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The Church In Fiction
The Church, The Vatican, Jesus Christ and elements of Christianity (contemporary and mediaeval) have been a favoured topic of authors. Best-sellers like The Da Vinci Code and The Name of the Rose overshadow some lesser-known cult classics from difference genres like The Sparrow (sci-fi), A Canticle For Leibowitz (sci-fi), The Pillars of the Earth (historical fiction), The Seville Communion (mystery), Anathem (speculative fiction), Angels & Demons (thirller), Conclave (thriller) among so many others - not to mention the works of Mario Puzo (The Family) and The Godfather films, specially the under-appreciated third film.
The Church has also played a supporting role in other works like Shogun, the Arthurian legends, Hilary Mantel's Thomas Cromwell trilogy, among other works of fiction. As a starting point (to exploring this theme, not reading) Mary Doria Russel's The Sparrow spells out why the Catholic Church thrives and then goes on to illustrate it through this unforgettable deep & dark book, and again in the interview with the author in the afterward.
The Da Vinci Code
Angels & Demons
The Family - Mario Puzo
The Name of the Rose
Legends of King Arthur
The Conclave - Robert Harris
The Conclave - Robert Harris
Robert Harris published The Conclave in 2016 - three years after the Pope Francis was elected - speculating about what goes into a Papal election. Like the secret of ingredients that go into making the Coke formula, or the Google search algorithm - the deeper working of The Vatican are known to few, kept closely guarded and can only be speculated about. This is what Robert Harris has set out to do; and in keeping with this aura of secrecy and un-knowledge - the book starts off with a gap in information... the Pope is dead, the protagonist - Cardinal Lomeli (the Dean of the College of Cardinals) reaches the death-bed in anticipation of being one of the first but realises that he is actually one of the last to be informed and to reach the scene.
The setting is contemporary and the action is political and historical. The full organization chart of The Vatican is on display, with all cardinals, support staff, security and so on making their way into the novel. For the curious, some of the other officials in the book are the Master of Papal Liturgical Celebrations, priests of the Apostolic Camera, Secretary of State, Camerlengo of the Holy See (chamberlain / of Angels & Demons fame), the Cardinal Major Penitentiary (confessor-in-chief) and the Dean of the College of Cardinals (the designation of the protagonist in this story).
Though the topic of a Papal election is arcane, Robert Harris writing is straightforward, and the plot is clear and simplistic. It is a very quick read because it is accessible, written like a thriller with doses of controversy and history, but mostly because it is interesting. You get just enough plot (though a thicker plot would be welcomed by seasoned readers) and decent historical insight and precedents into controversies and customs.
The story follows an everyman-type official of The Vatican - Cardinal Lomeli - who the late Pope effectively (and literally) called a manager. As Dean of the College of Cardinals he plays a central role in managing the election - procedures, precedents, exceptions and historical information of what can and has gone wrong. From his POV we come to know of the various factions among the cardinals, the change in demographics among the church and the cardinals (The Vatican hasn't had an Italian Pope in a while) and how inter-personal relationships, nationalities, politics and loyalties play out within the Vatican.
The writing doesn't feel academic, and though the reader feels like he or she has a accurate picture of what happens and how, and who all are involved in a Papal election, an intelligent reader will realise that the story is a simplification of what occurs and the feeling of completion is a testament to the authors skill as a story-teller, rather than a historical scholar putting out all boring details.
To the casual reader the subject of a Papal election might seem like a boring or arcane topic - a small sliver of the action that happens behind the scenes in Dan Brown's Angels & Demons. Or probably not considering that a movie is being made from the book. But it is an excellent, casual introduction into the working of the Vatican.
The subject of a Papal election and the death of a Pope is common in some of the most popular works of fiction (The Godfather 3 - film, and the aforementioned Angels & Demons to name two). What Robert Harris' The Conclave does is pull back a little of the mystery and immerses the reader into the election in a short, well-written book. Did the Pope die of natural causes? What was discussed in his final meetings? How do the Cardinal maneuver themselves into position? How do factions form and change?
The Sparrow - Mary Doria Russel
The Sparrow is paleo-anthropologist / novelist Mary Doria Russel's first novel, published in 1996 and set in the year 2019 and 2060. It is a first-contact science fiction novel that won the Arthur C. Clarke Award. The book has strong Jesuit characters, portrayals of Christianity and the church, some historical context for the casual reader about the Jesuits and a personal connection with the author which is elaborated on in the excellent afterword.
Written in 1996 and set in 2019 The Sparrow follows a group of explorers (centering on a priest) as they 'discover' an alien planet, travel there and interact with two species of aliens in a earth-like world within the Alpha-Centauri system. The timeline of the story alternates between era of the discovery / interstellar travel and a future time when the priest Sandoz (the lone survivor of the expedition) returns to earth and is interrogated by his Jesuit brothers.
The story of The Sparrow is the story of the tragedy that falls on the crew of the Stella Maris (the inter-stellar spacecraft strapped onto an asteroid) in general and Father Emilio Sandoz in particular. There are historical, philosophical and religious discussions that focus on religious and humanitarian aspects of the story; all of which are based on the anthropological exploration about what happens when an eco-system is disturbed.
The title refers to the gospel of Matthew which says that not even a sparrow falls to the ground without God's knowledge - which is strange because in the afterward MDR - who grew up Christian, then veered towards atheism, then moved back towards Christianity when her son was born and finally converted to Judaism - says that Jews know better than people of most other faiths that God does not take an active role in the affairs of men.
The interstellar mission was undertaken in secret and ended in tragedy. Just one member - the linguist Father Emilio Sandoz - survived despite having been physically and psychologically broken down on Rakhat.
The author, as mentioned - gives an early and enduring nod the to proactive Jesuit Order, who for centuries have attempted to spread Christianity far and wide, and at significant personal risk. Refer to James Clavell's Shogun for another illustration of missionary Jesuits in feudal Japan, and Google 'sentinel island john' for a missionary expedition gone wrong. In Shogun the protagonist Blackthorne finds himself shipwrecked in Japan, and as he makes his way to a position of respect among the samurai he finds Jesuit priests already established within the political and religious systems.
It was predictable, in hindsight. Everything about the history of the Society of Jesus bespoke deft and efficient action, exploration and research.
In Rome, the questions were not whether or why but how soon the mission could be attempted and whom to send.
One had to be patient to thrive in Rome, where time is measured not in centuries but in millennia, where patience and the long view have always distinguished political life. The city gave its name to the power of patience—Romanità. Romanità excludes emotion, hurry, doubt. Romanità waits, sees the moment and moves ruthlessly when the time is right. Romanità rests on an absolute conviction of ultimate success and arises from a single principle, Cunctando regitur mundus:Waiting, one conquers all.
The author ends The Sparrow by once again flexing the proactive nature of the Jesuit Order, that wins the day despite their faults, bureaucracy and rigidity.
“There is no form of death or violence that Jesuit missionaries have not met. Jesuits have been hanged, drawn and quartered in London,” he said quietly. “Disemboweled in Ethiopia. Burned alive by the Iroquois. Poisoned in Germany, crucified in Thailand. Starved to death in Argentina, beheaded in Japan, drowned in Madagascar, gunned down in El Salvador.”
