Malachi sat back in his worn recliner and closed his eyes. He held his breath and felt the irregular beat of his heart pounding through his head. Perspiration beaded on every corner of his angular face as he rubbed his eyes and then his temples. He could still hear the words of the young Bishop: “Don’t come to me with your nonsense, Father. No one believes in the devil anymore.”He let his hands slip slowly down his face to his neck where they found a knotted chain and fingered it for a short time, tracing its linked ridges to the large crucifix lying across his sternum. He cupped his hands over it and despite his exhaustion found a bit of solace and mechanically formed a prayer.
His lungs whistled as he drew in a sharp breath and reached for the water on the table beside him. The back of his shaking hand racked the glass and sent it toppling to the floor, splashing several pages of the manuscript he’d been working on.
He clicked his tongue and brushed the water from the papers. The ink smeared over the working title at the top of the page, Primacy: How the Institutional Roman Catholic Church became a Creature of the New World Order.
“Oh, dear.”
With some effort, he got to his feet and started for the kitchen to find a towel. Without warning, he toppled forward and his head splintered against the coffee table. The lamp crashed next to him and the room went black.
He woke only once from his coma to whisper to a bedside confidant, “I felt something push me but no one was there...” Father Malachi Martin, one of the most controversial figures of the modern Catholic Church, died several days later on July 27, 1999.
5 comments:
Things that make you go Hmm. His life reads like a Michael D. O'Brien novel.
Thanks for this fascinating 300 words.
That drew me in from the very first sentence. Thankyou for the intrigue!
I have read, and most am most familiar with, the following works by Fr. Martin: The Jesuits: The Society of Jesus and the Betrayal of the Roman Catholic Church, The Final Conclave, Hostage to the Devil, The Keys of This Blood and Windswept House. The latter is a novel. A few others too.
Fr. Malachi was very good at weaving together alleged insider information/facts, fiction and historical reconstructions. His books, the more popular ones at least, read like spy novels, and I must confess that they were enjoyable to read. As to the truthfulness of what he contended... well, the very nature of his method of presentation makes that a difficult one to call. I surmise it will remain an open question until the end of time.
Many years ago in a phone conversation with a world famous priest/scholar (absolutely loyal to the Magisterium), I asked for his opinion on Fr. Malachi's works. He responded succinctly in a thick East European accent: "He's an Irishman"... That's about it. Tha's all he said.
Karinann: You should read some of his novels; as much as you enjoy Michael O'Brien I know you'd love his, especially Windswept House.
Sparrow: Thank YOU for stopping by and for the nice comment!
TH2: Father Martin and I had some mutual friends and some of the things that he didn't speak of were some of the more intersting. He was a supremely intelligent man, kind to a fault to everyone, and yes perfectly Irish (the kind that every American loves... and Canadians too lol). His problem was when he would make "predictions" of things to come based upon his world-view. Often he was drawn into making them by persistent people and by interviewers (Art Bell for one), but sometimes he'd make them unsolicited. He was often wrong but it never stopped his fans from eating them all up. He was a good man though, and truly sincere.
It is interesting that you mention the Art Bell (Coast-to-Coast-AM) interviews. They were quite popular with listeners. So much that a CD was made and sold to listeners.
I recall listening to one of these interviews and, given the nature of the topics discussed, can understand why many were fascinated. You are absolutely correct regarding Fr. Martin being "drawn into" making predictions by the likes of Bell. That was my impression, too, when I listened.
Disregarding the predictions he made, the thing I appreciate most about his writings is that he made manifest the central role that the Catholic Church plays in civilization and worlds affairs.
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