The Vicar of Christ

Marine Colonel, Chief Justice, Pope ... a fictional depiction of a fictional man, of the 1950s-1970s era, which nevertheless resonates even today. This novel is the story of a fictional character who is a man of extraordinary ability and drive. It is told from the standpoint of an author who is planning to write a biography of the life of the outstanding man of his generation. Specifically, the life of one Declan Walsh. This is a novel of the same genre as "The Shoes of the Fisherman" in that it portrays a fictional great man in modern times. Walsh led three lives. First, he was a US Marine Corps Colonel, who wins the Medal of Honor for outstanding bravery and tactical genius in the Korean War. He then enters politics, and becomes Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court. Fate intervenes, and he resigns after great personal tragedy. During all of this time, Walsh had been a devout Catholic and had friends in the highest echelons of the Church. After a conclave is hopelessly deadlocked trying to elect a Pope, the Church summons this extraordinary man to become Pope, the Vicar of Christ. Besides the sheer imagination that goes into this story, the novel is further distinguished by the uniformly high quality of author Walter Murphy's writing. Murphy is plainly extraordinarily gifted both as a writer and as a student of the human condition, because he shows us Declan Walsh as Walsh is perceived by three extraordinarily different men. This is a great story by a gifted author, and few who read this outstanding novel will fail to appreciate it. Highly recommended.

I read it more than 20 years ago, but this book should be read by any reader who likes a good novel, with very good writing. Read it. It would make a great movie or tv minimovie.

Don't let the unbelievable premise sway you from reading this book. Its a page turner and a thought provoker. I loved this book and found Declan Walsh to be a great literary character.

This is an extraordinary novel of the same genre as "The Shoes of the Fisherman." It portrays the imaginary life of one Declan Walsh. The author's stylistic method is extraordinarily effective. The author uses as a setting a reporter interviewing three different (imaginary) intimates of Walsh. Each of these interviewees: a Marine Corps gunnery sergeant, a Supreme Court Justice, and a Catholic Cardinal, paints a different portrayal of Walsh, and incidentally also presents the reader with a fascinating character study in his own right.In the novel, Declan Walsh lives an extraordinary life: he is a Medal of Honor winner in Korea, he later becomes Chief Justice of the United States. He resigns his post on the Supreme Court in the face of personal tragedy, and later is selected as Pope by a deadlocked Church conclave.My favorite portion of the novel is the first third, which deals with Walsh as a Marine Corps battalion commander in Korea. The depiction of men in combat, the leadership issues, the life and death decisions, and above all the hard fighting and hard dying are powerfully done. The reader can feel the cold Korean night, and share the Marines' honest fear and bravery as tough infantry combat rages. I have never read a more realistic and authentic story of men in combat.The second section of the novel deals with Walsh as Chief Justice. The legal issues are pretty much passe' now--they deal with issues circa 1964-1975. However, this portion of the novel retains its relevance despite this because it gives an interesting insight into the decision making process within the Court, and again the portrayal of Walsh is wonderfully done.The last section of the novel deals with Walsh as Pope. It is not dated in any significant way, because the Church has not grappled with most of the issues portrayed in the novel. Again, the author takes us into the Catholic Church and explains some of the politics, infighting, and differences in ideology that permeat the world's oldest beauracracy. One need not be a Catholic to find this fascinating.The best thing about this novel is the quality of the writing. Murphy's prose is clear, wonderfully stylistic, and extremely entertaining. Many of the characters in the novel literally seem to spring to life, so well done are Murphy's characterizations. Murphy's characters act and seem like real people living real lives at all times. I have read this novel many times over the years and I regard it as one of the best reads I have ever experienced. Highly recommended.

This book is an unusual, fascinating and well-written observation of the life of one man when first a war hero, then Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and finally, Pope. Although he lives a superhuman life, his complex mix of fallibility and greatness are drawn on the canvass by the three men whose narrations tell the story of his life. The first narrator is a Marine Sargeant, telling of their time together in Korea. The second, a Constitional scholar and Supreme Court Justice appalled at the new Chief Justice, narrates the second phase. The third is a Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church; fat, kind but distracted. The sargeant cares for him the most, the Supreme Court Justice condescends and hates like Salieri in 'Amadeus' and the Cardinal is much more interested in food than his subject. But on stage is a man who earns the Medal of Honor while ordering the death of his best friend, rules pragmatically and energetically on the Court but loses his wife to death and neglect, and becomes a miraculous healer assasinated for challenging the powers that rule the secular world. Mr. Murphy's combines "Rashamon" with The Pillar and the Post" for a most excellent time. I read this book for the first time in 1980, and re-read it many times since.