Opus Dei: An Objective Look Behind the Myths and Reality of the Most Controversial Force in the Catholic Church [Paperback]

John L. Allen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 19, 2007

The first serious journalistic investigation of the highly secretive, controversial organization Opus Dei provides unique insight about the wild rumors surrounding it and discloses its significant influence in the Vatican and on the politics of the Catholic Church.

Opus Dei (literally “the work of God”) is an international association of Catholics often labeled as conservative who seek personal Christian perfection and strive to implement Christian ideals in their jobs and in society as a whole. Founded in Spain in 1928, it now has 84,000 members (1,600 of whom are priests) in eighty countries. But far from running bingo nights at local parishes, Opus Dei has become a center of controversy and suspicion both within and outside the Church. It has been accused of promoting a right-wing political agenda and of cultlike practices, aggressive recruiting, brainwashing new recruits, and isolating members from their families. Its notoriety escalated with the publication of the runaway bestseller The Da Vinci Code (Opus Dei plays an important and sinister role in the novel) and with the previous pope’s much-debated canonization of its founder (often linked with Francisco Franco’s facist regime) and the discovery that convicted FBI spy Robert Hanson was a member of Opus Dei.

With the expert eye of a longtime trusted observer of the Vatican and the skill of an investigative reporter intent on uncovering closely guarded secrets, John Allen finally separates the myths from the facts in Opus Dei. Granted unlimited access to the prelate who heads the organization and to Opus Dei centers throughout the world, Allen draws on a wealth of interviews with current members, as well as with highly critical ex-members, to create an unprecedented portrait of the activities, practices, and intentions behind its veil of secrecy. Allen reveals the remarkable power that Opus Dei commands in shaping Vatican policy and presents a detailed look at the full extent of its network, which includes people in key positions in politics, banking, academia, and other influential arenas. He even describes the arcane rituals—including self-flagellation—performed to preserve and promote a spiritual tradition strange and unsettling to modern sensibilities.

For years, Opus Dei has been the subject of conspiracy theories and dark, uninformed speculation. Opus Dei sets the record straight.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

For readers of The Da Vinci Code, John Allen's book on Opus Dei may be something of a revelation. One opens it expecting to find at the very least GPS coordinates pinpointing albino monk training camps. Or perhaps full disclosure of untold wealth flowing through offshore bank accounts. Instead one finds exhaustive research, interviews and careful analysis that reveal a group alive with ideas and purpose, but a bit short on sinister plans. Removing the sense of mystery surrounding Opus Dei may not serve future thriller writers well, but the journey is fascinating in its own right. Allen's biography of Opus Dei is also necessarily a brief biography of Saint Josemaría Escrivá, born in Spain in 1902, whose vision of the sanctification of work gave birth to Opus Dei, or "The Work" as its members call it. The idea of finding sanctification through work was not original to Escrivá, but the power of his vision certainly brought it to a fuller realization within the Catholic church. Allen explores this central idea that "one can find God through the practice of law, engineering or medicine, by picking up the garbage or by delivering the mail, if one brings to that work the proper Christian spirit." For Escrivá sanctification flowed in equal measure both in and outside the walls of the church. Much of Allen's own work getting to know Opus Dei is done with numerous, wide-ranging personal interviews, from the halls of the Vatican, to Africa, to U.S. suburbs. Allen is also careful to include voices of ex-members. He recognizes the best way to dispel the aura of mystery surrounding Opus Dei is to shine a bright light on it, and with a remarkable degree of cooperation from Opus Dei itself, that is exactly what he does. His aggressiveness in countering conspiracy theory with information reaches its apex in the only slow-going chapter in the entire book, a survey of Opus Dei's financial holdings and activities where a double-shot of cappuccino is recommended before attacking the endless lists detailing financial information. Ultimately, Allen's work comes across as a balanced, perceptive inquiry into a group that, while perhaps not preferring the center stage limelight, does not suffer greatly when exposed to it.--Ed Dobeas --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly

Allen, an author and journalist covering the Vatican, opens this exhaustive study of Opus Dei by describing the 85,491-member spiritual organization of clergy and lay people as the "Guinness Extra Stout of the Catholic Church"—"a strong brew, definitely an acquired taste, and clearly not for everyone." To undertake his examination of the group, Allen visited Opus Dei outposts around the world, conducting 300 hours of interviews with members and ex-members. He also lived for five days in an Opus Dei residence and had access to high-ranking officials and private correspondence from the organization's archives. Allen thoroughly explains the group's history and motivating ideas and carefully addresses such questions as its treatment of women, secrecy, financial holdings, wielding of church and political influence and recruiting practices, concluding with recommendations for ways to improve Opus Dei's image. Allen's balanced, even reporting sometimes borders on the clinical, as when he lists the numbers of Opus Dei members inside the Vatican or analyzes the group's finances. Harsh critics of the group and those expecting more titillating details may be disappointed, but readers who are curious about this often mysterious organization will find Allen's opus on "the Work of God" most informative. (Oct. 18)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Image (June 19, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385514506
• ISBN-13: 978-0385514507
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #233,161 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

JOHN L. ALLEN, Jr., is the Vatican correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter and a Vatican analyst for CNBN and National Public Radio. He is the author of Conclave, All the Pope's Men, and Opus Dei, and writes the weekly Internet column, 'The Word from Rome.' He lives in New York City and Rome.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

168 of 187 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars But what about the albino monks??, November 3, 2005

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Parochus (Paroecia) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Opus Dei: An Objective Look Behind the Myths and Reality of the Most Controversial Force in the Catholic Church (Hardcover)

The address for Opus Dei's headquarters in New York is given in Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code." Unfortunately, in yet another one the book's inaccuracies, Brown gives the location of the entrance to the women's quarters (which are separate because the members are celibate). The story is that many readers of Brown's book loiter outside this entrance, trying to get a "peek" into the mysterious world of Opus Dei. And what do the women members do? They invite them in for coffee, they answer all of their questions, and they give them literature so that these "gawkers" can learn more about the Prelature of Opus Dei.

John Allen's book is a door opening. He was apparently granted incredible access not only to members (some of whom might have rightly resented an intrusion into their religious practices, an inherently private matter), locations and history. The result speaks for itself. This book is not propaganda, but a look inside an organization that has touched (and continues to touch) many lives. These are "normal" people, friends, who want to cooperate with God and be the best human person they can be.

Although reading names of members will make this book appear "juicy" (kind of like the annual listings in Finland - released yesterday - of people's net worth or finding a list of country club members in your home town), the value of this book is how it represents a sort of Opus Dei "Glasnost" for the common man. Why are Opus Dei members given names like "numerary" or super-numerary"? Isn't that kind of "masonic"?? Short answer: they are common civil and academic terms used in Spain, where the founder of Opus Dei was born and raised. What is the purpose of Opus Dei? Doesn't it involve arcane rites and devious practices?? Short answer: it's purpose is to encourage its members to live holy, happy lives in the "real, everyday world." Isn't it a right-wing conservative group that has a lot of influence within the Catholic Church??! Short answer: at the time that Opus Dei was founded in the 1940's, it was considered hugely *liberal* and anti-clerical because it wanted priests and lay people, as well as men and woman, to work - get this! - together!

For someone who desires to learn more about St. Josemaria Escriva, the Personal Prelature Opus Dei, and the universal "call to holiness," this book is square one. And sure, you'll learn about the physical mortifications and fasting. But journalistically speaking, this is no white wash. In fact, Allen openly admits to his wife's own prejudices against Opus Dei. In a world of slanted viewpoints and personal agendas, Allen is one of those rare people who just wants to "get it right." I think he did.

72 of 87 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Dispelling the Myths, Illuminating the Reality", December 3, 2005

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Steven K. Szmutko (EWING, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Opus Dei: An Objective Look Behind the Myths and Reality of the Most Controversial Force in the Catholic Church (Hardcover)

Unlike other reviews, this is not a debate on the merits and flaws of Opus Dei, that unique, fascinating and often-mysterious Catholic institution. Rather it is a review of the book itself and its literary and journalistic attributes.

The author, veteran "National Catholic Reporter" Vatican correspondent and noted CNN and NPR commentator, has fashioned a well-written and balanced journalistic exploration of the Church's most puzzling organizations. Opus Dei - maligned and venerated for both reality and perception - is given and objective and comprehensive look by a well-organized and polished writer/journalist. With a keen investigative eye, Mr. Allen interviewed numerous Opus Dei members, ex-members, supporters, critics, allies, and opponents to paint a comprehensive, yet nuanced portrait of the group, so prominently (and often erroneously) featured in contemporary fiction.

Mr. Allen's writing is clear: the reporting, thorough; and the style, brisk and engaging. As with his similar books, including CONCLAVE, ALL THE POPE'S MEN, and THE RISE OF BENEDICT XVI, this effort helps the reader develop a thorough understanding of the group, without either a stridently supportive or adversarial agenda. The objectivity is the greatest mark of a journalist and Mr. Allen ably meets the mark.

43 of 54 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Can "Rashomon" ever be reconciled? If so, Allen does., December 19, 2005

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Andrew S. Rogers (Stamford, Connecticut) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Opus Dei: An Objective Look Behind the Myths and Reality of the Most Controversial Force in the Catholic Church (Hardcover)

It's a cliché by now to say that someone has "wrestled" with a difficult question, but to the extent it can ever be applied appropriately, I believe this book merits it. John L. Allen has tacked a large and complex topic -- one that is surrounded in myth and mystery, brings out strong feelings from critics and defenders alike, and involves questions of deep, even eternal, importance. He has done it remarkably well.

I've read, I believe, all of John Allen's books, including both "Cardinal Ratzinger" and "The Rise of Benedict XVI," and one thing that has always stood out for me is his dedicated, even strenuous, objectivity. That's especially evident in this book. Readers expecting Allen to confirm the apparently ridiculous portrayal of Opus Dei in "The Da Vinci Code" (I haven't read that book myself) are sure to be disappointed. But other fair-minded readers should be satisfied with a study that neither whitewashes nor savages "the most controversial force in the Catholic Church."

Perhaps the most difficult part of Allen's task is solving the Rashomon dilemma: reconciling different observers' view of the same event or phenomenon. Part of the solution is Allen's deceptively simple conclusion that Opus Dei isn't right for everyone: behavior or doctrine some would see as controlling or stifling, others interpret as orderly, even helpful. There's also the difficult question of whether one person's individual experience is typical of the organization as a whole. As I said, Allen has wrestled with these questions, and clearly put a lot of thought and effort into how he asks and answers them. It's not for nothing that John Allen is so highly respected as a journalist and writer.

In making his analysis, Allen employs some tools that critics of the organization seem to regard as invalid. Most importantly, he draws a distinction between Opus Dei as an organization and the individuals who make up that organization. If Opus Dei members tend to be politically conservative, does that mean Opus Dei as an organization promotes a rightist political agenda? If the director of a large company belongs to Opus Dei, can that corporation's assets be said to be "controlled" by Opus Dei? Many critics would, and have, answered both questions "Yes." Allen says No, and cites Opus Dei's emphasis from the beginning on members' independence in their secular and professional lives. Allen has interviewed Opus Dei members who are left-wing politicians, outspoken journalists, and directors of big businesses who all attest that at no time has Opus Dei or any of its leadership attempted to sway their voting, writing, or business management.

Similarly, Allen does a good job placing Opus Dei in its historical context, both as a movement within the Catholic Church and as something arising from twentieth-century Spain. To those who charge the founder of Opus Dei was pro-Franco, for example, Allen concludes that he was, at best, not anti-Franco. But he also makes the valuable point that nearly all of Spanish Catholicism in the 1930s was to some degree pro-Franco. After all, the Republicans had by that time already murdered literally thousands of Catholic bishops, priests, and religious (both male and female). It strikes me that it would have been a particularly self-hating Catholic who would have embraced the Republicans at that point in history.

Mentioning Allen's use of history and interviews brings up one complaint I've had with his earlier books and which sadly applies here as well: he still -- still! -- doesn't include a bibliography. That's especially annoying here, in a book which is chock-full of interviews, references to other books and monographs, and a lot of history. Allen will even excerpt other writers' work (Mary Vincent's on page 57, for example) without bothering to give us the name of the book cited. Please, John, I'm begging you here...

Apart from that long-standing complaint, however, I think Allen has to be congratulated for the obvious effort he put into this book, and for how well it turned out. Extremists on both sides of the question may not be satisfied, but readers with an open mind, an open heart, or just an interest in a dramatic movement in the modern church should find a lot to interest them, and a lot to think about, within these pages. I looked forward to reading this book since I first heard Allen was working on it, and it certainly repaid the wait.