Author of The Dictator Pope suspended from the Order of Malta

According to the Catholic Herald the author of The Dictator Pope (pre-order 23 April – US HERE – UK HERE – more HERE) has been suspended from the Order of Malta and has disassociated itself from the book, describing it as a “vile attack” on Pope Francis.

“Following the press articles reporting the name of the author of the book “The Dictator Pope” the Grand Magistry of the Order of Malta has taken the decision to suspend Henry Sire, author of the book and member of the Order of Malta. The provisional suspension from membership has immediate effect and an investigation is being launched.”

 

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15 Comments

  1. tamranthor says:

    You have to wonder about the folks who claim this is a vile attack. When the truth becomes vile, what does that make the powers that be in the Vatican? I think it is clear that our current Pope has some issues with honestly, clarity, and theology. Saying so out loud does not make one a heretic, or an attacker, or any such thing.

    I should think that, once the truth becomes evident, it would occasion the redoubling of prayers on behalf of our Pope. Silly me for thinking so.

  2. Aquinas Gal says:

    I read the book and found it interesting and informative. It’s all based on facts. Certainly the author has his own point of view and others might draw different conclusions from those facts. But it’s a sad day in the Church when a thoughtful–and necessary–critique of a pope is considered an attack.

  3. David says:

    And what, pray tell, will be the consequences of their “investigation”? Perpetual imprisonment in the Castel Sant’Angelo?

    The Order of Malta also makes me think of a question I have had of late: why has Cardinal Burke apparently given up his public voice on Church matters?

  4. Fr. Kelly says:

    And we wondered why he might think he needed to use a penname ;-}

    But to see the once proud Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta reduced to the status of a lickspittle!

    It looks like the work of the new ASSessor of the Secretariat of Communications. When he could not bend His Holiness Emeritus to his will, he put the thumbscrews to the Order of Malta.

    I had not ordered this book before, but now I am beginning to think if I should.

  5. Fr. Kelly says:

    Curiouser and curiouser.

  6. Amante de los Manuales says:

    Suspension? No dialogue?

  7. Benedict Joseph says:

    Could there be a sounder endorsement for the accuracy of Henry Sire’s reportage in “The Dictator Pope?” With such a response it would appear that he has planted a genuine bullseye.
    But Father James Martin is not reprimanded for his promotion of immoral intimacy but retains the welcoming embrace of Cardinal Archbishops, “Catholic” institutions of higher education, a choice spot on the Vatican Communication teams, and good standing in the “Society of Jesus.”
    And Cardinal Maradiaga is exposed for manipulative financial transactions and for giving the blind eye to his chief clerical advisor shacking up with his male companion but his mandatory resignation at age 75 is declined by His Holiness.
    Then Msgr. Viganò lost his position in front of the cameras, but he was merely removed from the public eye for getting caught. His expertise surely will be found invaluable in some other craft.

  8. Fr. Kelly says:

    It is starting to come out that Sire is contesting his suspension as illegal:
    Speaking to the press, Sire said:
    “It would be relevant to point out that the proceeding against me (of which I was notified yesterday) is wholly illegal, … It has been initiated by the Grand Chancellor, with the consent of the Lieutenant of the Order. The laws of the Order stipulate that such a proceeding has to be initiated by my superior, who is the Grand Commander, and he has not been involved.”

    “Moreover, the superior has to initiate the process without communicating with the Grand Chancellor. … These requirements have been comprehensively ignored.

    It is also ironical that these illegalities have been committed by the Grand Chancellor, who ousted the Grand Master a year ago by protesting at the supposed illegalities of his own suspension.”

  9. TonyO says:

    The Order of Malta also makes me think of a question I have had of late: why has Cardinal Burke apparently given up his public voice on Church matters?

    David, I would not be in the least surprised if Cardinal Burke has been given a point blank order by the pope to be silent. That’s the only thing I can think of that would do it. Which would actually fit quite nicely into the “dictator pope” theme, wouldn’t it?

  10. John Grammaticus says:

    Who cares? The Order of Malta is just a bunch of European Aristocrats in denial over their increasing irrelevance.

  11. AA Cunningham says:

    “Truth is treason in an empire of lies.” Orwell

    With regard to Cardinal Burke:

    Card. Burke speaks up

    and His Eminence is scheduled to deliver a keynote speech at the Rome Life Forum in May.

  12. David says:

    Surely the bottom line is that earlier the Vatican orchestrated a coup in which it took over the governing of the Knights while allowing a hand-picketed puppet collaborator. So curiously, the action the Knights are taking against Mr. Sire only corroborate the substance of his book.

  13. Geoffrey says:

    “Who cares? The Order of Malta is just a bunch of European Aristocrats in denial over their increasing irrelevance.”

    That is a grossly uninformed or misinformed statement!

    https://stpeterslist.com/11-things-you-should-know-about-the-sovereign-military-order-of-malta

  14. John Grammaticus says:

    Dear Geoffrey

    I am aware of the Order’s history, my point that the Order’s hierarchy are all supposedly ‘blue bloods’ who are desperate to hold onto some relevance by doing ‘good works’ now that their titles have been largely abolished (although for the Brits it is still a work in progress) and they are treated as any other person is under the law. For crying out loud they demand proof of ‘noble lineage’ to be admitted to the highest echelons, this notwithstanding the fact that in Europe many such lineages were created to legitimize the children the monarch sired out of wedlock.

    In the interests of fairness I will disclose that my dislike of the order stems from a bad experience with several of their ‘knights’ on the Chartres pilgrimage several years ago. They treated me with ridicule and contempt over a slight mistake of protocol, they laughed at my Latin pronunciation (German accent) and mocked my status as a convert.

    I don’t give a damn about the ‘good works’ that they do, as far as I’m concerned they’re simply a group of preening parasites with an entitlement complex, and an ego the size of Everest. The sooner Pope Francis finishes what the Corsican titch started the better.

  15. Fr. Kelly says:

    John Grammaticus

    I am afraid the vitriol in your post and your professed willingness to judge a venerable Pontifical Order of Knighthood on your interaction with two of their members tells us more about your own attitude than it does about the Knights of Malta

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