Absolute Power

By: Paul Collins

Narrated by: Oliver Wyman

Length: 14 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

The sensational story of the last two centuries of the papacy, its most influential pontiffs, troubling doctrines, and rise in global authority

In 1799, the papacy was at rock bottom: The Papal States had been swept away and Rome seized by the revolutionary French armies. With cardinals scattered across Europe and the next papal election uncertain, even if Catholicism survived, it seemed the papacy was finished.

In this gripping narrative of religious and political history, Paul Collins tells the improbable success story of the last 220 years of the papacy, from the unexalted death of Pope Pius VI in 1799 to the celebrity of Pope Francis today. In a strange contradiction, as the papacy has lost its physical power - its armies and states - and remained stubbornly opposed to the currents of social and scientific consensus, it has only increased its influence and political authority in the world.

©2018 Paul Collins (P)2018 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"A thoroughly researched but tendentious history in support of a call for a radically different papacy and church." (Kirkus Reviews)

"Fasten your seat belt for a rollicking ride through two hundred years of papal history culminating in a generally positive assessment of Pope Francis' new approach to the role. Paul Collins offers a broad and deep albeit astonishingly accessible read of the complicated, deeply fraught currents in the Roman Catholic Church. He wisely does not presume to predict what will be next. But scholars and interested observers alike will want this resource at hand to make sense of it as it unfolds." (Mary Hunt, codirector of the Women's Alliance for Theology, Ethics, and Ritual, WATER)

"Well-documented... An honest but critical analysis of the role of the papacy in both the church and the world in modern times." (Library Journal)

Refreshing and challenging

I enjoyed “Absolute Power” very much. While Mr.Collins writes from his particular perspective, he diligently works to interpret history in a broad and open fashion.

His writing is crisp and clear and not without a degree of wit.

There will be some who will condemn the book because Mr. Collins is unafraid to challenge long standing assumptions and “sacred cows”.

The book clearly calls on the Church to look forward rather than behind (Luke 24:5) and I found it refreshing and challenging