Rating: 
Summary: Flawed... but still a compelling, important read
Review: Garry Wills' "Papal Sin: Structures of Deceit" is a riveting, important read. The book is about truth and the all-too-frequent lies of the top leadership of the Roman Church. The book is full of scholarly notes, and it is obvious that Wills is a well-read and intelligent man, as well as a compelling writer.The book is well-worth reading. I could not put it down. Wills is creating his own Inferno here. And much of the critique is well-deserved. But research can be twisted to your own ends - especially in a book on truth. This Wills does. He separates pepper from fly poop in reviewing canonization claims under Pope John Paul II. He uses indirect, even tortured evidence that contradicts the plain reading of scripture to make the case for homosexuals in the priesthood. His case for women in the priesthood caricatures the traditional view - essentially setting up a straw man to defeat. Wills also demonstrates an unwavering faith in the flawed techniques of modern textual criticism - always (even knee-jerkingly) choosing the latest dates for authorship of New Testament writings and accepting the most liberal, anti-miraculous explanations of those Biblical events. He can also be irritating. He was overly critical of Popes who stood for a position they believed in. In fact, much of the book is a set-up in that his real target is the current Pope John Paul II. And though he claims to advocate conscience, he can be frequently caught decrying it in the papacy. And most egregious of all, he absolutely opposes the proselytizing of Jews, seeing it as an act of anti-Semitism. Lest you think I overstate this final point, check out his telling of the story of Edith Stein (particularly page 50 in the hardcover), and then ask yourself, "If you had the Truth wouldn't you want to persuade others of it?" This is not anti-Semitism, but love. But for all those shortcomings, the book is still filled with important information. And Wills has such a great writing style that a relative novice to the subject matter could still dive in and follow along; which is perhaps the best reason to recommend this book.
Wills' marshaling of evidence from early church fathers was especially impressive and convincing. Augustine, in particular - the subject of a previous work by the author - is presented in such an interesting way that I want to get to know him better. And it is obvious that the prolific Father Raymond Brown is also a large influence on Willis. But what Wills got right, boy did he get right. I learned a ton from the sections that dealt with the sexual abuse scandals and the ensuing cover-ups. And Wills even changed my mind on a subject I'd been struggling with - a topic I had done some serious research on. So what, in my opinion, did Wills get right? The most shocking part of the book dealt with the sex scandals. There's a serious problem here that the church is refusing to confront. The evidence presented against the celibacy of the priesthood, and the non-existence of the priesthood in the early church, are both right on the mark. Going one step further, the priesthood is shrinking dramatically. Wills not only blames celibacy (wrongly, in my opinion), but the very method by which priests are selected, which he demonstrates is in contradiction to the practice of choosing a pastor as it was done in the early patristic period. The replacements and diminishment of the Holy Spirit, both in a monarchy of the Pope and the elevation of Mary are well-covered. Wills demonstrates bravery in stating the true gender of the Holy Spirit, and depth of understanding in showing how this confusion has aided-and-abetted distorted doctrine. For example, this denial has aided in the elevation of Mary's status to well-beyond disciple, the role demonstrated in scripture. Wills shows that it is the rise of Mary that was used as the foil to make the Pope infallible - an innovation that is only a century-and-a-half old. In making these points Wills introduces the reader to Pope Pius IX. Pius IX is an especially interesting character in the book. His criminal behavior and eccentricities are the stuff of good novels, and thanks to Wills' story-telling style I found myself wanting to learn more about him as well. There are other points that my mind could not yet fully digest. Wills' take on the sacrament serves as an example. Even if you hate everything Wills stands for, you cannot honestly deny his writing ability. In fact, I'd hate to be stuck on the other side of an argument with him. However, I was left wondering, why is Wills a Catholic? He very clearly disagrees with many of the traditional Catholic distinctives. Maybe if you read this book, you'll be able to answer that question.
Rating: 
Summary: Honesty in the Catholic Church
Review: Gary Wills is professor of history at Northwestern University and also a practicing, notably liberal Roman Catholic. "PAPAL SIN" is a popular book which draws selectively on scholarship both solid and speculative, biblical, historical and theological, using up to date sources. It dashes angrily across too many topics: contraception, abortion, a celibate priesthood, the role of Catholics in the Holocaust, freedom of expression and on and on. Professor Wills complains that the Roman Catholic church has become needlessly over centralized and administered top down. This makes the church too prone to the book's subtitle, "structures of deceit." These structures predispose clerical leaders to mislead rather than admit that the church has been seriously wrong at any time on any issue. Wills does, nonetheless, identify individuals who stood out against boneheaded errors by top officials and who were later judged correct by the consensus of the faithful. The list of heroic deeds begins with Paul publicly rebuking Peter in Antioch for backsliding on what Jewish practices pagan converts to Christianity must practice (Galatians 2: 11-14). St Augustine of Hippo took on St Jerome of Jerusalem over this very passage. In 1870 Lord Acton, John Henry Newman and many bishops were appalled by Pope Pius IX's deceptive and dishonest tactics promoting papal infallibility . Garry Wills argues that the entire Church must follow Jesus who is Truth and be led by a Holy Spirit breathing the New Testament Greek grace of parrhesia: etymologically "pan-rhesia" or "speak all," i.e., "holding nothing back." For spiritual sins are vastly worse than bodily: lying more soul-killing than fornication. In moral situations the church should stop teaching with false precision when solutions are not apparent, notably in key areas of sexuality. Wills offers the following principle from Epistle 190 of St Augustine: "When a thing obscure in itself defeats our capacity, and nothing in Scripture comes to our aid, it is not safe for humans to presume they can pronounce on it." Both Augustine and Newman fought for a church in which God speaks to everyone: clergy and laity alike. Our knowledge is always provisional, in unceasing outreach for ultimate truth.
Rating:
Summary: Should The Pope Read This Book?
Review: Disclaimer: I am neither a practicing Catholic nor was I raised as a Catholic.
I noticed this book on the bargain table at a local book store, read the jacket and the table of contents and I was intrigued. The book is divided into four sections: Historical Dishonesties; Doctrinal Dishonesties; The Honesty Issue; and The Splendor Of Truth. I recommend using the "search inside this book" option to review the table of contents and the first chapter.
I found this book a challenge. I read a chapter or two and then did not pick up the book for weeks. At times reading Papal Sin was laborious, yet like physical exercise the mental exercise was beneficial. Of particular interest were the chapters on women (Excluded Women), celibacy of priests (The Pope's Eunuch's and Priestly Caste), priests as sex offenders (Conspiracy of Silence), homosexuality (A Gay Priesthood) and contraception (The Gift of Life).
To a non-Catholic, Papal Sin is educational and fascinating. To a devote Catholic who believes in the infallibility of the Pope, this book is likely blasphemous.
Four plus stars.
Rating:
Summary: Hard to dismiss but also not exactly fair:
Review: The two central questions of this book at crucial to coming to an understanding of the Church: "can one man be the church." Both conservative and reform-minded Catholics have a long tradition to answer that question, particularly after Vatican II. Wills argument then is there the modern Papacy has a "schism" between doctrine and practice.
Understanding Lord Acton and Cardinal Newman's response to Pio Nono is key to the book, and should be key to some of the modern questions reguarding the Papacy. Indeed, those chapters are amongst the best in the book. The book's fallacy is that it assumes that it would lead one to liberal conclusions. Many traditionalists start from a simaliar place as Wills regarding the individual actions of the modern papacy but they often come to very different conclusions. Wills implies that the conservative notion is deceitful and that seems both uncharitable and itself intellectually dishonest.
Well, Wills does give a compelling visions of some of the 20th century Popes, but seems positively baised towards John XXIII and negatively baised towards Pio Nono. The last chapters on St. Augustine of Hippo seemed tacted one and true somewhat questionable conclusions.
Note: This book is good for understanding some of the unforunate political implications of the Church and also that the Vatican does have its political operations. Its conclusions are rhetorical and its history, while true, is very selective. While I would suggest anyone read this book who is interested in the Chruch, it should be balanced by a more conservative or traditionalist book, such as "The Church Confronts Modernity" by Dr. Thomas Woods.
Rating:
Summary: A story that needs to be told
Review: Readers of this book will most likely fall into 3 camps. The first, being defenders of Rome at almost any price, will find fault with Mr. Wills as a bitter Roman Catholic who simply wants to shame the church by airing its dirty laundry. They will dismiss the book. The second camp, are the liberal Catholics (like Mr. Wills himself) who see a pressing need for reform within the church and for honesty about past sins. The third camp are non-catholics who have no vested interest in the church itself. I am in the third camp, and view the Church as a political entity as much as an ecclesiastical one. With political entities, there is intrigue, deception, cover-up, etc. All of this is what Mr. Wills points out. If even half of what he records here is true, it is a damning indictment of an institution that is sick indeed. This would be a painful read for Catholics who love their church, but does that make it less true?
Rating: 
Summary: A "selected" history that is misguided and jumbled.
Review: This book starts off promising, but takes two wrong turns after the halfway point of the book. First, the chapters on homosexuality and abortion read as ultra-lefist Catholic bashing until he seems to turn about face at the end of the chapters. Second, the last part of the book on St. Augustine seems out of place. I can kind of see what Willis was doing here, but it is a bit of a stretch. In sum, this book is "choppy" and frequently strays off the course of its purported thesis. It has its moments, but not enough of them to warrant spending too much time on this book.
Rating:
Summary: Some good points, some nonsense
Review: I am Catholic and I picked this book up because I am truely alarmed with the path the magisterium has taken in the recent past. A lot of what the Catholic Church teaches, it demands its people to follow without question. However, in the modern age it simply isn't good enough to say "Do this because I say so". Especially when some of the teachings, such as issues like celibacy, contraception, papal infallibility, and women in the priesthood that this book brings up, defy not only common sense but also gospel teachings. Contrary to what some Catholics may say, it is normal and healthy to question and criticize institutions, especially one as important as the Catholic Church. Without this, an institution will not continually grow and mature, only stagnate. This book actually strengthened my faith with the Catholic Church because many of the questions and misgivings I had about the church were addressed here with loads of historical evidence. It showed me that I am not the only one that has problems with some of the official teachings, and there are plausible, historic, and theological reasons that others have these same problems. I think the most important message this book has is that no one individual is infallible, the Gospels teach that only the Church as a whole is infallible. Now, off my high horse and down to some book criticisms. Wills presents many topics throughout this book, and I think he does a good job interrelating each. However, this can create a tough read for someone that is not passionate about the material. Also, Wills does take some liberties with some of his arguments. Some may not agree with some of the conclusions he draws in this way, so keep a careful eye out for where the evidence ends and his opinions start. Lastly, I didn't really like the chapter on abortion. It seemed muddled and like he didn't want to take a stand one way or the other on the issue. By doing this, he really doesn't make a very important contribution to the argument, making this passage inconsequential. Very good book. I would recommend it to anyone that has an open mind about their faith.
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