Overview

Catherine Pepinster charts the relationship between the British and the papacy in the modern era, looking at how this relationship is coloured by its turbulent past. Despite the enmity of previous centuries, Pepinster uncovers surprising instances of influence of the papacy in British politics, the collaboration between Pope and politicians on key issues, the ‘stealth minority’ of Catholics occupying major positions in public life, and the modern relationship between the Papacy and the Crown. In addition Pepinster analyses the crucial role that Britain has played in Rome, uncovers the unexpected role of the British Foreign Office in the appointment of Pope Francis, and discusses the modern style of the papacy and how this functions on a global scale. Featuring exclusive interviews with Cardinals Nichols and Murphy-O’Connor, Rowan Williams, Lord Patten and former British Ambassadors to both the Holy See and Italy, this account of the contemporary relationship between Great Britain and the Pope offers both fundamental evidence and penetrating insights into this most fascinating of political relationships.

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9780567666307

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Reviews

[A] scholarly but always readable book. * The Daily Telegraph * This is a fluent, thoughtful and meticulous account of where the Catholic Church touches home politics, foreign policy and Vatican diplomacy in recent UK history. Catherine Pepinster draws on a rich seam of written and oral archives which she has mined with skill and verve. * Lord Peter Hennessy, Queen Mary, University of London, UK * A highly informed and eminently readable insider account of the complex relationship between Britain and the papacy over the last thirty years. Essential reading for those seeking to understand modern Britain's changing religious landscape, and especially valuable in its survey case studies of post-conciliar Anglican-Catholic ecumenism, the Troubles and the papal visits of John Paul II and Benedict XVI. * Alana Harris, King's College London, UK * An insightful study of how the personality of the pope - from the authoritarian charisma of John Paul II, through the scholarly rationalism of Benedict XVI to the reforming pastoral openness of Pope Francis - has influenced relations between the British government and the Catholic Church. It is studded with disclosures on the ambiguous role of the church in the Irish peace process and the resurgence of Scottish nationalism. And it reveals that Rome sees the church in the UK as a laboratory in which to test out how the Church globally can operate in an increasingly secular society. * Paul Vallely, papal biographer and author of Pope Francis: the Struggle for the Soul of Catholicism * Pepinster has written a compelling account of the interplay between the papacy and the UK. In doing so she brilliantly makes sense of the complex changing role of Catholicism in modern Britain, and the way British politicians have dealt with the Vatican. There are fresh insights on every page. * Steve Richards, political commentator and author of The Rise of the Outsiders *

[A] scholarly but always readable book. 5* * The Daily Telegraph * Genuinely illuminating. * Times Literary Supplement * [Catherine Pepinster] has produced a worthy account of this remarkable shift for Bloomsbury's academic arm ... More journalistic than pedagogic, though none the worse for that. * Literary Review * This is a fluent, thoughtful and meticulous account of where the Catholic Church touches home politics, foreign policy and Vatican diplomacy in recent UK history. Catherine Pepinster draws on a rich seam of written and oral archives which she has mined with skill and verve. * Lord Peter Hennessy, Queen Mary, University of London, UK * A highly informed and eminently readable insider account of the complex relationship between Britain and the papacy over the last thirty years. Essential reading for those seeking to understand modern Britain's changing religious landscape, and especially valuable in its survey case studies of post-conciliar Anglican-Catholic ecumenism, the Troubles and the papal visits of John Paul II and Benedict XVI. * Alana Harris, King's College London, UK * An insightful study of how the personality of the pope - from the authoritarian charisma of John Paul II, through the scholarly rationalism of Benedict XVI to the reforming pastoral openness of Pope Francis - has influenced relations between the British government and the Catholic Church. It is studded with disclosures on the ambiguous role of the church in the Irish peace process and the resurgence of Scottish nationalism. And it reveals that Rome sees the church in the UK as a laboratory in which to test out how the Church globally can operate in an increasingly secular society. * Paul Vallely, papal biographer and author of Pope Francis: the Struggle for the Soul of Catholicism * Pepinster has written a compelling account of the interplay between the papacy and the UK. In doing so she brilliantly makes sense of the complex changing role of Catholicism in modern Britain, and the way British politicians have dealt with the Vatican. There are fresh insights on every page. * Steve Richards, political commentator and author of The Rise of the Outsiders *

This is a fluent, thoughtful and meticulous account of where the Catholic Church touches home politics, foreign policy and Vatican diplomacy in the recent UK history. Catherine Pepinster draws on a rich seam of written and oral archives which she has mined with skill and verve. * Lord Peter Hennessy, Queen Mary, University of London, UK * A highly informed and eminently readable insider account of the complex relationship between Britain and the papacy over the last thirty years. Essential reading for those seeking to understand modern Britain's changing religious landscape, and especially valuable in its survey case studies of post-conciliar Anglican-Catholic ecumenism, the Troubles and the papal visits of John Paul II and Benedict XVI. * Alana Harris, King's College London, UK *

Author Information

Catherine Pepinster is the former editor of The Tablet, Britain's most popular Catholic weekly. She has been Executive Editor of the Independent on Sunday and is a regular contributor to the national press and Radio 4. Pepinster was a visiting fellow at St Benet's Hall, University of Oxford, UK.

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