The Good Pope: The Making of a Saint and the Remaking of the Church--The Story of John XXIII and Vatican II

by Greg Tobin

Overview

“John XXIII was, in the best possible sense, a revolutionary—a Pope of modernization who kept in continuity with the church’s past, yet made even the most enlightened of his 20th century predecessors seem like voices of another age.”
—Time magazine

“The story of Good Pope John is always worth telling….Greg Tobin tells it very well. As we wait for better days, this story will help to keep hope alive.”
—Thomas Groome, Professor of Theology and Religious Education at Boston College, author of Will There Be Faith

Published in the 50th anniversary year of the historic Vatican Council II, The Good Pope by Greg Tobin is the first major biography of Pope John XXIII, a universally beloved religious leader who ushered in an era of hope and openness in the Catholic Church—and whose reforms, had they been accepted, would have enabled the church to avoid many of the major crises it faces today. Available prior to John XXIII’s likely canonization, Tobin’s The Good Pope is timely and important, offering a fascinating look at the legacy of Vatican Council II, an insightful investigation into the history of the Catholic Church, and a celebration of one of its true heroes.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062089410
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	10/01/2013
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	1,137,163
Product dimensions:	5.31(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.65(d)

About the Author

Greg Tobin is publishing director of A.A. World Services. He is the author of multiple titles including Saints and Sinners and Holy Father (a biography of Pope Benedict XVI) and was featured widely in national and international media. He lives in West Orange, New Jersey, with his wife and sons.

Table of Contents

Preface ix

Part I Priest and Protector

1 Pastor et Nauta, Shepherd and Navigator 3

2 Family, Youth, and Seminary (1881-1904) 9

3 Early Priesthood and Rome (1904-15) 25

4 The Great War and After (1915-25) 39

5 Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey (1925-45) 55

6 France and Venice (1945-58) 75

Part II The Soul of a Pope

7 Election and First Days (October-December 1958) 97

8 The First Year (January-December 1959) 109

9 A Unique Pontificate (January-December 1960) 133

10 World in Crisis (January 1961-September 1962) 149

11 Aggiornamento, Si! (October 1962) 167

Part III Father of the Council

12 A New Pentecost? (November-December 1962) 185

13 Peace on Earth (January-April 1963) 201

14 Finis (May-June 1963) 219

15 The Good Pope and His Great Council 233

Acknowledgments 247

Notes 249

Sources 253

Index 257

What People are Saying About This

Mary Higgins Clark

“A beautiful and enlightening book about a humble priest who became one of the most powerful and beloved pontiffs in the history of Catholicism.”

James Martin

“You cannot understand contemporary Catholicism without understanding Pope John XXIII. Greg Tobin’s new marvelous book is a terrific introduction to the pope who changed the church, and to the man whose spiritual wisdom may change your life.”

David Gibson

“This is the best single volume on John XXIII and the events he set in motion 50 years ago, transforming the church and the world.”

Thomas Groome

“The story of Good Pope John is always worth telling but all the more so in the current climate of retreat from his vision of aggiornamento. Greg Tobin tells it very well. As we wait for better days, this story will help to keep hope alive.”

Editorial Reviews

In spite of his farm-bred love of land and custom. John XXIII was, in the best possible sense, a revolutionary—a Pope of modernization who kept in continuity with the church’s past, yet made even the most enlightened of his 20th century predecessors seem like voices of another age.” — Time magazine

“You cannot understand contemporary Catholicism without understanding Pope John XXIII. Greg Tobin’s new marvelous book is a terrific introduction to the pope who changed the church, and to the man whose spiritual wisdom may change your life.” — James Martin, SJ, author of The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything

“The story of Good Pope John is always worth telling but all the more so in the current climate of retreat from his vision of aggiornamento. Greg Tobin tells it very well. As we wait for better days, this story will help to keep hope alive.” — Thomas Groome, Professor of Theology and Religious Education at Boston College and author of Will There Be Faith and What Makes us Catholic

“[Pope John XXIII] impressed the world with the friendliness... which radiated the remarkable goodness of his soul. . . . Everyone remembers the image of Pope John’s smiling face and two outstretched arms embracing the whole world. How many people were won over by his simplicity of heart!” — Pope John Paul II, upon the beatification of Pope John XXIII

“In 1958 John XXIII set in train a series of events which have since moved that huge old galleon, the Roman Catholic Church, back into the mainstream of world history and have profoundly altered the silhouette it presents to mankind.” — Life magazine

“This is the best single volume on John XXIII and the events he set in motion 50 years ago, transforming the church and the world.” — David Gibson, author of The Rule of Benedict

“A beautiful and enlightening book about a humble priest who became one of the most powerful and beloved pontiffs in the history of Catholicism.” — Mary Higgins Clark, author of The Lost Years

“A sincere, adoring look at the life and legacy of the humanist pope who helped modernize the Catholic Church with the convening of Vatican II.” — Kirkus Reviews

“In his newest book, The Good Pope: The Making of a Saint and the Remaking of the Church, Tobin delved into the life of the man who became the catalyst for... changes: Pope John XXIII.” — Publishers Weekly

“Tobin’s well-rounded, comprehensive biography offers an authoritative portrait of an inspiring, courageous man who radiated ‘an aura of humility, humor and sanctity’ even in the face of opposition.” — Shelf Awareness

“Both biography and Vatican II overview, this book offers new generations . . . a fresh look at a world figure who balanced continuity with change and opened dialogs with believers and nonbelievers alike. Recommended.” — Library Journal

“The Good Pope is both a well-written and thoughtful biography of Pope John XXIII, and a helpful study of the events, personalities and issues of the Second Vatican Council.” — CatholicPhilly.com

From the Publisher

[Pope John XXIII] impressed the world with the friendliness... which radiated the remarkable goodness of his soul. . . . Everyone remembers the image of Pope John’s smiling face and two outstretched arms embracing the whole world. How many people were won over by his simplicity of heart!

Pope John Paul II

You cannot understand contemporary Catholicism without understanding Pope John XXIII. Greg Tobin’s new marvelous book is a terrific introduction to the pope who changed the church, and to the man whose spiritual wisdom may change your life.

James Martin

A beautiful and enlightening book about a humble priest who became one of the most powerful and beloved pontiffs in the history of Catholicism.

Mary Higgins Clark

The story of Good Pope John is always worth telling but all the more so in the current climate of retreat from his vision of aggiornamento. Greg Tobin tells it very well. As we wait for better days, this story will help to keep hope alive.

Thomas Groome

The Good Pope is both a well-written and thoughtful biography of Pope John XXIII, and a helpful study of the events, personalities and issues of the Second Vatican Council.

CatholicPhilly.com

This is the best single volume on John XXIII and the events he set in motion 50 years ago, transforming the church and the world.

David Gibson

"In 1958 John XXIII set in train a series of events which have since moved that huge old galleon, the Roman Catholic Church, back into the mainstream of world history and have profoundly altered the silhouette it presents to mankind."

Life Magazine

"In spite of his farm-bred love of land and custom. John XXIII was, in the best possible sense, a revolutionary—a Pope of modernization who kept in continuity with the church’s past, yet made even the most enlightened of his 20th century predecessors seem like voices of another age."

Time Magazine

Tobin’s well-rounded, comprehensive biography offers an authoritative portrait of an inspiring, courageous man who radiated ‘an aura of humility, humor and sanctity’ even in the face of opposition.

Shelf Awareness

In 1958 John XXIII set in train a series of events which have since moved that huge old galleon, the Roman Catholic Church, back into the mainstream of world history and have profoundly altered the silhouette it presents to mankind.

Life magazine

In spite of his farm-bred love of land and custom. John XXIII was, in the best possible sense, a revolutionary—a Pope of modernization who kept in continuity with the church’s past, yet made even the most enlightened of his 20th century predecessors seem like voices of another age.

Time magazine

Anticipating the 50th anniversary in 2013 of the Second Vatican Council (Vatican II) with the likely raising of Pope John XXIII to sainthood, Tobin (vice president for university advancement, Seton Hall Univ.; Selecting the Pope) offers a readable biography of the humble Angelo Roncalli (1881–1963). Elected in 1958 as a harmless "transitional" pope, Roncalli's pivotal ideas of aggiornamento (updating) moved an institutional church from entrenchment to engagement with the modern world through Vatican II. While many biographies of Pope John XXIII have been written, especially in the 1960s, Tobin offers a 50-year contextual perspective on world events leading to Vatican II and beyond. He identifies such factors that shaped Pope John's impact as his peasant background, his humanitarian outlook, and his participation in diplomatic church activities throughout Bulgaria, Greece, Turkey, France, as patriarch of Venice, and, finally, as pontiff. VERDICT Both biography and Vatican II overview, this book offers new generations interested in religion and Roman Catholic Church history a fresh look at a world figure who balanced continuity with change and opened dialogs with believers and nonbelievers alike. Recommended.—Anna M. Donnelly, St. John's Univ. Lib., Jamaica, NY

Library Journal

A sincere, adoring look at the life and legacy of the humanist pope who helped modernize the Catholic Church with the convening of Vatican II. Although he served only briefly, from 1958 to 1963, Pope John XXIII, born a Bergamo peasant farmer's son named Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, pushed back against the ultraconservative wing dominating the papacy since Pius X's turn-of-the-century reign. In this accessible biography, Tobin (Holy Holidays!: The Catholic Origins of Celebration, 2011, etc.) marks the 50th anniversary of the convening of the Second Vatican Council in October 1962 and John's likely canonization in 2013. At times, the author sounds a little awestruck in describing Roncalli's many diplomatic talents. Born in 1881 and ordained a deacon in 1903, he was formed by his early apprenticeship under Bishop Radini-Tedeschi of Bergamo, who employed a circle of liberal clergy advocating "the idea of Christ as an instrument of social change." Under his tutelage, Roncalli became an activist and world traveler, tiptoeing around Pius X's thundering denunciation of modernism; Roncalli was appointed by the more liberal Benedict XV for missionary work, then by Pius XI and Pius XII for diplomatic missions in Bulgaria, Greece, Turkey and postwar France. Revered for his work with refugees and ability to bring factions together, and well-liked by the other cardinals, Roncalli was nevertheless elected as a "transitional figure" to the papacy on October 28, 1958. Immediately, John began planning the first ecumenical council of the Church in 90 years, in the hope of embracing new currents of reform and renewal, especially as played out by the Cold War. The role of priests, evangelizing, use of the vernacular in Mass and changes in the liturgy, among others, were all reconsidered in the spirit of aggiornamento ("bringing up to date"). An upbeat survey of a decent, likable modern leader.

Kirkus Reviews