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James Felak on Picking Pontiffs and Pope Francis I

tonygill — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 08:00:47 +0000

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Unless you’ve taken up the hermit lifestyle, you probably have heard about the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI and the selection of Jorge Mario Bergoglio as the Catholic Church’s new pontiff. The help us understand what the Catholic papacy is all about, and how the Church transitions from one leader to the next, we call upon James Felak, professor of history at the University of Washington – a frequent and popular guest on our show. Prof. Felak begins the discussion with an overview of what role the pope plays in the Catholic Church, including his responsibilities in writing encyclicals and serving as the Court of Final Instance. We examine the pontiff’s role in relation to a presidency or corporate executive, two of the more pervasive analogies in the popular media, and James explains why those models are not an accurate description of the pope’s duties. This becomes an important insight as we discuss whether or not a new pontiff can take the Church in a radically different direction, as many pundits have been speculating in recent weeks. James likens the Church to an elephant that can plod along with force in a single direction, but has trouble making rapid turns. The vast size and bureaucratic continuity of the Church makes it difficult for any single pontiff to dramatically alter the institution. We also review the relationship between the Holy See and the various bishops and national bishops’ conferences around the world. Attention then turns to the process of papal transition and we examine closely the decision of Benedict XVI to resign, the Conclave of Cardinals, and who finally emerged on the balcony shortly after the white smoke appeared. Prof. Felak brings some interesting insights into the last pope’s resignation based upon Benedict’s scholarship on norms and meta-norms. The health of Benedict XVI becomes a topic for discussion and James provides some interesting observations on the role of suffering in the Church and how this related to John Paul II. Only on Research on Religion can you hear such fascinating and deep insights! We move then to the selection process, looking at both the politics leading up to the Conclave as well as speculating about what went on behind closed doors. Tony asks James whether the short notice provided by Benedict was a strategic move to limit politicking among the Cardinals. After all, he stepped down only three weeks after his announcement during on the the busiest months of the Catholic calendar (e.g., Lent and Palm Sunday), meaning that the Cardinals had to hustle out to Rome, conduct their business, and (hopefully) choose a new pontiff by Easter. Tony also peppers Prof. Felak with additional questions about whether Benedict will be setting a new precedent among popes and how much outside influence from different Catholic factions and secular governments plays a role in the election process. Our discussion also explores who the Cardinals are, how they are selected, and what roles they play in the Church. Our conversation also covers the issues of secrecy surrounding the Conclave, whether there has been any leaks, who gets on the first ballot, how candidates get eliminated during the voting process, and the duration of the event. James notes that Tony tends to be interested in these strategic details, but then Tony reminds him that he is a political economist after all! Finally, James offers up his reflections on the selection of Bergoglio with a fascinating observation that nobody else in the media has pointed out, and one that might be critical for the direction of the Church. To find out what that observation is, you will have to listen. We also talk about how big of a deal it is that Francis I is from Argentina and that he is a Jesuit, as well as his theological and ideological leanings. And what about that name Francis? We talk why that name was chosen, why popes take certain names, and what name James would have taken had he been picked for pope. We finish with Tony asking James why non-Catholics should care about who is chosen as pope, prompting a very interesting response about the role of ecumenism. Recorded: March 18, 2013.

RELATED LINKS

Prof. James Felak’s biography at the University of Washington.

After Hitler, Before Stalin: Catholics, Communists, and Democrats in Slovakia, 1945-1948, by James Felak.

James Martin, S.J.’s writings at America magazine (referenced in interview).

Pope Benedict XVI’s encyclicals at the Vatican archives and books at Amazon.com (referenced in interview).

RELATED PODCASTS

Jeremy Lott on the Media’s Pope-O-Rama.

John M. Sweeney on the Pope Who Quit.

James Felak on Vatican Council II.

James Felak on Pope John Paul II and Communism.

James Felak on Pope Pius XII, The Wartime Pontiff.

Jeremy Lott on the Media’s Pope-O-Rama

tonygill — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 08:00:01 +0000

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How well did the popular media do in covering the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, the Conclave of Cardinals, and the election of Jorge Mario Bergoglio as Pope Francis I? There is nobody better to ask this question of than Jeremy Lott, editor of RealClearReligion (www.realclearreligion.org), a website devoted to aggregating news from around the world on all things religious. Jeremy, a frequent guest on our program and a Catholilc himself, has a broad perspective on the media’s coverage of events within the Vatican over the past month — the good, the bad, and the ugly. We begin with a general assessment of how the media reacted overall. Jeremy mentions that there were some definite bright spots including John Allen of the National Catholic Reporter, but that much of the popular press tended to view the resignation of Benedict XVI and the election of Francis through the lens of American politics. Given that many within the media, especially those general reporters who were assigned this beat in February, come from a class of people who are not very religious, it is not surprising that much of the reporting was awkward and misinformed. We then divide up the past month into three distinct phases: 1) the resignation of Benedict XVI; 2) the Conclave of Cardinals; and 3) the election of Pope Francis I. While much of the media was surprised by the resignation of Benedict, Jeremy shares some fascinating observations about various clues that should have led us to expect such an event, including reference to a bear with a backpack on Benedict’s papal seal and a certain action he took at the tomb of Celestine V. Following this discussion, we explore the media speculation surrounding what would occur during the Conclave and look at some of the dominant questions being asked, including whether the Cardinals would “get with the times” and pick an African pontiff and bring the Church into the 21st century. Throughout the interview, Tony and Jeremy share some of the questions that they were asked by reporters recently and how frustrating those experiences were. We also talk about the intense focus on the Vatican smokestack and the appearance of a seagull signalling something — anything! — all of which demonstrated how little the media had to say about the closed-door proceedings at the Conclave. (Tony shares his frustration that the announcement of Francis’s election pre-empted his meme about the smokestack and Jonathan Livingston Seagull from going viral.) Jeremy contrasts some of the questions he received from the media with more procedural questions he received from his Protestant neighbors in northern Washington. Finally, it is on to the election of Jorge Mario Bergoglio as the new pontiff and how that surprised both the Vegas oddsmakers and pundits. Jeremy explains why we shouldn’t have been surprised and how the media reacted to the personality and character of Bergolio. In the last ten minutes of our interview, Tony asks Jeremy what other news stories have flown under the radar amidst all the frenzy about the new pope. He covers three big news stories that should have received more attention including the dramatic success of The Bible television series on The History Channel, the Baptist missionary doctor who apparently cured a child born with HIV, and (of all things) Latter Day lactivists, a brewing controversy in Salt Lake City. Recorded: March 16, 2013.

RELATED LINKS

RealClearReligion — a great place for all your religious news! (You can also link to RealClearScience and RealClearBooks here too.)

“Is the Pope Good for America?” featuring Jeremy Lott in The Guardian.

“The Man Who Didn’t Want to Be Pope,” by Jeremy Lott at RealClearReligion.

“What If You Get a Bad Pope?” by Jeremy Lott at RealClearReligion.

“Please God Not an American Pope,” by Jeremy Lott at RealClearPolitics.

“Rise of the Latter Day Lactivists,” by Peggy Fletcher Stack in The Salt Lake Tribune.

“Doctor Behind HIV Cure a Former Missionary,” by Tiffany Owens in World Magazine.

William F. Buckley (Christian Encouter Series), by Jeremy A. Lott.

In Defense of Hypocrisy: Picking Sides in the War on Virtue, by Jeremy A. Lott.

The Warm Bucket Brigade: The Story of the American Vice Presidency, by Jeremy A. Lott.

I’ll Never Forget It: Memoirs of a Political Accident from East Baltimore, by Marvin Mandel, Jeremy Lott, and Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr.

RELATED PODCASTS

Jeremy Lott on Real Clear Religion.

Jon M. Sweeney on the Pope Who Quit.

Jeremy Lott on Episcopalians, Ex-Athiests, Health Care, and German Circumcision.

Jeremy Lott on America’s Shifting Religious Election Coalition.

Podcasts on Pope Benedict XVI

tonygill — Sun, 10 Feb 2013 20:08:52 +0000

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RELATED PODCASTS

Jon M. Sweeney on The Pope Who Quit.

Margarita Mooney on Pope Benedict XVI and Cuba.

James Felak on Pope Pius XII, the Wartime Pontiff

tonygill — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 08:00:24 +0000

Imagine that you were just appointed the head of the Catholic Church at the outset of the most devastating war ever known to mankind. Further imagine that this war was raging on the continent in which you were headquartered and that you were living in the capital city of one of the primary belligerents of this war. How would you respond knowing that millions of innocent civilians — both Catholic and Jewish — were being slaughtered outright? We take up the life and times of Pope Pius XII, who ascended to the papacy on the eve of Germany’s invation of Czechoslovakia and Poland, with Prof. James Felak, professor of history at the University of Washington. We start out with a brief examination of how popes choose their names and then dive into the nature of the controversy surrounding Pius XII. Interestingly, Prof. Felak notes that Pius XII was widely lauded for his courageous actions during World War II and that the controversy over his seeming “inaction” only emerged in 1963 following the release of Rolf Hocchuth’s play The Deputy. It was reawakened again in 1999 following another book accusing Pius XII of being “Hitler’s pope.” We roll back history a bit to examine the early life of Eugenio Pacelli and his pathway to the “Throne of St. Peter.” We then spend significant time examining the wartime context in which Pius XII found himself in so as to better understand the diplomatic manuevering of the Vatican at this time. Prof. Felak notes how the pope tended to keep his criticism of war attrocities at a general level so as not to endanger the Church in various nations, nor to threaten some of the activities of grassroots Catholic activists in places such as Germany and Poland. This discussion also entails an examination of how the Church functions institutionally with a realization that clergy, religious orders and lay members have a certain degree of autonomy from the Holy See. Following this discussion, we then look at the other proclamations and activities of Pius XII on issues such as medical ethics and how he laid the foundation for the Second Vatican Council. Prof. Felak finishes with some general observations about the legacy of Pius XII and what we can take away from his tenure to better understand our contemporary times. Recorded: July 3, 2012.

RELATED LINKS

Prof. James Felak’s biography at the University of Washington.

After Hitler, Before Stalin: Catholics, Communists, and Democrats in Slovakia, 1945-1948, by James Felak.

RELATED PODCASTS

James Felak on Pope John Paul II and Communism.

Jon Sweeney on the Pope Who Quit.

Lan Chu on Catholicism in Vietnam.

Catherine Wanner on Religion in Russia.

Margarita Mooney on Pope Benedict XVI & Cuba

tonygill — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 08:00:34 +0000

We celebrate our 100th episode with returning guest Prof. Margarita Mooney discussing Pope Benedict XVI’s historic visit to Cuba. Prof. Mooney is an assistant professor of sociology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Faculty Fellow at the Carolina Population Center. As a Cuban-American, she has maintained a personal link to the island nation, has made several trips to Cuba and maintains contact with a variety of individuals still residing there. Our conversation begins with a general survey of the religious landscape in Cuba since the 1959 communist revolution. Prof. Mooney details how religion, and particularly the Catholic Church, was repressed by the Castro regime. Priests were imprisoned and bishops excluded from the island, serving to weaken the institutional strength of the Catholic Church, but not extinguish its presence entirely. We also discuss how communism served to create what Prof. Mooney terms “anthropological impact,” a concept that basically relates to how social relations between individuals are damaged. As we discuss later, repairing this damage was a centerpiece of Pope Benedict’s message to Cubans. The recent religious history of Cuba also covers the relative thawing between the communist regime and the Church following the collapse of the Soviet Union and the Cuban government’s subsequent loss of subsidies. The need to rely upon religious institutions for help in dealing basic social services was one of the concerns here. We also talk about the importance of Pope John Paul II’s historic visit to the island in 1998. Following this discussion, Margarita summarizes the main points made by Pope Benedict XVI in his “Homily in Havana.” The issue of promoting “authetic liberty” as well as promoting virtue as a basis for creating an “authentic fatherland” were central to the pope’s message to Cubans. Prof. Mooney also notes Pope Benedict’s emphasis on marriage, an aspect of the homily overlooked by the media, and why this was such an important point of emphasis for an ailing culture in Cuba. She also notes that the pope brought up the issues of faith & reason and his concern over the relativism that has been creeping into the intellectual thought of many Western nations. We finish off the interview with Margarita’s thoughts on how the pope’s visit has affected the Cuban Catholic Church and whether it exaccerbated or healed some rifts within the institutional leadership as to how the Church must deal with the regime. It is noted that some priests have preferred a more confrontational approach while the hierarchy has urged more prudence in dealing with a regime that appears to be at an important crossroads with both Fidel and his brother Raúl entering their twighlight years. Prof. Mooney closes with some optimistic thoughts about the future of Cuba and the role that faith will play in that nation. Recorded: April 16, 2012.

RELATED LINKS

Prof. Margarita Mooney’s webpage.

The Black, White and Gray blog on Patheos.com.

Direct links to Prof. Mooney’s blog postings on Cuba at Black, White, and Gray.

Faith Makes Us Live: Surviving and Thriving in the Haitian Diaspora, by Margarita Mooney.

RELATED PODCASTS

Margarita Mooney on Religion & Haitian Immigrants.

Roger Finke on Religious Persecution.

Rodney Stark on the Crusades

tonygill — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 17:55:52 +0000

What motivated the Crusaders to pick up arms and travel to the Holy Land? How did a group of Christian soldiers succeed in winning battle after battle even when they were significantly outnumbered? Rodney Stark, Distinguished Professor of the Social Sciences at Baylor University and co-director of the Institute for Studies of Religion, reviews a number of contemporary myths about the Crusades and offers some new and revived explanations for what happened in the conflict between Christians and Muslims in the 12th and 13th centuries. We discuss the differences in technological innovation between the two civilizations, why the Crusaders did not focus much attention on Spain, and why the topic of the Crusades has become so salient in contemporary times. This podcast is based upon Prof. Stark’s bestselling book, God’s Battalions: The Case for the Crusades (Harper One). Recorded: June 17, 2010.

RELATED LINKS

Rodney Stark’s website.

God’s Battalions: The Case for the Crusades by Rodney Stark.

For the Glory of God: How Monotheism Led to Reformations, Science, Witch-Hunts and the End of Slavery by Rodney Stark.

James Felak on John Paul II and Communism

tonygill — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 05:53:32 +0000

What role did John Paul II play in helping to destabilize communism in Poland and the Eastern Bloc? James Felak, professor of history at the University of Washington, discusses his research on the life of John Paul II and how his experience growing up in Poland during World War II and the Soviet-linked regime conditioned his attitudes towards communism. We cover the advancement of Jozef Wojytyla’s through the ranks of the Polish Church, his influence at Vatican Council II, and whether he could be considered a “restorationist” pope. Prof. Felak provides interesting details on John Paul II’s three major visits to Poland and how the leaders of the Soviet Union viewed this incredibly popular pontiff. At the end of the podcast, Tony Gill presses Prof. Felak on an interesting counterfactual: Would communism have collapsed when it did if Wojytyla never became pope? Recorded: April 21, 2010

RELATED LINKS

Prof. James Felak’s website.

After Hitler, Before Stalin by James Felak.

Private Truths, Public Lies by Timur Kuran.