Customer Reviews

Murder in the Vatican: Pauper Who Would Be Pope

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

The only existing biography of Pope John Paul I and despite its title it is much more about this courageous man's life than it is about his mysterious death. The author does do a methodical investigation - in kind of a Hercule Poroit fashion - that proves that this good man was murdered because of his struggle to secure basic human rights for women, homosexuals and the poor. Most remarkable of all, the author explains how it was possible for the very same College of Cardinals to elect an ultra-liberal in the first election of 1978, and just a month later turn around and elect an ultra-conservative.

Loaded with enchanting stories of the Pope's struggle as an impoverished child; as a young revolutionary priest; as an outspoken bishop; and as a compassionate cardinal; the book is a joy to read and escapes being the dry narative that most biographies tend to be. This book is probably best described as one of the first important books of the twenty-first century. I read the book in reaction to playwright Michael Malak's review: "A Conspiracy Buff's Delight!" but found it to be immensely more than just that.

I am speaking here of the new edition of 416 pages that has been sold on AMAZON since June 2005. The poorly copy-edited and abreviated 272 page edition which prompted some reviewers to downgrade the book to as little as 3 stars is now available only from discount distributors and the used book market. Buyers should take caution to buy only the 416 page edition.

This one has five stars written all over it.

This remarkable book has two parts. The first is the life of Pope John Paul I, the pope who was the immediate predeccesor to the current pope, who died after only serving as pope for 33 days. The second part concerns the strange circumstances surrounding his death.

The author was given access to the pope's many sermons and letter to the Vatican made while he was a priest, a bishop and later a cardinal. The result is that this man, had he had a chance, would have radically transformed the Catholic Church. His overriding wish was to include ALL people into the folds of the church, including all minorities, the disabled, women and gays. He planned to ordain female priests, recognize in some fashion same sex unions, sell off Vatican real estate and art to fund world-wide anti-poverty programs. Based on medieval theology, he wanted to support abortion until the woman is showing, and provide support for unwed mothers. His overall vision was that the church must stop being exlusionist and should be open to new ideas for confronting the ills of the world.

Who knew? We are always given the idea that the catholic church has one dogma, unchanging and constant. This book proves that is not true -- that the church debates these issues all the time.

The second part concludes that the Pope was murdered before he had any chance of inacting his reforms. The author is not the first to make this conclusion -- other authors have concluded as much. But he is the first to actually finger likely suspects. His meticulous re-enactment of the events and floor plans of that fatal night will leave you shocked.

The writing needs to be cleaned up with a good editor, and that is my only reservation. This book is wonderful for any person wondering where the current church has gone wrong, and why, and for anyone dissatisfied with the conservative leanings. It shows that the church is an institution made up of men, not saints, and is prone to politics, just like any other institution.

This is the only biographical work about Pope John Paul I that I am aware of. It tells the story of the pontiff who reigned for a mere 34 days before death took him under mysterious circumstances.

The book is divided into two parts, the first the story of his life, and the second is the investigation into his death. I found the biographical part far more interesting. Albino Luciani was far more than just a poor man devoted to his church who managed to work his way to the top. The man who would be John Paul I was a man on a mission. His self appointed goal was to get to the top and reform the Catholic Church.

Luciani held the rather unique belief that Moses was a bigot and felt that current Christianity relied too heavily on Moses' teachings while ignoring those of Jesus Christ. He was involved in an expedition to Egypt to prove that the Israelites were never there and reveal the Old Testament for what it truly is, a fairy tale. Then Moses' laws commanding the subversion of women, the handicapped, homosexuals, and pretty much anyone who was different could be done away with.

John Paul I would never get the chance. He was found dead on the 34th day of his papacy. This is where the second part of the book picks up.

Already there were contradictions on how, when and by whom the body was found. Gregoire tries to do an investigation into the death but doesn't get to any satisfying level. There is simply not enough information available to make a reasonable determination as to who committed the deed or even how it was done. He does give a thorough list of who could have committed the murder (including the current pontiff) and what motives he might have had, but lacks the evidence to even point a finger at anyone in particular. The second half of the book is more interesting for its look at the internal Vatican processes, specifically the election of a pope.

Gregoire manages to tell his tale in a fairly linear fashion, but the book sorely needed an editor. There are too many spelling and grammatical errors and it interrupts the narrative flow on several occasions. There are several pictures throughout the book, but the reproductions are poor. I would prefer to pay a few extra dollars for a glossy center section with better prints of the photos.

If you have more than a passing interest in the subject I recommend this book. Despite its flaws it is an easy and informative read.

After finishing In God's Name: An Investigation Into the Murder of Pope John Paul I my appetite was whetted for knowing more about Albino Luciani. Mr. Gregoire's book, Murder in the Vatican: Pauper Who Would Be Pope, was one of the few I found on the life of Pope John Paul I. Mr. Gregoire, by his admission, wrote this book in different "genres" and apparently over a period of time. This is not a criticism, just a fact. There is some redundancy and some assumption the reader knows more than he should. There are places it needs editing, but understanding how it was put together, I will excuse the editor. There were times I questioned Mr. Gregoire's biases but continued reading as Albino Luciani's (eventually Pope John Paul I's) life and ambitions were noble and to my interests. At times the book seemed polemically motivated but the facts were there. One can verify the facts by the notes given. The title, to me, is misleading. The thrust of the story is how Pope John Paul I died, and the author allows us to come to our own conclusions (with some direction by the author), but to me the workings of the Vatican and the politics involved along with my interest in the personal John Paul was of most interest. I took notes on all the things I needed explained as I read hoping I could find answers. As I progressed to the end I put the note pad down and read it as if it were a historical novel and put the analytical thinking away. Knowing more of the Pope is now a quest for me and Mr. Gregoire indicates he has another book coming addressing just that. I will be one of the first in line. It was a page-turner for me but devout Catholics will have some problems with this book. But, if the Devout Catholics take a critical look and decide there may be some merit to this book, they are the only ones that can make use of the information in this book. I recommend this book if only for becoming acquainted with a great human being, Albino Luciani.

The Vatican cardinals must have shuddered in their corners when John Paul I told them, "The Church's ban on contraception is the driving force behind the spread of disease, poverty and starvation in third world countries . . . we must take upon our shoulders the responsibility to help control the world's population . . . Mother Church must cease to be the cause of many of the world's problems and rather should begin to be the answer to them." No wonder they killed him. Had he lived to fulfill his full time as Pope perhaps this worthy man would be under consideration for sainthood rather than his successor.

I first became aware of this book via a Catholic publication in which an aging nun gave its author a brief critique, "Yes, he was all that you say he was, and then some. For a short time, Lucifer sat on the papal throne. Fortunately, Gabriele rose up with his angels and tore him down." There are several brief summaries of this Pope's papacy one can search on the Internet like `The Scandal and Heresies of John Paul I' by Michael Dimond O.S.B. Dimond and others do a good job of exposing the tip of the iceberg by focusing on the 33-days of his pontificate in which he talked of planned parenthood and use of contraceptives and - accepting `sex' as human nature - hinted at removing the taint of `sin' from `sex' altogether. Gregoire - coming from the other side of the aisle - gives you the same record of his papacy but instead makes him out to be a `hero'. In addition, he gives you the whole of the iceberg - the 65-years of his life in which he was a persistent force in the press, courts and Parliament demanding equal rights for all. If you are someone who steadfastly believes that sex is sinful and that Moses parted the Red Sea and actually took the Ten Commandment tablets from God on Mount Sinai - that is, you can't accept any other possibilities - then don't buy this book. It will be sheer torture for you. This includes not only those like Dimond who accept what he was and call him a `heretic' but also those who blot out his liberal record in hopes of securing his canonization in a conservative Church. That John Paul threatened the Vaitican teasures is clear in that he could not accept that he as Pope could sleep on feathered pillows surrounded by priceless art while children were starving to death elsewhere in the world. This is quite evident in his last public message. From the text: "Associated Press, September 28, 1978: In a general audience yesterday, John Paul talked of poverty and starvation in the world. As he has on many occasions as a bishop and a cardinal, the new Pope pointed to the hypocrisy of the Vatican treasures, `. . . one day, we who live in opulence, while so many are dying because they have nothing, will have to answer to Jesus as to why we have not carried out His instruction, `Love thy neighbor as thyself.' We, the clergy of the Church together with our congregations, who substitute gold and pomp and ceremony in place of Christ's instruction, who judge our masquerade of singing His praises to be more precious than human life, will have the most to explain.'" Suggest clicking on the `search inside this book' feature.

This book is the compilation of previously published actions of the 33-day Pope. So outlandish and revolutionary - particularly for his time - are many of them, and so ingeniously does the author weave them into the record, one could get the impression from time-to-time that one is immersed in a princely dream. That is, if one ignores the footnotes. Being a doubter, I researched a couple-dozen of these references both on the `net' and in library microfilm and was unable to poke a hole in them. Still, I find it hard to believe that a man's life, so well documented in the world press, could have been so effectively snuffed out by his enemies who survived him and - as the author contends - may have murdered him. Here is the record of a revolutionary-activist whose deeds and words were recorded in the press from the time he was twelve when he published an article in his school paper that reached all of Europe. Then, a non-conformist from the start, he called upon the nations of the world to live up to their copyright laws and place a warning on the Old Testament, "This is a work of fiction. Keep away from children." Had he been successful - to the extent that Mein Kampf was inspired by the Old Testament - the world may have been spared WWII and the Holocaust? Then there was that time, just a month before his election, when he cast his vote for genetic science. When most bishops had condemned Louise Brown - the world's first artificially inseminated child, John Paul, then Archbishop of Venice, wrote her parents, "I congratulate you on the birth of your little girl. I (the Church) have no right to condemn you for what you asked the doctors to carry out. Be assured, there is reserved for both you and your child a high place in heaven." His public image continued to be pragmatic all the way down to his last proclamation the day before he died, "God is more our Mother than She is our Father," -[...]

So, like the DaVinci Code, there are things here that will infuriate the devout; hence look for lo-scores from enraged nuns who really don't want to dig him up - who speak generalities and take words out of context evaluating it for its theological content rather than its literary or historical value. But, unlike the DaVinci Code, the critics of this book must contend with the proof of the pudding which is at the bottom of the pages - footnotes - ironclad sources that define the integrity of this work. Pinch yourself - check them out - it's not a dream.

To the best of my knowledge - and I am widely read in these matters - this is the only existing testimony of this Pope's life. Although there are some biographical briefs in both English and Italian, there is no other record that speaks of where he stood on the issues of his day. For here, is the valiant champion of human dignity for women, bastards, the handicapped, the remarried, homosexuals, and others whose everyday lives are scorned by doctrine. I have one reservation: the title "Murder in the Vatican" should be subordinated or dropped. Also, the front cover is not representative of the contents of the book. This is not a comic book. It is an important book, one of the more important books of our time. Although the author's investigation into the Pope's unwitnessed death is interesting and revealing, he should not allow the mysterious circumstances of this good man's death to overpower the great contributions of his life. The co-title PAUPER WHO WOULD BE POPE fits the bill perfectly.

I bought this book on AMAZON based on Brent Howell's review and found it to be everything he says it is. There are over a hundred quotable quotes in the book. One of my favorites comes when Albino Luciani (later to become John Paul I) addresses a youth group in Venice, "Never be afraid to stand up for what is right whether your adversary be your parent, your peer, your teacher, your politician, your constitution, your preacher or even your God." Archbishop Luciani applauds Lincoln and his followers for having had the great courage to have told God the Father of the Old Testament, "We don't give a dam for what your tenth commandment has to say, slavery is an abomination and we are going to stamp it out once and for all." For those who don't know what the 10th commandment has to say in all pre-twentieth century Bibles, "Thou shalt not covet (desire to take from) thy neighbor his property, including his house, his wife, his slaves, his ox, his ass."

You have the right book, but the wrong edition. This 2005 partial black cover edition and other older editions are out-of-print and you are likely to buy used books represented as new books. They contain only a brief glimpse into the life of this man and only the begininng of the investigation of his murder. The new 2010 edition Murder in the Vatican: The CIA and the Bolshevik Pontiff includes the complete biography of this pope plus the full investigation into his murder


Murder in the Vatican is in its fifth edition.

In that time, I have changed nothing I may have said about this good man's life other than to expand my account to include stories of his childhood and his young life as a seminarian and as a priest.
Yet, the mystery of his death and the deaths of those around him has involved an investigative process that has taken me to Italy and elsewhere in the world many times and spanned many years.
I knew much more five years ago, than I knew five years before that, and I knew much more two years ago, than I knew five years before that, and I know much more today, than I did then. So be sure to get the 2010 edition.
Here is the proof. How John Paul, and those around him, fell victim to twentieth century capitalism as it was jointly embraced by the Vatican and the United States.