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The Vicar of Christ
Over-burdened with remorse for sacrificed loved ones in war and peace, Declan Walsh, retires from the Supreme Court to a Trappist monastery, and from there he is called to the papacy
632 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1979
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224 people want to read
About the author
Walter F. Murphy
23 books10 followersWalter F. Murphy is a 20th century American political scientist and writer. He won a Distinguished Service Cross for his service as a Marine in Korea, eventually retiring with the rank of colonel. He held the chair of McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence at Princeton. His professional writing, consisting mostly of non-fiction works on political science, includes the classic Constitutional Democracy; he has also written three popular novels.
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
May 15, 2011
While the premise might seem a bit farfetched - a man who won the Medal of Honor in Korea becomes a Supreme Court Justice and then a charismatic Pontiff of the Roman Catholic church - the book not only makes you suspend your disbelieve but actively wish it were true. Each section of the book is told in a different voice. A GI voices the first part, a long serving justice covers the Supreme Court years, and a world-weary Cardinal talks of the time he was pope. This book was probably helped that it arrived shortly after John Paul II was elected Pope, at least in getting people to read it at first. But once anyone starts reading it, they will be captivated by the haunting story of a fallible, very humane and human man.
August 9, 2022
The vicar of christ focus on Decalan Walsh as he moves and goes through a war, the Supreme Court, and final the Vatican. What makes this really unique and is that it is not told through Decalans view but from those around him and shows him changing and progressing as a person with his own flaws and changing maturity and progession.
The characters who narrated his progession also were completely well written with their own ways of narration and perspectives relevant to that period stage of Decalans life.
That made this book really unique and more then worth reading.
The characters who narrated his progession also were completely well written with their own ways of narration and perspectives relevant to that period stage of Decalans life.
That made this book really unique and more then worth reading.
February 12, 2013
I read this book years ago - when it first came out. It is still with me, a book I never forgot. That says more than any nice words I can write. That is a reader's biggest treasure: a book that is never forgot and continues to incite thoughts and questions.
July 8, 2019
Howdy folks!
So, I bumped accidentaly on this book on a shelf of the place I work in. I've never heard of it, but the theme of the book poised much interes. A big chunk of 630 pages was a challenge to read in english. I must say that the book is very good with a cool style and interesting story which really captivates you. 2/3 of a book were really great, but then the heresy views of a new pontific started to come out. I started feeling bias of the main character, and through him our writer towards many teachings and rules of the catholic church.
But I would first like to give a small overview of the story. The book is divided into 5 parts. We hear the story from the mouth of five, maybe four as first and last chapted might be the same guy, people who talk to somebody about our protagonist as the knew him well in diferrent parts of his life. Their talks are tape recorded.
Our protagonist is a man called Declan Patric Walsh who was a hero of the second world war and aswell the Korean war. He is charismatic, witty, very smart, moral man and a natural leader who you instantly like as an example of a nearly perfect man we all strive to be like. Between two wars Declan becomes a professor in the law school, and after some time gets elected, for a very interesting motive and reason, as a chief justice of the USA supreme court. After a short spell in the trappist monastery he gets elected as a new pope. I dont wanna give you any more details of the story as I would not want to spoil it for the possible future readers.
It was great reading about the work of the supreme court as it touched some very interesting topics relevant to these days like abortion and affirmative action. You can see clash of different views and agreements around some views but for completely different reasons; for example, in the discussion concerning the laws in georgia and texas who forbaded abortion in cases other than life of a mother is in danger, some judges although they are privately for abortion, thought that legislatures of Georgia and Texas didnt act unreasonably towards the constitution. They said that they face the clash of rights, not wrongs as mother has a right to privacy and baby has a right to life. In that case state has to strike a balance between rights. The balance is reasonable, although they would, if they were legislators, strike the balance at some other place. So, they think that the decision is on the legislators of a certain state who are voted by the people of the state, not the supreme court judges. Walsh on the other side decided the same but on the argument that because we are not certain when fetus becomes human, until proven otherwise one has to chose the side of the life over the privacy as he think that constitution sees protection of the dignity of human life as its highest value.
The interesting thing is the way judges look at the function of supreme court and the government: while Walsh think that the government has a duty to protect certain rigths, some other think that government has obligation merely not to injure those rights.
Some things happened and Walsh ended in the monastery. Couple of years later we are at the conclave and he got elected. The great thing in this third part of the book is the way how author describes clashes inside of the catholic church between modernists and traditionalists. What I didnt like is the politics of the new pope, who as todays pope of the same name is a modernist. He wants church wage war against poverty (i am not against it, but saving souls not improving earthly life should be the main quest of the Church), he wants to allow people married again to receive holy communion, he is for use of contraception, he sees church being unjust to women for not allowing them to be ordained and to men because of the celibacy. (here the celibacy issue is saved by the great speech of traditionalist La Torre, a great character overall) Towards the end of a book our pope goes full retard: he wants to sell all of the church property and move to Jerusalem, he publicly announces that all the catholics should leave the army and turn the other cheek to their enemies. And icing on the cake was the reasoning that Jesus might not have been a God, that is that he was coming to an understanding of his godness in time which culminated with his ressurection.
As I can understand all of it for the purpose of an interesting story, what bothered me the most as a historian was popes stance on the pious xii, the ww2 pope. He rants how he is a disgrace for a church because of his silence, maybe even collaboration with the nazis which is utter and disgraceful lie propagaded by the communists in the 60s. And the second lie was that franciscans were harmful towards the jews in yugoslavia. Of course, another communist lie.
Too bad for the last third of a book, it was really great until then. In the last part of the book I just saw to much bias towards traditional teachings of the Church and a pope who wants to change things for better but he cant. The better is of course liberal and poor church. The better of course for the people outside of the Church, not those of the Church. As church should not be of this world but only in the world.
All in all, an interesting read, I think I have learned a lot, I just dont like the way fictional pope Francis as well as the pope of this world see our universal church. But at least this fictional pope dont craps about ecology. Other then that they are, in their views, scarily similar.
Howgh!
Ps. Sorry for grammatics
So, I bumped accidentaly on this book on a shelf of the place I work in. I've never heard of it, but the theme of the book poised much interes. A big chunk of 630 pages was a challenge to read in english. I must say that the book is very good with a cool style and interesting story which really captivates you. 2/3 of a book were really great, but then the heresy views of a new pontific started to come out. I started feeling bias of the main character, and through him our writer towards many teachings and rules of the catholic church.
But I would first like to give a small overview of the story. The book is divided into 5 parts. We hear the story from the mouth of five, maybe four as first and last chapted might be the same guy, people who talk to somebody about our protagonist as the knew him well in diferrent parts of his life. Their talks are tape recorded.
Our protagonist is a man called Declan Patric Walsh who was a hero of the second world war and aswell the Korean war. He is charismatic, witty, very smart, moral man and a natural leader who you instantly like as an example of a nearly perfect man we all strive to be like. Between two wars Declan becomes a professor in the law school, and after some time gets elected, for a very interesting motive and reason, as a chief justice of the USA supreme court. After a short spell in the trappist monastery he gets elected as a new pope. I dont wanna give you any more details of the story as I would not want to spoil it for the possible future readers.
It was great reading about the work of the supreme court as it touched some very interesting topics relevant to these days like abortion and affirmative action. You can see clash of different views and agreements around some views but for completely different reasons; for example, in the discussion concerning the laws in georgia and texas who forbaded abortion in cases other than life of a mother is in danger, some judges although they are privately for abortion, thought that legislatures of Georgia and Texas didnt act unreasonably towards the constitution. They said that they face the clash of rights, not wrongs as mother has a right to privacy and baby has a right to life. In that case state has to strike a balance between rights. The balance is reasonable, although they would, if they were legislators, strike the balance at some other place. So, they think that the decision is on the legislators of a certain state who are voted by the people of the state, not the supreme court judges. Walsh on the other side decided the same but on the argument that because we are not certain when fetus becomes human, until proven otherwise one has to chose the side of the life over the privacy as he think that constitution sees protection of the dignity of human life as its highest value.
The interesting thing is the way judges look at the function of supreme court and the government: while Walsh think that the government has a duty to protect certain rigths, some other think that government has obligation merely not to injure those rights.
Some things happened and Walsh ended in the monastery. Couple of years later we are at the conclave and he got elected. The great thing in this third part of the book is the way how author describes clashes inside of the catholic church between modernists and traditionalists. What I didnt like is the politics of the new pope, who as todays pope of the same name is a modernist. He wants church wage war against poverty (i am not against it, but saving souls not improving earthly life should be the main quest of the Church), he wants to allow people married again to receive holy communion, he is for use of contraception, he sees church being unjust to women for not allowing them to be ordained and to men because of the celibacy. (here the celibacy issue is saved by the great speech of traditionalist La Torre, a great character overall) Towards the end of a book our pope goes full retard: he wants to sell all of the church property and move to Jerusalem, he publicly announces that all the catholics should leave the army and turn the other cheek to their enemies. And icing on the cake was the reasoning that Jesus might not have been a God, that is that he was coming to an understanding of his godness in time which culminated with his ressurection.
As I can understand all of it for the purpose of an interesting story, what bothered me the most as a historian was popes stance on the pious xii, the ww2 pope. He rants how he is a disgrace for a church because of his silence, maybe even collaboration with the nazis which is utter and disgraceful lie propagaded by the communists in the 60s. And the second lie was that franciscans were harmful towards the jews in yugoslavia. Of course, another communist lie.
Too bad for the last third of a book, it was really great until then. In the last part of the book I just saw to much bias towards traditional teachings of the Church and a pope who wants to change things for better but he cant. The better is of course liberal and poor church. The better of course for the people outside of the Church, not those of the Church. As church should not be of this world but only in the world.
All in all, an interesting read, I think I have learned a lot, I just dont like the way fictional pope Francis as well as the pope of this world see our universal church. But at least this fictional pope dont craps about ecology. Other then that they are, in their views, scarily similar.
Howgh!
Ps. Sorry for grammatics
June 9, 2025
Decorated US Marine, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and the Vicar of Christ. Declan Walsh lived a quite improbable life that only a terrific novel could provide. I originally read this book in October 1979, having received it as college graduation gift. Forty-six years later it still fascinated me as much as the first time.
August 19, 2015
Spanning decades The Vicar of Christ explores the Catholic Church through the eyes of Declan Walsh as he takes part in two wars and two legal systems, the U.S. Supreme Court and the Curia of the Vatican. Despite a troubled life Walsh will rise to become one of the most influential men in the world, the Pope.
December 23, 2007
Very interesting. Enjoyed learning about the "behind the scenes" picking of a pope worked.
October 1, 2019
I read this years ago and it was pretty good but not great. Maybe if I read it now, I'd have a different take on it.
March 14, 2013
Forgot I read this book, until the new Pope, Francis I, walked out yesterday onto the world stage.
May 25, 2024
“Even though he was from England, I assure you, he was not a homosexual.” -Walter F Murphy
The true church is not a collection of buildings, properties, offices and titles. It exists in the hearts of the faithful. The Spirit of The Lord will enter the temple of your body and dwell within you. As servants of the Lord, we bear witness to the Truth, shining the light of truth and understanding, into the darkness of ignorance in the world around us. Prepare a place in your heart for The Lord, for it is there He will sit like a king on His throne.
The Seminary has been turned into a casting-couch for a multi-billion dollar theatrical performance.
Very close to death, and unable to hold his head up for more than 20-minutes at-a-time, Pope John Paul II looked the cardinals in the eye at ‘The Pedophile Summit’ and said to them, “Molesting children is a crime.”
The true church is not a collection of buildings, properties, offices and titles. It exists in the hearts of the faithful. The Spirit of The Lord will enter the temple of your body and dwell within you. As servants of the Lord, we bear witness to the Truth, shining the light of truth and understanding, into the darkness of ignorance in the world around us. Prepare a place in your heart for The Lord, for it is there He will sit like a king on His throne.
The Seminary has been turned into a casting-couch for a multi-billion dollar theatrical performance.
Very close to death, and unable to hold his head up for more than 20-minutes at-a-time, Pope John Paul II looked the cardinals in the eye at ‘The Pedophile Summit’ and said to them, “Molesting children is a crime.”
August 15, 2025
Medal of Honor Winner, Justice of the Supreme Court, Pope. They just don't make American Catholics like this any more. Walter Murphy's it's so bad it's good novel follows the exploits of an Irisher super man from the hills of Korea through the Brethren in Washington, D.C. to that all-important call all Catholic males pray for: "We want you to come to the Vatican and be Pope". Why not, since on the High Court he had outlawed abortion, on the grounds that "this court has previously ruled that corporations are people, thus so are fetuses"? With logic like that, how could he refuse the Roman tiara? Once in the Shoes of the Fisherman the first American Pope bars communion for a whole nation, Spain, for the killing of Catholic priests by Francoist death squads. You can skip to the last page and find out what happens to him, but by then you'll be dizzy from the lunacy.
November 23, 2023
I read this the first time in the early '80's. This time through I understood so much more. It is the unfolding life of a remarkable man, told in the voices of 4 different narrators, a remarkable literary style that gives layers of revelation. Military hero, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Pope! I learned about the workings of the Court, the Curia along with a better understanding of much Catholic tradition/teaching. But most intriguing of all is the character unfolding and the complex ways of human to human as well as human to God relationships. As an Evangelical Christian, I felt sorry for and frustrated by the by-path taken, but as a reader I thoroughly enjoyed the book!!
September 30, 2019
First read this when it first came out. Still an excellent novel.
March 1, 2021
An incredible book that challenges thoughts and feelings!
May 5, 2024
Vicar
This novel chronicles the life of one very tough, scholarly and (eventually) spiritual, man’s life through three distinct careers and personal journeys. Declan Walsh is first a Korean War hero fighting against communism, then a Supreme Court Justice and finally the Pope who supports socialism and is a strong voice for the poor and hungry. The author so smoothly and cleverly transitions Declan through the phases of his life that you don’t have time to think how unlikely these three careers would be for one man! The 180° change in Declan is brilliantly designed and each distinct section is narrated by a different character, with a tone, tempo and language unique to that narrator. Brilliant!
The book touches on a lot of controversial issues but gives the reader a sense of both sides of an issue without seeming biased. It tackles war, politics, the Catholic Church (traditionalist vs liberals), priestly celibacy, socialism/communism pros/cons, the Justice system, abortion, love, lust and loss. While not an easy read, it certainly is a good one and one that leaves you feeling a bit more understanding about some issues. Highly recommend
This novel chronicles the life of one very tough, scholarly and (eventually) spiritual, man’s life through three distinct careers and personal journeys. Declan Walsh is first a Korean War hero fighting against communism, then a Supreme Court Justice and finally the Pope who supports socialism and is a strong voice for the poor and hungry. The author so smoothly and cleverly transitions Declan through the phases of his life that you don’t have time to think how unlikely these three careers would be for one man! The 180° change in Declan is brilliantly designed and each distinct section is narrated by a different character, with a tone, tempo and language unique to that narrator. Brilliant!
The book touches on a lot of controversial issues but gives the reader a sense of both sides of an issue without seeming biased. It tackles war, politics, the Catholic Church (traditionalist vs liberals), priestly celibacy, socialism/communism pros/cons, the Justice system, abortion, love, lust and loss. While not an easy read, it certainly is a good one and one that leaves you feeling a bit more understanding about some issues. Highly recommend
September 15, 2013
Just finished this and the first thing that comes to mind is, "WOW!" I was supposed to read this in a seminar in college many years ago. In the best academic tradition, I BSed my way through and partied instead. I had no idea what I was missing. A truly inspiring (though fictional) account of Declan Walsh-war hero, Chief Justice and the Pope. I agree that it sounds, far-fetched but Murphy pulls it off in a way that is not only believable but makes you long for such a real-life leader-someone with a moral authority and the power to influence. I guess the downside is that it serves to intensify my disgust/disappointment with our current batch of political "leaders"-right and left. Murphy uses the fairly unique technique of three (4 if you count the short final section) narrators providing perspectives on the distinct phases of Walsh's career. His personal development is traced through these different viewpoints-always a leader it is the development of his conscience that is the focus. Vicar has quickly moved near the very top of my all-time favorite books.
October 7, 2012
I had read this years ago and picked it up again at a used book sale. It is the story of a man through three distinct phases of his life -- a soldier / war hero, a chief justice of the Supreme Court, and a Pope of the Catholic Church. As unthinkable as it seems, it works. The book is educational, at least for me about the workings of both the Supreme Court and the Vatican, entertaining and thought-provoking. I should add that each phase is narrated by a different person, all significant characters themselves.
October 16, 2016
Imagine being a decorated military man, a chief justice and a pope. Well, that is the life of Declan Walsh, a man chosen by fate to be a world leader. Declan comes across as a man at the mercy of fate. he also seems doubtful but always willing to answer the call to serve. This is an incredible story and piece of writing. This would make a great film!
August 31, 2013
This was a great book. Gave good understanding of the inner workings of both the Supreme Court and Vatican. Had a story line that kept your interest. Loved when he Ex-Communicated the country of Spain or when he was asked if he had a travel visa he stated he was going to look through the Vatican archives for the visa that St. Peter used to travel to Rome.
September 13, 2008
I usually read Science Fiction. This is not SF - but it is a great story and well worth the trouble in finding. I recently bought a replacement copy from eBay as I couldn't get it on Amazon. Well worth reading.
October 7, 2008
A gift from 30 years ago that I have enjoyed reading several times, moving it with my household possessions more times than I can count. Long but worth every page.
February 3, 2009
Still relevant today.
January 24, 2009
This book is a must read for all Catholics. I have read and re-read this excellent book. It is fiction, but in fiction is the truth.
September 10, 2010
My brain is stuffed full of new and fascinating knowledge. And from a good read too. (This is another book that languished unread on my shelves for too long.)
November 13, 2010
This was the best book buy of the year $3.00 from a second hand dealer and one of the best stories I have read Recommend for anyone who enjoys a great story.
July 12, 2011
An intriguing story - beautifully written. I read it with a dictionary because each word was precise, deliberate and colorful. Left me with a thirst for words that has yet to be quenched.
June 8, 2010
The Catholicism Faith and the entails
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews