Where was the editor?

Such a poorly edited book with whole long sections repeated and repeated. Also not particularly interested in know what the author ate in every restaurant. Expected something more factual and coherent.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Interresting , to a point

This book could and should have been written with only half the pages ... It is 576 pages long, that's 22 hours of reading ! The author spends pages after pages giving details that are not always necessary but that are repetitive. Also you get lost in the endless list of names. You lose interest in his argument because it so long , it's a bit like when you are in a maze and you realise you've been there for too long and you get tired of it. The prologue however really impressed me : it is both illuminating and beautifully written. Some portraits he draws of some cardinals are also very striking, sometimes downright hilarious. But definetly not a book I will ever read again.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

"Houston, we have a problem."

As a socially conservative Democrat and a Roman Catholic I could have taken offense at the author's numerous accusations that anyone being anti-gay was automatically gay. Case in point being the numerous members of the Curia, from priest to Pope accused of being gay or assumed to be, Due to their "fake" social conservatism such as the Traditionalist Burke "the Cardinal queen." It is amazing how many members of the Curia were in fact, interviewed by this author. And even more amazing just how many of the Curia is thought to be gay or gay homophiles. It is as if the entire circle of men around the Popes (Pope Saint John XXIII to the Blessed Pope Paul VI to Pope Saint John Paul II to Pope Francis today) e.g. the entire cadre of responsible men around the Holy See and his Cardinals (and the Cardinals too) and their Bishops and priests (and the Bishops and priests too) have been nothing more than maniacal sex fiends addicted to plush surroundings and expensive accouterment. From the paintings on the office walls to the luxuriant carpets (all strewn about) to the equally luxuriant furniture. The author spent a great deal of time making the point that the Blessed Pope Paul VI was NOT gay. Why? Not until in the last paragraph of the book does the author admit being gay himself. I found this book to be self-serving on his part (in the sense that he thinks that he and everyone are gay). If clerics do not soon begin legal proceedings for libel and slander then one must assume we are reading the truth. The Roman Catholic Church is being led by degenerate homosexuals. I must say that the author is a very high-quality writer. The translator was of high-quality too. The performer was near perfect. The church lingo was perfectly brought to the ear. I must say, though, that the author is astonishingly cynical and sure of himself but well informed of history. How he obtained all the sensitive interviews remains to be seen. And the Curia was cleaned like a trout before frying. Its guts spilled out and all about. (I gave the story a two because it was gratuitous)

3 of 4 people found this review helpful

Fascinating reading

A book that should be read or listened to by everyone with a catholic background.

Gay agenda seeking in the end, but well researched

It is apparent in this book that Frederic Martel believes the Roman Catholic Church should abide by the postmodern standards of himself and many others. The Church, for example, should adopt a more open position toward queer, radically feminist, or liberation theologies and not be stuck in a past that, for Martel, would be riddled with errors. Martel is under the impression that teachings from the past are always in error because they are from the past and don't pass muster with his postmodern ideals. Martel doesn't realize that homosexual priests, religious, and laymen didn't sign up for a doctrine that accepts homosexual intercourse, but, for Martel, they should be allowed into dialogue with the Church in the end to change the Church's teaching on sexuality. Martel heavily criticizes popes prior to Francis who have asserted their authority in combatting the demoralizing sexual lapses of western culture since the past century. They were doing their job. Martel, as a journalist with postmodernist ideals, doesn't understand that the Church is not a democracy. Popes, bishops, and priests teach the faith as it is. The people, especially in the postmodern age, are given the choice to accept or reject the Gospel.
Like almost all journalists, Martel doesn't acknowledge the difference between the molestation of those too young to sexually respond (pedophilia) and the molestation of those barely old enough to sexually respond (ephebophilia). Martel liberally distributes the word pedophilia throughout his book when many cases in the Church dealt with an ephebophilia of a homosexual nature. This indicates the Church has an active homosexual problem more so than a pedophilia problem.
On the other hand, as popes, bishops, and priests teach the faith, they should live up to their standards, as Martel asserts, on what sexuality should be for Catholics. They haven't lived up to these standards, as Martel demonstrates. If not molesting young people themselves, clergy, especially in the episcopate, are covering up for clergy guilty of crimes. They preach against homosexual intercourse, encouraging homosexuals to live chaste lives, but their hypocrisy is blatant.
This is a discouraging work for faithful Catholics to read although they may not agree with Martel's commentary on the alleged facts. Martel exposes the active homosexuality in the Church and especially in the Vatican. It is a discouraging book as well for heterosexual men who wish to enter the priesthood. Heterosexual candidates for the priesthood may not experience active homosexuality in the seminary or amongst their priestly superiors whether they be in the faculty, administration, or at the home parish. But they will definitely come across a homophilia apparent throughout the clergy and the seminaries, as Martel aptly shows. I can attest to this as a former Roman Catholic seminarian.
I gave the book four out of five stars because I thought it was well-researched and well-written. It lacks one star due to the aggressive gay agenda for advocacy of doctrinal changes. Martel is a journalist with democratically journalistic ideals, but he is not a theologian.

An engaging story of something not so secret!

First, the only drawback of this book is the amount of tangents and digressions. From the narrator to the interviewees, there are a lot of sequence breaks.

It may be a narration which turns to a quote. A quote that's reminiscing to a quote that they're making from someone else. That choppy flow with names (excellently pronounced) in multiple languages make this listen difficult to follow at times.

Aside from that, the book is amazing. It explains so much on how the Vatican came to be so gay. Why the contradictions with condemning homosexual acts but never punishing child molesters. It's complex and sad. And there's just so much. The absurdity to which some of these men exploited their power will have you yelling out loud.

But there are touching, humanizing points as well. The book is a emotional rollercoaster. I strongly recommend this book. Not because I'm gay or because I'm an atheist. But because it's a fascinating story about humans and their inner struggles.

What we've always known is true …. Mystery Babylon

Jesus will judge this 'abomination' harshly! All the nations have drunk the wine of the passion of her immorality. The kings of the earth were immoral with her, and the merchants of the earth have grown wealthy from the extravagance of her luxury.” Then I heard another voice from heaven say: “Come out of her, my people, so that you will not share in her sins or contract any of her plagues. For her sins are piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities.…

3 of 10 people found this review helpful