who tried to kill him. But mostly he seemed to work to develope a following for himnself. I don't think he believed in the Holy Sparit, but he had great faith - in himself.
How gratifying to have such a
How gratifying to have such a solid source for so many things about the Church that no one bothered to tell us. Thank you, Father McBrien.
This piece illustrates why
This piece illustrates why periodicals like NCR are so important in keeping the record straight. At least, its readers will be exposed to more than one side of a person or of an issue.
Exactly, I am very grateful
Exactly, I am very grateful to the NCR for the very reason you state.
You're kidding, right?
You're kidding, right? That's sarcasm, right?
Truth is more than an opposing point of view. Fr McBrien only demonstrated his lack of historical scholarship, lack of critical thinking, and inability to put historical events in context.
Very interesting? I wonder if
Very interesting? I wonder if Fr. McBrien might continue with the reign of 4 popes following John XXIII's untimely death during the Second Vatican Council/
I believe that Paul VI initially intended to continue John XXIII's reform
agenda but didn't he run into intense opposition from the Curia, deciding
not to end mandatory celibacy for Roman Catholic priests? And certainly
his pontificate was marred by his encyclical (Humanae Vitae) upholding the
condemation of artificial birth control...which has largely been ignored by
Catholic couples and many Catholic theologians.
John Paul I is hardly remembered except by those who knew him well as a man of great integrity and loving concern for the people. He died, somewhat
mysteriously in his sleep only a short time after his elevation to the papacy.
John Paul II had one of the longest tenures as Pope in the Church's 2000 year history. He was extremely popular, not only with Catholics but with many of all faiths... around the world. But after his death in 2005, The sexual abuse scandal, which hit the headlines in 2002 began to tarnish his legacy when
it became evident that he had seemingly ignored the warnings, first in the
the U.S. and then, little by little in other lands as well.
The history is still being played out on the present pope's involvement with
the cover-up, what he did and did not do as prefect of the office of Religious
Doctrine and also as a German Cardinal. Benedict's theological influence
at Vatican II when he stated that "concience should be supreme" does not seem to be as evident in his thinking as Pope.
Jim Lovejoy
Where, exactly, did Vatican
Where, exactly, did Vatican II say "concience (sic) should be supreme?" Since you have that in quotes, I presume that you're quoting one of the official texts for the Council. Which document, precisely, is that quote from?
Extremely grateful for this
Extremely grateful for this enlightenment!
Beyond words, how important these facts are to me; since I care about my Church (as well as all denominations, and even non-denominations" like Buddhists, of various types).
Exceptionally needed reality-check for 2010 Church discernment issues.
I am not a fan of JP II but I
I am not a fan of JP II but I well remember his insistance on the appologies done at Assisi -- the current Pope Benedict was opposed to these. I think it is interesting that popes seem to be known by particular events in their reign.
What is the difference
What is the difference between this and the tabloids at grocery store check outs? It comes off as petty, uniformed, and childish.
Well, Jeff, that's one
Well, Jeff, that's one opinion. It was brief of necessity. What is making you so sour?
What is uninformed and
What is uninformed and childish is your reply.
I said 'uniformed' please try
I said 'uniformed' please try to keep up.
all that is uniformed is
all that is uniformed is uninformed, like at Nuhremberg, or the Nazi Youth
Jeff, I'm with ya buddy. Of
Jeff, I'm with ya buddy. Of course these guys aren't gonna like popes like JP2, Paul VI, Benedict, they are outstandingly Catholic Popes. They are the epitome of what it is to be Catholic. Are you really expecting more from this bastion of heresy?
Marching bands and athletic
Marching bands and athletic teams as well?
what's so petty about
what's so petty about ignoring the holocaust or putting in motion the much ignored birth control issue? actions such as these have set in motion long-standing and divisive issues and separated Catholics from other faiths.
So your guys rational seems
So your guys rational seems to be, since the Church's teaching on birth control is unpopular, and many Catholics disobey it, it is obviously wrong? Nevermind 2000 years of tradition, or natural law, or the fact that most hormonal birth control is abortifacient, or the fact that it kills young women (heart attacks, strokes, or the fact that its a grade 1 Carcinogen for breast Cancer (Hey thats the World Health Organization's, and Mayo Clinic's study not mine). I'm sure there will be naysayers to all of this, but i've seen all of it in the hospitals. I'm not an expert, but I am a med student who's seen a lot of it on my rotations.
I would hardly call Papal
I would hardly call Papal support of fascism petty, nor the vicious war waged against theologians seeking to find intellectual integrity in modern times. How can you read an article so filled with little known information and call it "uniformed"? There is nothing childish in revealing the truth, to the contrary the author is seeking a mature evaluation of these papacies in the light of adult knowledge and experience.
As for tabloid style, I find nothing here that even hints of it. But if you'd like a tabloid headline how about "Judy Garland's ghost claims Benedict XVI cloned her ruby slippers"?
An apt description of about
An apt description of about 90% of Father McBrien's columns.
upon what valid and reliable
upon what valid and reliable methodology of statistical analysis do you base your precentage here propoed, brojo?
I have read this welcome and illuminating series of Essays in Theology for at least a quarter century, beginning in the Hartford Transcript, including then as homework for some theology classes, and draw therefrom a null set isomorphic with this description of these columns by the Reverend Father Richard P. McBrien; therefore I am most curious to learn from what data base you draw your percentage with such substantial precision, in order to adjust my apparently longstanding error.
gratefully and fraternally yours always,
charles
The same old tired refrain
The same old tired refrain from Frere Charles, or Palomas, or Charles, or whatever he is calling himself today: "data, evidence". It's the same old tired method of silencing any type of debate and/or discourse that disagrees with his opinions.
Come on, Jeff, take a class
Come on, Jeff, take a class in Church History, be assured, it will only help you understand!
Take a class in Church
Take a class in Church History or stop reading a paper the he has so much contempt for.
rather take and read for this
rather take and read for this is Our Body
read as lectio divina
read with thought and with prayer
read and contemplate these mysteries of our Faith
read and grow in our Faith
essays in theology
theology is Faith seeking understanding
read
and understand
If you only knew...trust me I
If you only knew...trust me I know my Church history. For all I know you do to. And if you do if you were asked to write a column about these Popes is this what you would have written?
Which is why I made the comment, like a tabloid, he takes a snap shot of an event, puts a glossy headline on it, and makes it say whatever he wants it to say. He leaves a lot of the story untold, he is all about making these men look bad to sell his column...which is just like a tabloid.
Jeff Miller on Aug. 12,
Jeff Miller on Aug. 12, 2010.
You stated:
"If you only knew...trust me I know my Church history. For all I know you do to. And if you do if you were asked to write a column about these Popes is this what you would have written?
Which is why I made the comment, like a tabloid, he takes a snap shot of an event, puts a glossy headline on it, and makes it say whatever he wants it to say. He leaves a lot of the story untold, he is all about making these men look bad to sell his column...which is just like a tabloid."
-----------------------------------------
I teach Church History. And if I only had the space that Fr. McBrien had---I'd do the same thing that he did. If I had more space---I would have listed all the good and negative points of each of these popes. And yes, I would have included an analysis of JP II's papacy as well. The title of "Great" that too many people attach to his name, is premature.
Little Bear, Father McBrien
Little Bear, Father McBrien is trying to smear the good name of Pius XII. If you truly teach Church History, you are aware of the work of Sister Margherita Marchione. She has extensively researched and documented all the good work Pius XII did to protect the Jewish people during the Nazi reign of terror. McBrien is once again showing himself to be the nasty, old cantankerous liberal that he is.
Well, I'm sure we can all
Well, I'm sure we can all agree that many Catholics' inclination to papal veneration is out of control. This article has humanized and made humble men whose "infallibility" is extended beyond what is due - if at all. It is much like the tenacity many of us have towards the letter of Canon rather than the broader gospel message.
All the same, neither is it more just to ignore the equally true facts of their good deeds just because of newly recognized stains on their legacies. Lest we forget, that the men and women we admire as saints were also sinners.
Congratulations, Fr McBrien,
Congratulations, Fr McBrien, for the inclusion of your book, "Lives of the Popes" in Newsweek's list of "What You Need to Read." (08/09/10 edition)
the book we must each read as
the book we must each read as Roman Catholics in anglo America, and of which this present column is a slight taste, a sampling, as well as the further works of the Reverend Father Richard P. McBrien, stretching back some forty years of faith.
For those who wish to follow this series up to the present pope, as several comments have here implored, we might suggest the revised edition which includes the current pontiff.
During the anti-Modernist
During the anti-Modernist crisis a young Roman seminary professor named Angelo Roncalli came under suspicion and received a 'friendly warning' from a powerful Curia cardinal. A file on him was opened by the Holy Office, but no canonical action was taken. Half a century later the newly-elected Pope John XXIII sent for the file, read it and wrote: 'I, John XXIII, Pope, declare that I was never a Modernist.
In 1921 Benedict XV disbanded the anti-Modernist spy network known as the Sodalitium Pianum which had been directed by a half-mad priest-journalist named Umberto Benigni.
What nonsense. Saint Pope
What nonsense. Saint Pope Pius X was one of the most far-sighted pontiffs in the last several centuries. He recognized clearly the threat that the Modernist heresy presented to the Church, and he was right. All one has to do is to look at the Church today and see how Modernism (or as it is renamed today, "progressivism") has divided the Church along ideological, theological, political and gender lines. St. Pius X was absolutely correct to brand it a heresy and he was absolutely correct to try to stamp it out.
Pope Pius XI was absolutely correct that Communism was the most dangerous philosophy to the Church. Communism denies the very existence of God, and strips the individual of that which truly makes him human, his soul. Communism denies the eternal nature of the soul (and thus, the eternal nature of the human person) and instead focuses all of its attention on this world only. In so doing, those who live under Communist regimes are denied hope and faith. What could possibly be worse than to deny people the opportunity to fulfill their eternal destiny?
The Venerable Servant of God Pope Pius XII is one of the most unjustly maligned and slandered people in history. He was personally responsible for saving the lives of over 10,000 Jews in and around Rome, and the Chief Rabbi of Rome, following the war, converted to Catholicism, taking the name Eugenio (Pope Pius XII's given name) in testimony to the enormous personal sacrifice that the Pope made and his extraordinary heroism in saving as many innocent people as he could. One wonders how many lives that the slanderers of Pope Pius XII have saved. One wonders how many times they have put their lives directly on the line in the service of innocent people as Pope Pius XII did.
As usual, Father McBrien ignores the full history in an effort to spin out his personal opinions.
My brother, please, forgive
My brother, please, forgive me, but I am very curious as to how and why you left your studies.
And also, well, choosing at random, about this expression:
"In so doing, those who live under Communist regimes are denied hope and faith."
What hope, what faith, do we find in our present unemployment crisis? In our present credit crisis manufactured by our banks?
What mercy, what compassion, what hope, what faith, have we under this free market corporate system, in which health, housing, education and the elimination of peace are all manipulated for creditor's unlimited profits?
just wondering
charles
I regret your studies did not permit you a far more lucid and true reading of the Reverend Father Richard P. McBrien, as did mine, and pray you take him in prayerful meditation as your lectio divina until this light of Faith comes.
Charles- You're kidding,
Charles-
You're kidding, right? You didn't really just compare our current economic challenges to living under Communism, did you?
As miserable as things are, you can still go to your local Catholic church and pray they get better without risking imprisonment and possibly death.
Please get some perspective. And show some respect: referring to someone under Holy Orders as "Brojo" is just bad form.
Sorry, but belief in "Father"
Sorry, but belief in "Father" McBrien is not faith, it is heresy. You pick out a random phrase and instead of answering it, present your own as if to say "Is this better?" That is not an argument style, it is deceptive and dishonest. If you have a complaint about anything he said, then why do you not contest what he says. If you really wanted to answer "Communism is great!" Then do so and revel ourself to be the liberation theologian that you are.
Janus
Details of the lives of movie
Details of the lives of movie stars and basketball players and golf stars, even Prince Charles' marital troubles or the affairs of President Clinton are not the least interesting to me, though sometimes I open those tabloids while I'm waiting in line at the check out counter. They haven't the slightest importance for my life. But I am really annoyed that we don't get serious courses in Church history. The factors that influence history are deeply important to an understanding of what the history really is. Popes are not real people until you know other sides of who they are and why they made the decisions they did. Those decisions significantly affect my life. I personally really want to know the facts of their lives and terms of office. It makes a big difference in how I see the decisions they make for my life.
The papacy has been entwined in my whole life, from when I was born a month after the election of Pope Pius XII, until I watched the death of John Paul II and the election of Benedict just as my mother died.
If you don't get news and background information about such things, the life of the church isn't really real for you. It's like some kind of fairy tale and as such it might have little effect on your life. Or you will give dumb obedience to it in a meaningless way. It might be easier for the hierarchy, of course, if we didn't have any of this information. Informed, we can see the implications of the difference between what the hierarchy tells us and what is really going on. Once the hierarchy gets the idea that we really see what they're doing, it isn't so easy for them to demand that we accept their statements at face value, asking no questions so they don't have to tell us any lies. For a long time we didn't know what we didn't know, but now we can hold the Church to the principles it professes. The hierarchy don't all realize it yet, but this situation is much better for the Church. An informed, involved, active bunch of Christians can do a lot more than a flock of dumb sheep toward building the Kingdom of God.
No surprise that Dick would
No surprise that Dick would not mention that Pope Pius XI also wrote Casti Connubii, a beautiful encyclical on Holy Matrimony, as a form of a response to the 1930 Lambeth Conference which permitted artificial contraception.
I agree with Jeff Miller - this is a rather petty editorial written by a man who is depressed that his particular view of how the Catholic Church ought to be will not ever come to be.
why then do you and paulte
why then do you and paulte and jeff read it so advidly, if at all?
I find it this past quarter century always informative of our Faith, but then I learned in seminary to read precisely this column.
just wondering
charles
I can't speak for paulte and
I can't speak for paulte and jeff, but I read NCR because my therapist suggested I should read material that is crazier than myself, so that I stay well-adjusted.
It's working.
lgd, dude, it ain't
lgd, dude, it ain't working
try approaching this reading as lectio divina
then it will work
humility, silence, repeated readings, contemplation, meditation of each line and in totum
then it might work
with time
as it is
dude, it ain't working
I am working on forty years of it and might finally begin to catch on
please read especially the excellent article by Tom Fox on Professor Copeland
exquisite
you might hang on to that until it works for you too
Charles please tell me you
Charles please tell me you don't read these columns for your Lectio. I write this out of true concern. I know you will always love Fr. McBrien, I can tolerate that, but Lectio should be done with Spiritual reading. I wouldn't read First Things for Lectio. Please tell me you were just fooling around with that one.
You'd probably love what I'm reading now, it is a collection of talks given by Rene Voillaume to the Little Brothers of Jesus about Charles de Foucauld. Now that is some good Lectio!
I was reading Frere Charles
I was reading Frere Charles in the original in 1974 in Solesmes, and would love to find that collection of his carnets once more.
especially the prayer in the garden of the nun's convent in Bethlehem
fortunately by the greatest merciful grace of God my theology professor in 1976, the Reverend Father Jim Leary, himself a brilliant biblical scholar, assigned as weekly Essays in Theology for homework, and taught us to read them, which I still do, as my lectio divina.
get your head out of the clouded romanticized desert and into our Theology.
take these Essays as your lectio divina, and all that falls here from the keyboard of the REverend Father John Dear SJ
Um, "dude", I think I'll
Um, "dude", I think I'll stick with "Imitation of Christ" by a Kempis; Holy Scripture; "Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius" and other legitimate theological works. Articles in the NCR and the tripe written by McBrien will only weaken the will and darken the intellect.
LEECTO DIVINA!!!Are you
LEECTO DIVINA!!!Are you Father McBride????
Lector Divina?? I am not
Lector Divina??
I am not familiar with that reader, nor with the Reverend Father McBride whom you mention, but would be delighted and grateful to meet them both
Nice
Nice
lgd0708 on Aug. 11,
lgd0708 on Aug. 11, 2010.
You stated:
"I can't speak for paulte and jeff, but I read NCR because my therapist suggested I should read material that is crazier than myself, so that I stay well-adjusted.
It's working."
---------------------------------------------
Please just don't re-read your own comments, because they will send you over the edge.
I heard that Leo XIII was the
I heard that Leo XIII was the Pope who finally declared that slavery was completely wrong. I think that should have been included in his resume by Fr Mc Brien.
As for Pius X & modernisn, he was completely right on that issue. All of the confusion & chaos which have entered the Church following the flawed council termed Vatican II have their roots in that heresy.
All of the Popes following Pius XII have been flawed to a greater or lesser extent. And where did Sr Pascalina end up after she hailed the taxi, I wonder?
"All of the Popes following
"All of the Popes following Pius XII have been flawed to a greater or lesser extent."
- i would quibble with this part.
every pope we have had has been flawed to a greater or lesser extent, including the first one. Yes, even the saints. Don't believe me? Well, let's wait until we get to heaven and we can ask them. I'm sure they will all be quick to tell us of their shortcomings. :-)
paulte on Aug. 10, 2010.
paulte on Aug. 10, 2010.
You stated:
"I heard that Leo XIII was the Pope who finally declared that slavery was completely wrong. I think that should have been included in his resume by Fr Mc Brien.
As for Pius X & modernisn, he was completely right on that issue. All of the confusion & chaos which have entered the Church following the flawed council termed Vatican II have their roots in that heresy.
All of the Popes following Pius XII have been flawed to a greater or lesser extent. And where did Sr Pascalina end up after she hailed the taxi, I wonder?"
--------------------------------------
Instead of relying on what you "hear" paule, why don't you take a good solid course on Church History---study not only the text book, but also read the references quoted in the text book. Then maybe you and Brother Joseph will actually understand what is being discussed here.
Do you know from your studies
Do you know from your studies where Sr Pascalina ended up after she hailed that taxi in Vatican Square? No one seems to have an answer to that!
Sister Pascalina returned to
Sister Pascalina returned to the retreat house run by her order. She wanted to go to her home town and visit her surviving siblings but was not allowed to do so. Later, with some help from Cardinal Spellman and with the approval of Pope Paul VI, she opened a community for women who found themselves on their own in old age after the death of the men they had devoted their lives to. That was her own position as she had begun working for Eugenio Pacelli as his housekeeper in 1917 and continued to do so until his death in 1958, when she was thrown out of the Vatican the day of his funeral.
Sr. Pascalina first met Eugenio Pacelli when he was sent to the retreat house her order ran due to his health problems. He was a picky eater so she worked at cooking things he liked and coaxing him to eat. Later, when he became nuncio in Munich, he requested her as his housekeeper. She continued to be his housekeeper in Berlin and when he was called to Rome as Secretary of State, and then when he was Pope. They became friends over the years.
The men in the Vatican, particularly the cardinals, resented Sr. Pascalina because she took charge of who could see the pope, when, and for how long. Before she started controlling access to Pius, cardinals just walked into his office any time they chose. He was never healthy and Pascalina was determined to do everything she could to build up his health and keep others from disturbing him when he was trying to work.
It was Cardinal Tisserant who forced Sr. Pascalina out and he told her she had to leave before sundown on the day of Pius's funeral. He also made her take all the pet birds that had belonged to Pius. No one went to see her off or help her with her two suitcases and two cages of birds.
One wonders if Sr. Pascalina
One wonders if Sr. Pascalina had been campaigning for women priests whether Fr. McBrien would be showing such unsubtle Schadenfreude at her dismissal from the papal household or if he would be writing a paean to her "vision" and lambasting Tardini for his "high-handed clerical discrimination."
your hypothetical is so
your hypothetical is so outlandish and fictitious that you could imagine just about anything you want
supposing for instance if Marcial was not an unbalanced predatory pervert, how Pope Pius XII too might have treated him differently. Claiming to be an ardent anti-communist probably protected him.
there is a very interesting and revelatory timeline at
http://www.andersonadvocates.com/ViewFile.aspx?ID=482
Notice in the timeline on
Notice in the timeline on Maciel that he was removed from power during the reign of Pius XII & was not restored until after his death. Who restored him to power & why?
The timeline leaves out a little known fact which I uncovered. In 1947 Maciel had his priestly faculties suspended by a Mexican bishop based upon suspicion of child sexual abuse. This bishop never restored his faculties.
Maciel was also thrown out of
Maciel was also thrown out of two seminaries and finally studied with his bishop uncle who then ordained him.
As to your question, he was reinstated by the decree of a Cardinal during the absence of a Pope between Pius XII's death and John XXIII's installation.
It was a mighty clever move by one of Maciel's monetary beneficiaries.
What interesting respomses to
What interesting respomses to McBrian's article.It is wonderful to read comments pro and con. There is hope for the church when such attitudes are possible. For the good of the churche's health keep up the good work McBrian. A blessing upon your useful pen.
An enjoyable 20/20 vision,
An enjoyable 20/20 vision, tongue in cheek, retrospective newspaper article but certainly not the sort of historical writing one would hope to find in a serious Richard McBrien book - and I do write as a McBrien fan.
To precisely which of the several hundred million Catholics does the 'We' who 'heard little or nothing...' to which the article refers? That it does matter can be illustrated.
Apropos McBrien's reference to the Istanbul statue of Pope Benedict XV about which no-one of Richard's ken was aware, I was reminded that it does make a difference precisely who knows about what after reading p348 in The Duff Cooper Diaries (weidenfeld & nicholson)
January 15, 1945 (Paris, France). 'I went at noon to pay my visit of ceremony on the Papal Nuncio - a jolly old, fat Italian priest with an atrocious accent. He had been in Turkey for a long time and looked rather like a Turk.'
The 'priest' described is none other than Giuseppi Roncalli, the future Pope John XXIII who doubtless knew about the statue even if McBrien and I didn't.
the serious book upon this
the serious book upon this topic, of which this present column serves merely as sampler, may be found under the title
Lives of the Popes - reissue: The Pontiffs from St. Peter to Benedict XVI
with ISBN # 978-0060878078
perhaps the most "serious (whatever that might mean to your discerning tastes)" and comprehensive book on this topic
also available for those on the go might be this venerable professor's Pocket Guide to the Popes with ISBN# 978-0061137730
you claim you "do write as a McBrien fan" yet with fans like these, who need comment?
Mortalium animos is a
Mortalium animos is a well-reasoned and well-supported explanation of the dangers of "ecumenical dialogue." I certainly believe that Fr. McBrien, et al., did not "know much" about this encyclical. Neither did I, until today. That's too bad. All of us reading it and taking it to heart-years ago-might have prevented a lot of the religious indifferentism that the Pope warned us about.
I was not "imploring" to know
I was not "imploring" to know about the Popes of the last 60 years, I'm just interested in knowing more about them. I just find it interesting to know more about the Popes of the past 100 years, especially those who impacted my life as a Catholic in my lifetime. I'm not interesting in making judgements and arguing about whether they were saints or sinners. I'm very much in agreement with the response from Dorothy Pedke. I too want to know who these Popes were in a much broader context. I'm interested in the person "warts and all" after all we are all human and flawed.....isn't that what human means?
then do read Lives of the
then do read
Lives of the Popes - reissue: The Pontiffs from St. Peter to Benedict XVI
with ISBN # 978-0060878078
and find each of these requirements fulfilled
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pascalina_Lehnert
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=10873372
Fr. McBrien, thank you for
Fr. McBrien, thank you for this and all your columns. Still, I find something missing from your discussion of Pope Pius XI: Mit Brennender Sorge. This 1937 encyclical condemned racism and Nazism. Pius XI knew he had been had by Hitler with the 1933 concordat with Germany. Before his death, Pius XI tried to make up for his mistake and warn the world about the Third Reich. Mit Brennender Sorge is one of the most prophetic moments of the Twentieth Century papacy.
One would thnk that someone
One would thnk that someone as erudite and educated as Fr McBrien would know that the Church signs 'concordats' with all sorts of regimes. There was a concordat with the Soviet Union. There was one w/ the Polish Communist regime. There is one with the USA. There is one w/ the PRC.
And et cetera. How the heck does he think the Church operates in other countries?
But I image the good Father in fact does know that concordats is nothing out of the ordinary. And in his disingenous way, he is trying to use this to make Pius XI look bad.
Heheheh...Faddah, we are the most educated, the smartes laity ever. Faddah, we don't wait around to hear how Faddah wants us to tink no more. We can do our own research, Faddah...
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