The Pontiff in Winter: Triumph and Conflict in the Reign of John Paul II

by John Cornwell

Over more than a quarter of a century, John Paul II has firmly set his stamp on the billion-member strong Catholic Church for future generations and he has become one of the most influential political figures in the world. His key role in the downfall of communism in Europe, as well as his apologies for the Catholic Church’s treatment of Jews and to victims of the Inquisition, racism, and religious wars, won him worldwide admiration. Yet his papacy has also been marked by what many perceive as misogyny, homophobia, and ecclesiastical tyranny. Some critics suggest that his perpetuation of the Church’s traditional hierarchical paternalism contributed to pedophiliac behavior in the priesthood and encouraged superiors to sweep the crimes under the carpet. The Pontiff in Winter brings John Paul’s complex, contradictory character into sharp focus. In a bold, highly original work, John Cornwell argues that John Paul’s mystical view of history and conviction that his mission has been divinely established are central to understanding his pontificate. Focusing on the period from the eve of the millennium to the present, Cornwell shows how John Paul’s increasing sense of providential rightness profoundly influenced his reactions to turbulence in the secular world and within the Church, including the 9/11 attacks, the pedophilia scandals in the United States, the clash between Islam and Christianity, the ongoing debates over the Church’s policies regarding women, homosexuals, abortion, AIDS, and other social issues, and much more. A close, trusted observer of the Vatican, Cornwell combines eyewitness reporting with information from the best sources in and outside the pope’s inner circle. Always respectful of John Paul’s prodigious spirit and unrelenting battles for human rights and religious freedom, Cornwell raises serious questions about a system that grants lifetime power to an individual vulnerable to the vicissitudes of aging and illness. The result is a moving, elegiac portrait of John Paul in the winter of his life and a thoughtful, incisive assessment of his legacy to the Church.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, History, Religion, Politics, Christianity, Catholic

352 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

John Cornwell is a British journalist, author, and academic. Since 1990 he has directed the Science and Human Dimension Project at Jesus College, Cambridge, where he is also, since 2009, Founder and Director of the Rustat Conferences. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Letters (University of Leicester) in 2011. He was nominated for the PEN/Ackerley Prize for best UK memoir 2007 (Seminary Boy) and shortlisted Specialist Journalist of the Year (science, medicine in Sunday Times Magazine), British Press Awards 2006. He won the Scientific and Medical Network Book of the Year Award for Hitler's Scientists, 2005; and received the Independent Television Authority - Tablet Award for contributions to religious journalism (1994). In 1982 he won the Gold Dagger Award Non-Fiction (1982) for Earth to Earth. He is best known for his investigative journalism; memoir; and his work in public understanding of science. In addition to his books on the relationship between science, ethics and the humanities, he has written widely on the Catholic Church and the modern papacy.

Reviews

[Justin Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm generally sceptical of anyone who is universally adored, and all the more so of anyone who seems to be adored for no particularly good reason other than marketing. And so I am sceptical about JPII, and Cornwell's biography is the right one for me. It's cleanly written, willing to contest the received narrative of JPII as all great things, and it's not excessively long.

Cornwell's critique is fairly straight forward: as pope, John Paul tried to centralize the power of the Church; his response to sex abuse was morally despicable; he was too conservative. Fair enough.

But he often pushes the first point too hard. For whatever reason, rather than just say what is obviously true ("much of the Catholic Church hierarchy is morally bankrupt"), he tries to anchor this immorality in bureaucracy. For Cornwell, the problem is not that a small group of isolated men make horrible decisions, but that there is a small group of isolated men. I wonder what he would have made of an autocratic JPII who made all the decisions Cornwell wish he'd made? To be fair to our author, though, liberals of all stripes fall for this fallacy all the time. After all, you want to believe the best of people. If they consistently do the 'wrong' thing (deny the seriousness of sexual abuse; object to gay marriage; vote Republican), it must be because the system is somehow flawed, and not because people are all too often really, really stupid and unpleasant.

The problem is that Cornwell over-stresses the JPII-was-a-bureaucratic-nightmare-and-also-not-pluralist angle at the expense of the fascinating, disturbing features of the story. JP was the first mass-media pope; people often say he was like Reagan, but a better analogy might be JFK--more myth than substance, morally dubious, but found himself in the right time and place to become a historical figure. Catastrophically for the rest of the world, he, like JFK, was a Cold War man; he couldn't see past the evils of the USSR to the virtues of the welfare state. And his thought (sic) is remarkably silly (Scheler + Kant + Aquinas? really?), and yet, because he was pope, is taken seriously by many people.

Anyway, a critical biography of a man who deserves to be criticized, but one which perhaps criticizes the wrong things. Very easy to read, though.

One final note: In this book, Cornwell takes back much of what he said in 'Hitler's Pope.' Very responsible of him.

[Matīss Mintāls · Rating 5 out of 5]

Būtu interesanti palasīt, kāda situācija ir tagad, pēc 20 gadiem. Es biju mazliet labākās domās par baznīcu, bet tur viss kā pie cilvēkiem. Ņemot vērā viņu sludināto un citiem mācīto (kā jādzīvo), es pat teikšu, ka ir vēl trakāk.

[Todd Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pontiff in Winter is a biography of Pope John Paul II written in 2004 near the end of the pope’s life. The book provides a balanced view of his papacy, which is why it has been fiercely criticized by Catholics who resent the fact that John Paul II could be characterized as anything other than in a positive light.

I am not a Catholic (or even mildly religious), but I remember John Paul II as being highly regarded throughout the world during his lifetime (much as Pope Francis is today). He strongly supported Polish Solidarność against the Soviet Union (an act that made him a hero in Poland but very well may have led to an unsuccessful assassination attempt in 1981), he was an opponent of apartheid, the death penalty and war and spoke critically of damage caused by unfettered capitalism.

He was also staunchly conservative. At a time when public views on certain issues had long since changed he fought progress on many fronts. By way of example:

- He reiterated the idea that women could never become priests, and that priests could never marry.
- He would not sanction divorce or abortion (even in cases of incest or the life of the mother was at stake).
- Though he spoke positively of pluralism he considered all other religions as flawed.
- He strictly forbade contraceptive use (associating them with a “culture of death”) even in AIDS ravaged sub-Saharan Africa and in cases where one spouse was HIV positive.
- He preached moral opposition to homosexuals.
- Yet despite the above, he failed to effectively address the pedophilic priest scandal that arose during his papacy.

Given the above Cornwell concludes rather obviously that his legacy is mixed. But here’s what I see as the lasting legacy of Pope John Paul II … there are 6.5 Catholics leaving the church for every one that joins (i.e is born into the faith). Church revenue is in sharp decline as are the number of priests. The religion is in freefall. When an organization is deemed to be out of touch with people’s lives, they leave. When the same organization is also rocked by a scandal and cover-up involving the sexual abuse of children, they leave in droves.

The church is attempting to respond to these alarming trends by giving Pope Benedict XVI the boot and installing Pope Francis. But while Francis is speaking more moderately and is changing the emphasis of the church away from divisive issues of condoms and homosexuality and towards poverty and global warming, the actual policies of the church have not changed at all. While Francis may slow the tide of those abandoning Catholicism he will not be able to change the inevitable decline of religion in general and Catholicism specifically throughout the globe.

[George · Rating 4 out of 5]

The dates I mention are those during which I re-read the book. This allowed me to understand some points better because English is not my mother language. The book as such is interesting and I have read the edition that is titled:"The Pope in Winter;The Dark Face of John Paul II's Papacy".This title is more direct and reveals that the author strives to strike a balance between the late pope's good and bad qualities but his final verdict is negative. This pope did more harm than good to the Catholic Church Cornwell leads the reader to conclude.

The text is full of anecdotes and details which bring it to life and create a feeling of empathy with the events and personalities described. The hierarchy of the Church is composed by people who are eminently human and flawed miles away from being models of sanctity. The pope himself is a figure full of contradictions and contrasts his problematic nature aggravated by his advanced age and ailing health. The story though is very readable since it mixes history, biography, current affairs, journalism, religion and gossip. The book is an interesting synthesis of all the above and its theme is grandiose as well as controversial. If you want to read a good story about an interesting character in a taxing conjecture I think you should try this biography.

[David Bisset · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read most of John Cornwell's books about the Catholic Church and found all of them fascinating: this book is no exception. The Pope was paradoxical. He had heroic qualities, but he was also profoundly conservative. Moreover, he rejected collegiality and undermined the Church at a national and local level. New thinking was required about the role of women, marital breakdown, contraception, celibacy of priests; it did not happen. Ekumenism ceased to flourish. Yes, he had many virtues, but negativity triumphed.

[Tony Canas]

For what is supposed to be a look at the dark side of JPII's papacy this is actually a very balanced book that acknowledges the great things that the pope did, while also showing his darker side. I found it very informative and interesting. Well worth a read for any Catholic or academic student of Catholicism.

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terrific book. I especially learned alot about what the pope thought about women.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pope John Paul II was a long time dying. Plagued by illness and accidents for over a decade, there seemed to be continuous speculation about his state of health. Yet he outlived many of those tapped to succeed him, and a good number of those who foretold his death. His determination to remain in office to the end generated enormous respect for the man, something reflected in the turnout at his funeral.

Most biographies of John Paul II have characterised him as a man of immovable integrity in a world of shifting principles. His role in liberating Poland from communism and bringing down the Iron Curtain, along with his travels across the world, enhanced his reputation as an man of action, a dynamic figure doing battle with the forces of evil.

But, as John Cornwell’s book illustrates, the pontificate of John Paul II can be interpreted in a very different light. The Pontiff in Winter: Triumph and Conflict in the Reign of John Paul II is not the hatchet job it has been described as by some commentators, but it does offer a critical assessment of John Paul’s 26 years in office.

The book’s early chapters retrace Karol Wojtyla’s road to Rome. It’s clear that his Polish upbringing was a crucial factor in colouring his world view. The premature loss of a brother and then his parents, his early devotion to the Virgin Mary, occupation of Poland by the Nazis, then takeover by the communists – all would make their mark on the man who would be Pope.

Having dealt with Wojtyla’s rise through the ranks of the Church and his surprise elevation to the papacy in 1978, the author goes on to describe how John Paul II set about changing his Church. The Pope’s historic visit to Poland, his support for Solidarity, and his travels to the four quarters of the globe were the most visible signs that here was a very different pontiff from his predecessors.

But it was the attempt on the Pope’s life in 1981 that, Cornwell suggests, took the pontificate into a stratospheric dimension. His brush with death convinced John Paul that he had been saved for a reason, and that reason becomes more apparent as Cornwell deals with the mystery known as the third secret of Fatima.

The apparition of the Virgin Mary to three shepherd children at Fatima in central Portugal in 1917 has been linked to World War II, the rise and fall of communism and the near-death of the Pope himself. What emerges from this part of the story is John Paul’s conviction that he was always on the right track, and that divine intervention on the day he was attacked offers proof positive.

That’s a powerful message to those who might be contemplating dissent, as Cornwell underlines: "He who holds the power to make public revelation out of secrets received in private visions stands in a vastly unequal power relationship with the rest of the Catholic community".

An entire chapter is given over to the Pope’s views on sex, a conscience-wrenching area for many Catholics. Cornwell’s view is that, because of his convoluted language, the Pope’s efforts to persuade his flock to follow him on sex within marriage were always doomed to fail. His volume of teachings, Theology of the Body, says Cornwell, also highlighted that the Pope had no idea what he was talking about. Cornwell notes:

There is no attempt to describe the experience of love in terms of personal histories: emotion, financial and work stress, children, illness and age … Nor is there a single reference in the vast 600-page compendium to the enjoyment of sex, the delights, the disappointments, the suffering and loneliness of bereavement and desertion. He talks of the ‘ecstasy’ of sex as a quasi-spiritual experience in terms that are detached from real life.
The author portrays the pontiff in his later years as a hardliner, driving through his policies without much regard to opposing views. Dissenting theologians are made to explain themselves, then dismissed from their posts; calls for women priests are rejected now and forever, artificial contraception is characterised as being part of a “culture of death”, as are condoms, even when used as a barrier to AIDS.

Of course, if the Pope can’t express his views about morality in the modern world, who can? And for John Paul II, this wasn’t merely an academic matter. He believed he was in the business of saving souls, and only his way would work.

All of this would be easier to accept if it weren’t for the fact that figures even at the highest levels of the Church, were not buying into the view from the Vatican. Cornwell cites the example of Cardinal Godfried Daneels of Belgium, who in 2004 went on record as saying that someone having sex with an HIV-positive partner should wear a condom for their own protection, rather than as a method of birth control.

The book highlights other inconsistencies that have caused many Catholics to leave the Church or to ignore papal teaching. The difference between the stern treatment of Father Bob Nugent, an American priest ministering to homosexuals and that of Fr Marcial Maciel, a close friend of the Pope accused of sexual abuse, is striking. Nugent was investigated by Cardinal Ratzinger’s office and eventually forbidden to taken part in any further pastoral work with the gay community. In contrast, six years on from accusations by seminarians that Father Maciel abused them, the Vatican had failed to issue a response.

While the book provides no evidence that John Paul II was fully aware of the scale of the sexual abuse scandal rocking his Church, Cornwell is scathing in his reaction to what little the Pope did say about it. “John Paul’s first thoughts … were not for the victims but for the image of the Catholic priesthood", he contends, "and the effect of the repercussions of this abuse on ‘fine priests’. And while he was ‘afflicted’ by the sins of his brother priests, he was merely ‘concerned’ for the victims.”

The author also believes a bad situation was made far worse as direct consequence of the Pope’s policy of drawing power away from bishops and back to the centre. The bishops, he says, acted like dis-empowered employees:

They did not act decisively, by laicising erring priest and turning them over to the civil authorities, because they did not believe that they had the authority to do so. Bishops did not fail because they were weak and venal men; they failed because of generations of increasing enfeeblement of their office by Rome.
The big question mark hanging over Pontiff is how in control was John Paul II in his final years? Cornwell describes meetings the Pope had with official visitors where John Paul was barely able to make himself understood. During a meeting with the Archbishop of Canterbury, the pontiff appeared to forget that he’d written an encyclical on Christian unity. The suggestion is that the Church was being run by his officials at the Vatican. This would put a different complexion on things – would the John Paul of 1978 have responded differently to the sexual abuse crisis?

Unsurprisingly, the present Pope, Joseph Ratzinger, is a looming presence in this book. He’s here condemning dissenting theologians, there proclaiming homosexuality as an “intrinsic evil”, and reappearing again to explain the third secret of Fatima.

Perhaps most interesting was Ratzinger’s intervention that drove a coach and horses through the Vatican’s policy on relations with other churches. In 1998, he issued a declaration that other Christian denominations were “not Churches in the proper sense”. This caused enormous offence among Anglicans and Lutherans, who had been striving for years to achieve better relations with Rome. Since becoming Pope Benedict XVI, Ratzinger has insisted that one of his priorities is Christian unity. Only time will tell whether he can heal the wounds which he himself is perceived to have caused.

John Paul II is on the fast track to sainthood, making any criticism by Catholics of his pontificate all the more difficult. Yet the issues that John Cornwell raises in The Pontiff in Winter were not buried with John Paul in his tomb. The sexual abuse crisis has not fully played itself out; AIDS is wiping out families across Africa; seminaries, convents and churches are empty or closing. These problems may not have been of the late Pope’s making, but to suppress an open debate on their causes will make solutions near impossible.

[Kenneth Barber · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book details the papacy of John Paul II. He was elected in 1978,the first non Italian pope in almost 500 years. His early years in Poland were shaped first by the occupation of the Nazis and then the Soviet Union. Thus, he developed a strong dislike for communism and when he became pope felt his mission was to destroy it. When he ascended into the Vatican, he spoke words of Vatican II that decreed more decentralization and more power at the local level. He proceeded to do just the opposite his reign was extremely authoritarian and centralized. He saw himself as the pastor of all the church and didn’t rely on advice from bishops and those who were more reform minded. He was extremely conservative, especially on the issues of sexual teachings, HIV-Aids, homosexuals, divorce and use of contraceptives. He saw hindering an almost mystical way as leader of the Church.
He had a special relationship with President Reagan after both survived assassination attempts in the same year. They both detested communism and are credited by many as hastening of the breakup of the Soviet Union.
He was also pope when the sex abuse scandals begun to break, especially in the United States. He refused to accept that the Church was at fault and protected many of the accused and even promote them. His attitude was much the same when sexual abuse by priests of nuns was brought to his attention.
Towards the end of his papacy, he suffered many physical ailments, especially Parkinson’s disease. As he became more debilitated the Curia refused to acknowledge his worsening condition. Many questioned who was actually running the Church and whose influence was being expounded as being that of the pope.
Interesting book on the workings of the Church and the struggle inside the Curia between conservative and progressive factions.

[Carlos · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had always felt that Pope John Paul II was depicted in an impossible degree of perfection so when I bumped into this book I was curious to see what a knowledgeable critique of his reign would say. I was not disappointed. Cornwell situates John Paul’s papacy in the context of the Popes that preceded him as well as in the events that John Paul lived through growing up. By showing the deft way he dealt with the Soviet government of his native Poland as a priest and then as bishop and Cardinal, Cornwell showed the great ability John Paul had in maneuvering and pushing back on autocratic forces. Cornwell then shows how, once John Paul was elected Pope, he used those same skills to maneuver around those who hoped for a continuation of the spirit of opening up and decentralization that was the Second Vatican Council. By giving verbal support to the council yet working to keep the centralized nature of the papacy, Cornwell shows John Paul in fact went against the spirit of the council and reverted to the domineering posture of the early 20th century Popes. Cornwell then follows how this attitude stifled the growth of the Church and, while giving the appearance of strength, hollowed it out leaving it incapable of action outside of his ever-active head. This then presented problems when John Paul’s health began to deteriorate and the concentrated power was left in a small circle of advisers to the Pope. While I did find some discussions less relevant to John Paul’s papacy as a whole and more tied to the time of the publication of the book (2004), such as the Pope’s disapproval of the Iraq War, or his relationship with George Bush or even his reaction to Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ”, the book as a whole was quite illuminating for what the demands of the papacy have been throughout the recent past and the reforms needed to give life back to the local churches.

[Héctor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating book about a Pope whom, I confess, I don’t hold in a particularly good esteem. The book does a good job of showing JP2’s mysticism and acknowledges his good deeds. However, it also delves into many of his multiple failures, such as his blindness to the multiple cases of sexual abuse of minors (in the US, Mexico, and elsewhere) and of nuns and women religious (mostly in sub-Saharan Africa, according to the book) committed by priests and covered by bishops who acted (and were treated by the Pope) more as regional branch managers of a multinational corporation than as shepherds of a faithful flock; the cult of personality around him; his fear of anything that even echoed of socialism; and above all the radical difference between his actions and words.

In the light of Benedict XVI and Francis’s papacies, this book seems as relevant as ever, an explanation of how the Church found itself where it is and of the many yokes from which it still has to rid itself.

A recommended reading for anyone interested in the Catholic Church at the turn of the century.

[Donna · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is definitely not my kind of book. I was given it as a gift one Christmas (or maybe it was a gag gift) many years ago and I finally decided to give it a go. I did my best but couldn't drag myself to the end of the book. It may be considered a well-written book by some but I could only give it a one star rating.

Now I can give it back to the gift-giver; maybe she will enjoy it more than I did.

[Matthew Eyre · Rating 5 out of 5]

Probably the last chance I'll have for a while to respond to a bit of breaking news by grabbing a relevant book from my shelves for a re-read. Today died Joseph Ratzinger, Pope Benedict XVI> Many were surprised when he resigned in 2013 after only 8 yeras as JP2'a successor but of course he was de facto pope for many years before that. This book depicts just how hardline the Polish Pope was. However, over a decade and a half since his death, I am reminded of Stalin's famous line when a staffer cautioned him about Pope Pius XII: "How many divisions has the Pope?"

[Strong Extraordinary Dreams · Rating 3 out of 5]

A funny book. While listing the aspects of the multidimensional disaster that was Pope John Paul II, the book is really a limited hangout.

Gives moronic free passes to the effect of P2, the Vatican Bank corruption, and even pretends that Pope John Paul I died of natural causes.

A limited hangout.... so the author, John Cornwell, is corrupt. There you go.

[Lesley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was "okay". It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't ground breaking. I thought it was interesting enough to listen to the end since we were driving, but if I had been reading it I likely would have put it down.

[Marge · Rating 4 out of 5]

This quote sums up John Paul II "The Pope speaks but does not engage in dialogue; he hears but does not listen; he studies but does not learn. "

[Susannah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Didn’t care for it. Analytical and subjective in judgment.

[Depaul University Libraries · Rating 3 out of 5]

he subject of this book is one pope, John Paul II. Published in the year before his death in 2005, The Pontiff in Winter examines the contradictions of his papacy and the contradictions of the man. In order to understand these inconsistencies, John Cornwell begins with a look at the early years of Karol Wojtyla as a child, young priest, pastor, poet, professor, bishop, and cardinal. But the true focus of this work is the latter period of John Paul’s long pontificate, the 1990s through 2004, and of course his legacy. Still being reconciled today is the contradiction between his legacy as a man of peace with his role in ending communism, and his legacy as an authoritarian leader of the Catholic Church. (John T. Richardson Library, Call Number: 262.13092 J652Yc)

--Sue S.

(Originally posted in the DePaul University Library "The Full Text" blog: http://bit.ly/16FahIq)

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating book, I learned quite a bit that I did not know about how the current Vatican works. I didn't know much about the late Pope before reading this, and I'm not sure this was the best book to introduce myself to him with. I may have to read one that spends more time on his early years in order to be fair. Since I'm not Catholic and don't know much about the man I can't say if this is a fair book or if it is overly harsh, however I did not come out of reading it thinking he is a terrible person. In fact I was pretty impressed.

[Bettie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oooops - I realise I have read this before and it is not interesting enough to plough through as a re-red.

NEXT!

[Jules Philip Hernando · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are some claims in this book that are captivating. And some parts, just trying too hard to push a thesis about the pope and how he administered his flock.

The book ends with a quotation from John Henry Newman. It is now my prayer for the Church and the present pope. I won't quote it so as not to preempt any reading.

[Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

This Author seems to have a lot of anger with the Catholic church. Even though he is Catholic. He finds nothing but faults with Pope John Paul II and the church and their decisions and positions which do follow the Catholic faith. He also finds fault with the American politicians and their decisions. When I finally finished this book I was angry at the Author.

[Cappy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A balanced look at the substance of John Paul II's papacy useful in an era where so many remember only the style of his international profile. Worth reading at least the introduction and epilogue

[Brian Reagan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Decent book overall, but the authors bias against how Rome conducts business is a little too extreme, and frankly they overhype the challenges with John Paul II's papacy.

[Jenny]

very interesting, and accessible - I had no prior interest of knowldge but got right into this and read all the way through.

[BlackOxford · Rating 4 out of 5]

What happens when you get stuck in a religious dictatorship. It ain't pretty.