94: Henry Sire—Pope Francis The Dictator?

Support this Podcast here: www.patrickcoffin.media/donate. "Like" us on Facebook HERE Sign up to the waiting list for our upcoming premium site Coffin Nation. You'll be the first to be notified!   ****************************   This episode with “Marcantonio Colonna” (real name Dr. Henry Sire) is a do-over, owing to poor sound quality. The upside is that  got to hit topics I didn’t get to because of time constraints in the previous episode. The pontificate of the former Jorge Mario Bergoglio, SJ, as Pope Francis started off full of promise as one of reform and renewal. Most were happy to learn the new Pope was from Latin America, and many thought the Church could stand some fresh air and energy. But things have take one bad turn after another. Never has a Roman Pontiff been the source of so much confusion, weaponized ambiguity, nor been seemingly motivated by such a political modus operandi. A spate of books have come out in the last year discussing what can no longer be denied: that the current papacy has been tainted by corruption, scandal, and (to take one example) the Holy Father’s refusal to address the stunning allegations by Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò. Space here forbids a full account of the problems Catholics around the world are now awakening to, but this interview with historian Dr. Henry Sire author is the-now worldwide publishing phenomenon, The Dictator Pope: The Inside Story of the Francis Papacy, goes into greater detail, starting with Bergoglio’s handling of predator priests in his native Buenos Aires to to current problems. If you’ve been wincing as you wonder what the next confusing or vexing papal decision or directive is going to be, don’t miss this respectful conversation.   In this episode you will learn: How the political philosophy of Argentine dictator Juan Perón, who ruled the country intermittently in the decades after World War II, strongly influenced young Jorge Bergoglio Why Perónism, as a strategy for implementing an agenda, is neither conservative nor liberal: it is Machiavellian How Pope Francis’s defenders do not answer the evidence, but change the subject or resort to ad hominem attacks The ways in which a climate of fear reigns inside the walls of the Vatican Specific names, places, and facts that must be confronted when assessing the level of dereliction of episcopal duty How to stay hopeful and balanced in the meantime through intensified prayer and renewing the effort at understanding the perennial teachings of the Church   Resources recommended in this episode: The Dictator Pope: The Inside Story of the Francis Papacy by Marcantonio Colonna (aka Henry Sire) Sacrilege: Sexual Abuse In the Catholic Church by Dr. Leon Podles Pope Francis In Context by E. Michael Jones Lost Shepherd: How Pope Francis Is Misleading His Flock by Philip Lawler To Change the Church: Pope Francis and the Future of Catholicism by Ross Douthat   Question of the week What is one practical thing you can do to strengthen your faith in the midst of the current turmoil in the Church?      "Like" us on Facebook HERE Sign up to the waiting list for our upcoming premium site Coffin Nation. You'll be the first to be notified! Tweet to Patrick HERE