Wounded Shepherd: Pope Francis and His Struggle to Convert the Catholic Church

Ivereigh, British journalist and papal biographer, pulls back the curtain on the first six years of the papacy of Pope Francis in this definitive study. Unlike The Great Reformer, Ivereigh’s biography of the pope, this effort focuses on “the conversion of a Church that is struggling to put Christ at its center” and begins with a private conversation between Ivereigh and Pope Francis. “He was warning me against the ‘great man’ myth.... I realize now that The Great Reformer contributed to that myth.” Shirking chronology, Ivereigh catalogues many of Pope Francis’s actions, among them maneuvering to prevent the Vatican from entering bankruptcy, his acceptance of responsibility for decades of sexual abuse and the resulting cover-up, and his encyclical for confronting climate change. For each reform, Pope Francis has seen a common adversary in far-right, anti-Vatican II reactionaries, such as the traditionalist Order of Malta and American cardinal Raymond Burke, who has formed a coalition to resist many of the pope’s reform efforts. Using unprecedented access, Ivereigh provides detailed, frank analysis informed by his own deep Catholic faith and also warns against threats such as a rise in populist nationalist movements. Ivereigh’s insider account will be a revelation to readers interested in the inner workings of the Vatican. (Nov.)