Customer Reviews

Vicars of Christ: the Dark Side of the Papacy

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I bought this book some time ago and was prompted to read it gain as a result of a discussion I had had with a friend about some of the moral issues which had been raised during the recent Presidential election in the USA. When I observed that I thought that most of these positions were of reasonably recent origin (i.e. the past 300-400 years or so) , she questioned me about that. I told her that Peter de Rosa, in his book on the Papacy, had discussed in some considerable detail the history of the position of the Roman Catholic Church on moral issues such as abortion, marriage, birth control, divorce, homosexuality, and the family. Since it was, however, some time ago since I had read it , I thought another read of it was required in order for me to be sure of what he had written

I am not a member of the Roman Catholic Church, but do I respect its ability to use its moral and ethical authority for the good of the less fortunate in the world, particularly during the past few decades. How the Church managed to become the extraordinary organisation it is, having survived nearly 2000 years and still growing, is an interesting historical subject in itself, and so this book is just one of several I have read about the Papacy. One such is "Keeper of the Keys" by Nicolas Cheetham which is a somewhat benign history of the Bishops of Rome and the Papacy from the earliest times, but which focuses more on the actions of the Holy Fathers rather than on their position on moral questions.

Whether this is the best book to read about such matters is another question, since its subtitle "The Dark Side of the Papacy" makes it clear that this is going to focus on the sins rather than the achievements of the Roman Catholic Church. But it's a book I have and from my earlier read of it I knew that what Peter de Rosa, (a former Priest, and a former University Professor and College Dean), has written about the historical background of the Church is certainly consistent with that of Cheetham,, and other books I have read. And, so even though he has since left the priesthood, I am prepared to believe that his qualifications and experience are sufficient for one to be confident that he knows his subject well, .

The book is polemical and, unsurprisingly focuses on the misdeeds, mistakes, misjudgements, and inconsistencies of the Church leaders, so it is definitely a bit of gloomy book. One reviewer gave it the one-line label as "A binful of garbage", but I am not sure whether this was a snappy one-liner or whether the reviewer actually explained why he felt the need to dismiss it in that way. Other reviewers were considerably kinder, but it's not clear to me how representative they might be.

Be that as it may, this book is well written, very interesting, and very informative. It is a chilling indictment of the record of the Holy Fathers for the past 1000 years, showing them to be frequently less than Christian in their behaviour, frequently self serving, decidedly inconsistent, and certainly not a terribly good example to the lesser beings of this world. This is certainly not to say that the record of secular monarchs of this period is any better, so perhaps they were simply just men of their times. This book therefore is probably not for the devout Christian, unless they feel a need to know about the past history of the Church and how it got to where it is today.

Part One of the book, entitled "Power", describes why and how the church gained its temporal power, how it first used that power to control the rapacity and sheer greed of the monarchs of the High Mediaeval Period, and how sadly, it started to be corrupted by the temporal power it had gained at the expense of those kings. The incredible cruelty of the Crusades and of the Holy Inquisition on the one hand, and the self indulgent, self serving behaviour of the princes of the Church on the other, is perhaps little different from the standards of the times. Part Two entitled "Truth" describes how the Church reacted to the various challenges to its power particularly after the reality of the Renaissance had begun to sink in, and the methods which the church leaders used in order to hang on to their power. Part Three entitled "Love" discusses the development of the Church's doctrine on the moral questions which I listed above.

Did I get the answers I was seeking? Yes, and this book definitely provides a thorough explanation. It's rather a pity that it has been condemned because of its critical exposure of such a revered institution. Perhaps it would have been better to provide some kind of balance by contrasting the misdeeds with the positive record of the Church over these centuries, and this is the reason I am giving it four rather than five stars. Nevertheless it will remain on my bookshelf, and there is no doubt that I will find the need to consult it again from time to time.

This book had me shaking with laughter and trembling with rage--rage at the misdeeds of the papacy, not the book. It brilliantly recounts the endless crimes, hypocrisies, errors, indecencies, murders, debaucheries, illogicalities, idiocies and fanaticisms of the papacy from the "first pope" to the present. It is written in a highly engaging and breezy journalistic style, with more than a dash of humour and wit. For the most part the author lets the deeds (or rather, misdeeds) of the Bishops of Rome speak for themselves, although his own dim view of his subject is abundantly clear throughout. He is himself a former priest (educated at the Gregorian University in Rome) who unfolds the theologial groundlessness of the office of Pope itself, the ethical depravity of a depressingly high percentage of its occupants, the religious zealotry of many Popes, and the laughable absurdity of so many Roman Catholic doctrines such as Papal Infallibility. The overall effect of this is devastating for the Papacy, which emerges from the pages of this book as one fo the most hypocritical, malevolent and unjustifiable institutions in human history--which is saying a great deal. The book is the perfect antidote to the awe in which the office of Pope is held today, and a very welcome reminder of the dark history of a powerful institution built on a mountain of absurdities and atrocities that we all-too-easily forget. De Rosa has done his readers a great service in putting that history into a single volume without mincing his words of pulling his punches. Read it and weep.

I found this book excellant in reviewing all aspects of the Papacy. It exposes the history including the good, the bad and the evil, and leaves one realizing that no one is infalible - including the Pope. I have always wondered how some of the doctrines were developed from a historic perspective as many really make no sense (like priests having to be celibant). As such, the truth in this book actually lead me to a more spiritual life.

I can't remember when I've laughed so much! This book reads like a Stephen King thriller and ought not to be out of print. I used to think that the Borgias represented a low point in the papacy, but they don't come close to the depravity under Sergius III, John XI, John XII and the ambitious Marozia, the time around 904 to 963 AD. Much fun was also had during the great schism and al through the renaissance. It is truly a tale of scandal, intrigue and crime and makes compulsive reading. Contains a useful Chronology, List of Popes with dates, Councils of the church, a very good bibliography (of documents and books) and index. This book contains enough material for more than one TV mini-series.

Vicars of Christ is a wonderful reading, it brings back to life the crimes of an institution guilty of deeds beyond reproach. Crimes against humanity, some of which faaaaar outshine the Nazi holocaust. I simply cannot see how anyone, but the completely bigoted could condemn this book as a product of a biased mind. For it surely is not such a reading. I am in no way familiar with Mr. Rosa's personal views on various hot secular issues, yet, I think this is of little consequence. If you are a dogmatic catholic, unwilling to look directly at the truth, then surely, this book is not for you. And yes, it's hardly balanced, yet it is the weight needed to balance the scales of the seemingly impeccable face of the Roman Catholic institution. But for those interested in the history of the church, I recommend Vicars of Christ strongly, for it surely is a profound material, which may not present any significant historical secrets to light, but is a wonderful collection of precise research and stern analysis.

Peter De Rosa was brought up Catholic, went through the six year seminary course prior to ordination, and graduated from a Catholic university, the Gregorianum in Rome. He dedicated eight pages of bibliography listing authors, titles, and year published. Not to mention the fact that historians such as Edward Gibbon in "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" substantiates the demeanor, to say the least, of the Papacy.

De Rosa had done a marvelous job in exposing the "Great Lie", revealing its truths with documented sources some of which are Papal documents themselves which can be found on the Vatican website, if you have a hard time taking his word for it. And if your still not sure that what De Rosa says is true, read Revelation by John the Apostle. Surely John's vision will substantiate all that was done that De Rosa has documented, even if you read the Latin Vulgate version. <smile> There's no hiding the truth, Vicars of Christ is De Rosa's testimony of the truth, another witness, another Martin Luther another Wycliffe, another man that had the courage to speak out against the horrid evilness of the extension of the Roman Empire, and its time is short. :)

I have had this book since the early 90's and would definately give it a five star rating. When I started to read it, I couldn't put it down. Although it is a large book (meaning several chapters/pages) it had me spell bound as I couldn't believe all the horrible things that were being revealed regarding the Catholic Church. I would advise every Catholic, and even Non-Catholics to read it if you have every questioned the validity of that Church.

I view it as a Godsend that I stumbled across a copy of "Vicars of Christ" at a Goodwill store. It's a shame it's out of print. I'm going to help spread some of its revelations on my web site http://www.LiberalsLikeChrist.Org/RCscandal where I am already sharing some of the discoveries I made about the horrendous role of Pope Pius XII in the Jewish Holocaust, when I read "Hitler's Pope" by John Cornwell, which I bought from this web site.

Like Father De Rosa, I was born and bred a devout Catholic, became a priest, became disillusioned with the Church after the old guard regained control of the Church, following the Second Vatican Council, and I left the priesthood in disgust in the very same year, 1970.

I know how terribly difficult it is for Roman Catholics to see how crazy their world is, but this quote from Pope Urban VIII to Galileo, after he had just been amazed at what he saw when peering through one of Galileo's great new scientific instruments, a microscope, for the first time is a great illustration. "You may have IRREFUTABLE PROOF of the earth's motion (around the sun). This DOES NOT PROVE the earth actually moves... God is above human reason; and what seems perfectly reasonable to men may prove folly to God." (p.226) The fact is that Urban, like most spokesman for the Catholic Church, can't seem to distinguish between GOD and "men of God". He wasn't really talking about what GOD thinks, but what CHURCHMEN think. And he was saying that so long as the Church had the power to stiffle the scientific community, the folly of churchmen would trump the IRREFUTABLE PROOF of scientists.

Now that books like these have let the light of truth into my life, I can vouch for the truth of Jesus' words,"The Truth shall make you free." To see what following Christ is really all about, go to http://www.LiberalsLikeChrist.Org/Christlike .

Tne "Naked Truth" of "Mr. Infallibility". De Rosa leaves no stone unturned in exposing the papacy for what it really is. Simply put, the author has written a chronical of the papacy from its infancy to the present using recorded history and papal documents in his presentation.

It's no wonder that this book is mysteriously out of print.

Peter De Rosa was brought up Catholic, went through the six year seminary course prior to ordination, and graduated from a Catholic university, the Gregorianum in Rome. He dedicated eight pages of bibliography listing authors, titles, and year published. Not to mention the fact that historians such as Edward Gibbon in "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" substantiates the demeanor, to say the least, of the Papacy.

De Rosa had done a marvelous job in exposing the "Great Lie", revealing its truths with documented sources some of which are Papal documents themselves which can be found on the Vatican website, if you have a hard time taking his word for it. And if your still not sure that what De Rosa says is true, read Revelation by John the Apostle. Surely John's vision will substantiate the character of the Papacy that De Rosa has documented, even if you read the Latin Vulgate version. <smile> There's no hiding the truth, Vicars of Christ is De Rosa's testimony of the truth, another witness, another Martin Luther another Wycliffe, another man that had the courage to speak out against the horrid evilness of the extension of the Roman Empire, and its time is short. :)