Paul VI: The First Modern Pope

Paul VI, born Giovanni Battista Montini, ranks among the most influential figures in the modern history of the Roman Catholic Church. When he was elected pope in 1963, he faced the awesome responsibility of guiding the Church through the conclusion of the historic Second Vatican Council. With the Council behind him, an overarching challenge remained: shepherding the Catholic communion during the turbulent aftermath of Vatican II - the aftershocks of which are being felt throughout the Church to this very day.
Peter Hebblethwaite succinctly characterizes the pontificate of Paul VI: "He managed to complete the Council without dividing the Church. He reformed the Roman Curia without alienating it. He introduced collegiality without ever letting it undermine his papal office. He practised ecumenism without impairing Catholic identity. He had an Ostpolitik that involved neither surrender nor bouncing aggressivity. He was 'open to the world' without ever being its dupe. He pulled off the most difficult trick of all: combining openness with fidelity."
Yet, the life of Paul VI encompassed more than the fifteen years of his papacy. His biographer devotes nearly as many chapters to the time preceding Paul's pontificate as he does to his years as pope. Montini's personal experiences coupled with the tumultuous events of his time gave shape and purpose to the activities and judgments of a pope beset by the challenges of modernity. His anti-Fascist crusade as a young priest; the talents, know-how, and contacts he developed during three decades of service in the Vatican Secretariat of State; the terrorist bombing of his residence while he was archbishop of Milan; the devastation of two World Wars; the stripping away of people's religious freedom at the hands of oppressive regimes - all this helped to define Paul VI.
With such a past, his future had to be a matter of consequence. And it was - amid open, productive ecumenical dialogue; as dissident voices were raised against his teaching on contraception; in a world made smaller by his efforts on behalf of human rights; amid criticism from left and right as he sought to move the Church forward; as he stood before the United Nations urging peace.
With candor and compelling narrative, Hebblethwaite furnishes his readers with a rare understanding of a misunderstood man, a controversial pope.

In this scrupulous, densely detailed biography, veteran Vatican reporter Hebblethwaite ( John XXIII ) convincingly portrays Paul VI, pontiff from 1963 to 1978, as thoughtfully and judiciously engaged with the political, social and religious issues of the day. Though Hebblethwaite explores the background of Giovanni Battista Montini, born in 1897 in Brescia, Italy, the book is mainly an institutional history of the church and Montini's role in it, based on accounts from sources from several countries. As chaplain of a student movement, Montini opposed Fascism; he was a close adviser to Pope Pius XII during WW II and after; as Archbishop of Milan, he rebuilt the diocese and supported the ecclesiological changes of Pope John XXIII's Vatican II. As pope, Paul VI traveled the world, becoming the first pope to visit the U.S. and Africa; he committed the Church to working with the United Nations and was the first pope to take part in an ecumenical service. Paul VI, the author argues, had a more nuanced view of ethics than was suggested by the "Pope Bans Pill" headlines that summarized his 1968 encyclical letter on birth control, Humanae Vitae. Observing that many people, including Pope John Paul II, now criticize Paul VI, the author ably--though at too great length--defends his pontificate. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

A well-researched, sympathetic biography of the self-effacing pontiff who steered the Roman Catholic Church through the tumult of Vatican II. Legend has it that, as Cardinal Giovanni Battista Montini, Paul VI (1897-1978) was upbraided by Pope John XXIII for his ``Hamlet'' tendencies, and, indeed, during his own 15-year pontificate, Paul often suffered by comparison with his ebullient predecessor. But Hebblethwaite (In the Vatican, 1986, etc.), an ex- Jesuit and Vatican correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter, persuasively argues that Paul was ``the most naturally talented man to become pope in this century.'' Intellectual (the son of a liberal Italian journalist), friendly in one-to-one encounters, and unusually knowledgeable about the non-Catholic world, the young Montini became a valued aide of Pius XII in the Vatican's Secretariat of State, where he witnessed firsthand the Church's battles against Fascism and Communism. But after 18 years of selfless service, he unaccountably fell from favor and was kicked upstairs with an appointment as Archbishop of Milan. It was under John XXIII that Paul finally became a cardinal and, Hebblethwaite shows, the architect of the agenda that kept the Second Vatican Council from spiralling out of control. Paul's achievements as pontiff (ecumenical outreach to alienated churches; reform of the conservative Curia; greater expansion of the role of women in the Church; the balancing of collegial discussion with papal authority) are weighed against what the author sees as his mistakes (the bans on birth control and clerical matrimony; inability to disentangle messy Vatican finances, resulting posthumously in the Sindona banking scandal). Using interviews and a wealth of unpublished material, Hebblethwaite depicts Paul as a ``good and holy man,'' tireless missionary, eloquent advocate for the poor, and--despite the carping of later critics (and unlike Pope John Paul II)--a comparative font of tolerance toward dissenting theologians. An insightful account of a pope who rose above his deep self- doubts to become a pivotal figure in religious--and contemporary- -history. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

A veteran Vatican reporter draws the reader through the sweeping events of the 20th century in this major biography of Giovanni Battista Montini, who followed John XXIII as Pope Paul VI (1963-78). The author truly admires his subject, "a good and holy man," while providing a balanced combination of history and skilled contemporary reportage. The Vatican on the international scene is as much the subject as is Montini, who, trained in canon law and diplomacy, quietly initiated and implemented much of the modernization that occurred with the Council of Vatican II. Quoting published and unpublished views of Paul VI, the author presents a picture of a church reformer who placed people over protocols, who was deeply contemplative despite life in the busy Curia, and who pleaded for peace before the UN. Historical objectivity is important to the author, who nevertheless inserts occasional pointed personal asides. Political and cultural giants of our century meet here in more than 700 pages, yet there is no waste of words. The book is informative, intellectually challenging, and highly recommended.
- Anna Donnelly, St. John's Univ. Lib., New York
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.