BOOKS: Ideologies clash in fictional thriller

“The Death of a Pope” by the English writer Piers Paul Read is a first-rate thriller set against the backdrop of Pope John Paul II’s death and the election of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as Pope Benedict XVI.

But the ecclesiastical events that took place in the spring of 2005 merely form the backdrop to this novel, whose settings jump from Uganda to Cairo to London to Rome over the course of about two months.

The story opens with the terrorism trial of Juan Uriarte, a Basque, former Jesuit, who left his order to fight with anti-government forces in El Salvador before joining a Catholic relief service. Uriarte has been accused of trying to procure sarin, a deadly airborne chemical. His defense is that he wanted the chemical to kill the cattle and horses of the Janjaweed, the armed gunmen responsible for so much bloodshed in Darfur.

When he is acquitted of the charges, the British intelligence services don’t believe his innocence, and one agent in particular makes a point to keep a wary eye on Uriarte’s travels and dealings.

Meanwhile, Kate Ramsey, a journalist covering the trial, is taken by Uriarte’s charisma and decides to write a long article on him. She travels with him to Uganda, throws herself into the life of the aid camp, and quickly contracts amoebic dysentery.

She recovers, and falls deeply in love with Uriarte, who takes her on some of his travels and possibly implicates her in whatever it is he’s planning. Eventually, all characters converge in Rome on the eve of Cardinal Ratzinger’s election, where there is possibility for a tragedy of global proportions.

Uriarte’s inscrutability is one of the great joys of the novel. Guessing at his motivations propels the novel along. But an even greater joy is how Read manages to raise questions of ecclesiology, truth and knowledge into this action novel.

That’s where the backdrop of John Paul’s death comes to the fore. There are many in the Church who would have preferred a more liberal — for lack of a better word — successor to Pope John Paul II, while others — of course — wanted a continuation of his leadership.

At stake, especially in Uriarte’s eyes, could be a change in policy for fighting AIDS in Africa by allowing the use of condoms for married couples if one of them has contracted the disease.

In his mind, a new pope could also welcome divorced and gay Catholics more closely into the fold, open up the priesthood to women and rid the Church of some of its more fusty traditions. Juxtaposed ideologically to Uriarte is Fr. Luke Scott, Kate Ramsey’s uncle.

As the novel progresses, Read allows each of these men to make his case for the future of the Church. It’s wonderful — and makes the book far more enjoyable — that Read doesn’t seem to stack the decks against one or the other.

Neither Uriarte nor Fr. Scott are caricatures of their positions. Rather, they’re interesting, complicated men and they mirror the complex, wildly diverse Church. James Joyce said the Catholic Church is best described as “Here comes everybody,” and “The Death of a Pope” drives home how vital, important and often messy the universal Church really is.

But at the end of the day, a thriller like “The Death of a Pope,” lives or dies by its storytelling. Read manages to craft a book fraught with suspense, filled with fascinating characters and thoughtful in its meditation on religious faith in the modern world.

Media critic Andrew Junker is a staff writer for The Catholic Sun. Comments are welcome. Send e-mail to letters@catholicsun.org.

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