Here's An Excerpt from my Book Table of the Lord

But first . . .

Jcecil wants to be a saint . . . no, a real saint, with a liturgical date and full recognition. To be honest, in my mind, it is an admirable goal because it speaks to the desire to be a holy hero and makes one's life spiritually meaningful. I wish him all the best.

My take on Catholic sainthood is similar to that expressed by a character in this excerpt in the last couple of paragraphs.

I mention Joe's desires as a backdrop to the excerpt from my book.

Table of the Lord (January 2048: In an office deep in the Vatican)

“The assassinations in the thirties had a devastating effect on the Church and her place in the world—and consequently, her mission. We’ve lost much influence in the world because we have Popes afraid to travel for fear of assassination attempts. And even when they travel, the popular appeal, which is the strength of the Pope, is lost because the Pontiffs are reluctant to expose themselves. All the recent Popes, in their travels, have chosen indoor venues, limited in size and reach. The Vatican has even been steadily losing its influence and relevance within the Catholic Church itself.” The cardinal stood up slowly and walked around the table. He leaned back on the desk and continued in a tone that signified pure irritation, “National Bishop Conferences and associations are now asserting themselves at the expense of the Vatican’s leadership, the Holy Father’s leadership. The office of Peter, the rock on which the Church is built, is still reeling from its shell-shocked isolation in the thirties. The Vatican has been unable to maintain its relevance in the life of individual Catholics worldwide.” The cardinal’s thick Italian accent hung in the air.

There was a heavy silence. Rowan looked at the two men beside him and then at the cardinal. The cardinal grabbed a sheaf of papers off his desk and put his glasses on and stared at them. “Fr. Rowan, what do you know about the regional and national bishop conferences worldwide?”

Rowan hesitated, not sure what these men wanted to hear, “These regional and national Bishop Conferences such as the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano or CELAM, which is the organization for the Bishops of South and Central America, the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, SECAM for Africa, and others, are structures within our Catholic system. They serve as vehicles for Bishops in their respective regions to apply the wisdom of the Universal Church to their specific situations, which, presumably, they understand much better than the Holy See would from its distance.”

“Is that possible, Fr. Friend?” Msgr. Helmut asked. Rowan tried to remember his designation.

“Sir—C-2, is what possible?” Rowan stuttered.

“Are they capable of applying the universal wisdom of the Church to their specific areas?”

“I imagine they are, sir.” Rowan felt that he had to stand his ground because they were probably testing his resolve.

“But how can they effectively care for a tree if they can’t see the entire forest?"

Rowan stayed silent. The question was clearly rhetorical.

Cardinal Deovalo took over. “As much as many, particularly here in Europe and the United States, detest our constant ‘meddling,’ the Vatican, at all times, has the whole picture in view. Unlike bodies restricted by their respective regional concerns, our decision-making is based on a universal need basis. This is why the Vatican, not these regional conferences, must be the driving force and centerpiece of Church life and policy if the Church is to continue its mission as the kingdom of God on earth.”

Fr. Ejiro shifted and spoke in a heavily accented African baritone. “These regional and national conferences were once very useful structures for control by the Holy See, especially in the twentieth century and the beginning of the present century. However, the power vacuum created by the assassinations of the thirties, gave space for these Bishop Conferences to emerge as dominant forces on the Catholic landscape. It is our view that the emergence of individual or regional bodies of bishops as regional and local forces has been at the expense of the Holy See’s influence and relevance. And for better or for worse, we must undermine them and bring them back under the control of the Holy See.”

“Isn’t this beyond the stated mission of the Blue Core?” Rowan asked with concern.
“Fr. Friend, you have addressed a vital point.” The stoic response from the German priest to his right was crisp. “We have been in intense discussions among ourselves as to what our mission should be. We’ve finally decided that we must redefine our purpose to accommodate the needs of the Church.”

“Can you all describe for me what activities the Blue Core has been engaged in for the past twelve years?” Rowan inquired.

“We are involved in proactive missions to root out and eliminate all terror threats against the Pope. We have carried this goal out with success. You will note that there have not been any more Papal assassination attempts since 2036,” Cardinal Deovalo responded forcefully.

The African priest continued, “We utilize precision military type force to root out all existing threats, both imminent and emerging.”

“If the Blue Core has been so successful, then why are the Popes still ‘shell-shocked’?”

“No one is aware of our existence, not even the Pontiff, except for Blue Core personnel, and a certain former member of COMSUBIN.”

“I’m sorry, your Eminence, but what is COMSUBIN?”

“Comando Raggruppmento Subacquei e Incursori is the name of an Italian elite force branch of the Marina Militare Italiana that specializes in unconventional warfare. This gentleman I refer to was instrumental in offering initial training for our Blue Core Specialists.”

“And so the Blue Core is proactively involved in rooting out terrorist threats against the Pope?” Fr. Friend asked incredulously. “Sir, I’m not sure why I have been recruited. I’ve never killed anyone in my life, nor am I sure that I could. As a military chaplain, I was spared the indignity of taking another life.”

“You were selected with much care and very highly recommended by Bulario.” The cardinal’s eyes focused on Rowan.

Rowan had been avoiding mentioning Bulario’s name. She had directed his career up to this point. Three days ago, he received an urgent message to relocate to Rome to assume a new assignment. Bulario had told him that he was to begin his work as a Blue Core specialist. He wondered what these men knew about Bulario. He wondered if they knew who she really was. If they didn’t, then one would have to explain the obvious clout she had with the cardinal. Her word was apparently enough for him.
Fr. Ejiro smiled for the first time. “Taking a human life is not easy. We avoid taking human life. However, as men concerned with a higher purpose, we are not loath to take it when the circumstance calls for lethal force. For your information, as a group, we consist of former military and paramilitary operatives who have had some form of combat experience. But we are not men without consciences. It is just that we have an abiding sense of duty and mission and a clear sense of the overarching principles that govern human affairs.”

Rowan looked around at the men. If this was what Bulario wanted, then he would do it without hesitation. The cardinal smiled at Rowan. “Don’t worry Rowan, we have no combat plans for you. Our mission as an organization has expanded to address the present geo-political circumstances. In other words, we are no longer simply concerned with preventing Papal assassinations, but we desire to bring the Church, specifically the Holy See, back to political prominence in the world. This is where you fit in. Your acute sense of policy and trans-national strategy coupled with your varied talents in various disciplines has led us to you. We want you to lead our efforts in this regard.”

“Sir,” Rowan was shocked, “It’s obvious—I am a very young and inexperienced man. I’m certainly in no position to lead these efforts.”

“I understand your hesitation but your Church needs you.”

Rowan took a deep breath and sat back in his chair. If this is what you want, Bulario, I’ll do it. He nodded his head.

“Good.” The cardinal walked quickly behind the desk and sat down as though reenergized. “Well, you heard our concerns about the loss of the Holy See’s influence. What are your preliminary thoughts as far as achieving our goals?”

“I would initially establish a spectrum of short term goals, the first of which should deal with the Holy See’s perception. The Holy See would have to emerge and be perceived as a dominant player on the international scene again. The restoration of international prominence to the Holy See would have the desired effect of reigning in bishop conferences worldwide. If secular governments would begin to respect the Holy See again, they would focus less on the regional and national bishop conferences in their dealings with the Catholic Church.”

“But precisely how do we restore the Holy See’s prominence?” Msgr. Helmut asked.

“An initial strategy will be to create large blocks of new Catholics or, at least, Holy See sympathizers. Increasing populations of Catholics worldwide, Catholics who take the words of the Holy See to heart, would leave local politicians no choice but to respect and acknowledge the influence and relevance of the Pope. Such respect is contagious. Once one nation grants the Holy See such respect, others tend to follow, not wanting to miss out on potential political benefits. The easiest way to achieve this would be to appeal to some of the world’s dominant and oppressed minorities, people such as the twenty five million stateless Kurds or the numerous large blocks of ethnic minorities scattered across Russia, Eastern Europe and Africa. We can garner their favor by working to improve their respective situations.”

“I don’t see how that necessarily helps us,” Msgr. Helmut interjected.

“Our goal would be to provide aid for these people and simultaneously, but covertly, appeal to the nationalistic sense in these groups,” Rowan offered, speaking directly to the German priest.

Fr. Ejiro then asked, “But isn’t that risky? For instance, if we appeal to the Kurds, we risk destabilizing Turkey, Iraq and Iran. I need not mention Tehran’s very close ties with the United States and Israel.”

Rowan was very animated, “That’s the point. We do want to destabilize these regions, because it then forces these nations, including the United States and Israel, to talk to us. We then become a player in the regional politics. And that’s precisely how we build prestige and influence for the Holy See.”

“Go on.” Cardinal Deovalo was engrossed in the discussion.

“However, I see the greatest potential in Africa. Africa has the potential for literally hundreds of millions more Catholics. I think we can engage in a risky but bold initiative in Africa. If we can help the continent rise out of poverty to a position of power, and position ourselves as the primary players, we increase our relevance in the world.”

“What specifically do you foresee in a potential Africa policy?” Cardinal Deovalo asked curiously.

“I would begin with a de-amalgamation of Nigeria. Nigeria, like most other African countries, was arbitrarily created. This has resulted in the emergence of a troubled state. We can work out ways to maintain the federalism and nationalism, but let the country fall back into its natural regional alliances. I suspect that the country will reconstitute, but this time, in a republic entity of its choosing. If it works, and we can make it work, then we have established a precedent which could sweep through the entire continent.”

“Good.” Cardinal Deovalo seemed satisfied. “Please proceed to your next two priorities.”

“We need to refocus the mind of the Catholic individual more on the Holy See and less on his local Bishop Conference. This can be achieved by undermining the credibility of these bodies without harm to the universal credibility of the Church. The focus would be on undermining the perception of competence enjoyed by these conferences. It really is quite simple. We could engage in strategies such as creating disinformation campaigns. We could also infiltrate the information publishing arms of these Bishop Conferences and cause them to print grossly erroneous information, fill their publications with all variety of mistakes, and insert patently incorrect doctrinal statements. At the same time, we would leak the Holy See’s displeasure at what seems to be the obvious inadequacies and incompetence of the local Bishops. The aggregate effect of this is to cause the local Bishop Conferences to lose credibility among the local populations, which would cause these populations to turn to the Vatican to make up the credibility gap.”

Rowan looked at his audience for affirmation. He did not receive the affirming gazes he desired, but they clearly were not put off by his suggestion.
He continued, “Thirdly, a thinking and progressive laity is too dangerous and intractable at the present time. Lay Catholics are important and relevant to the life of the Church, but only when guided by the strong hand of the Holy See. The key to controlling the laity is to develop a strategy for them to willingly submit to the will of the Holy See and value the collective and enduring wisdom of the Holy See over the wisdom of individuals. Control is paramount, but it can’t be heavy-handed. Rather, we want the laity to voluntarily submit themselves to the will of the Holy See. The key is to reform the mindset of lay Catholics. We have to motivate them to seek holiness, but more importantly we have to define holiness as subservience by the laity to the Papacy. Saints of the Catholic Church actually are better understood as examples of good obedient Catholics than holy people, so our actions are not inconsistent with the Church’s history.”

“What do you suggest here?” the cardinal asked.

“An important aspect in this third goal is to establish and canonize saints who would fit this refined idea of holiness, subservience to the Holy See. We need to identify and work to canonize lay people that exemplify obedience to the Holy See, and then challenge and encourage the laity to pursue that model of holiness. We need a charismatic and saintly personality who would display unyielding loyalty to the Holy See and yet capture the imagination of lay people. One who would fit our model of holiness.”

“Is there such a person?” Fr. Ejiro asked.

“Fortunately there is one such person, Michael Wang. Michael Wang is a Catholic poet who has been imprisoned in the breakaway, rebel region of Aceh, on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. He has served seven years of a life sentence for his faith and conviction. He is a man of unquestioned holiness, yet an authentic rebel, who has fully embraced the cause of justice without reserve. Yet he insists on an unwavering devotion to the Catholic traditional piety, including reverence for the Holy See. I know this because our office in Kuala Lumpur has been negotiating with the Aceh rebels and the Indonesian leaders for years for his release. ”

Of course to see what happens, buy the book-new, please!