The Accidental Pope (45 page)

“And the Muslim fundamentalists?” the pope asked.

“In sections of Africa they will spread the Prophet's word through terrorism as much as the Communists did, cutting the throats of any who do not accept ‘true belief.'”

“I think,” the pope offered, “Gus here is suggesting a papal visit to Africa to observe these problems firsthand. Then return here and develop solutions. The Church is gravely threatened in Africa. We must take a definite stand if it is going to survive.”

“That is correct, Your Holiness,” Motupu confirmed. “If you can see it firsthand and then report what you see and know to be true, you may convince the world community to accept those fundamental changes, bringing us up to date on famine, poverty, and disease, especially among my kind.”

Ed Kirby conveyed an unexpected request from the Russian ambassador to arrange an informal meeting between the Russian patriarch and the pope as quickly as possible. Alexis II would fly to Rome from Moscow and the pontiff would receive him.

“It seems bold of the Russians to try to meet with us after the Duma banned Catholicism from their country,” Monsignor Cippolini commented.

“To say nothing of the Orthodox Church's refusal to join Pope John Paul II in his plea for peace in the Balkans,” Bill added.

“They have profound designs on Africa,” Motupu answered. “A meeting would be useful. We're still way ahead of them, but with U.S. foreign policy turning isolationist, Orthodoxy and Islam are gaining new footholds around me in the continent. I think we must hear them out.”

“If time permits,” the cardinal added, “we'll have a look at southern Sudan, where Christian Africans are still starving in their never-ending civil war against the extremist fundamental Islamic Arabs to the north. The Sudanese Government bombed more civilian hospitals last week.”

“Gus, I agree,” Pope Peter II affirmed. “If I am to make this trip to Africa, I'd like to know what our opposition has in mind.”

“Would it be wise for Tim to have a preliminary meeting with the patriarch and his ‘Mad Monk'?” Motupu grinned at the phrase. “He could get some idea of what they want from us.”

“You've met this latter-day Rasputin, Gus?” the pope asked.

“Yussotov? I met him twice during claims on territorial disputes. Quite frankly I have taken pains to keep Russians from proselytizing in traditional Catholic areas. Zimbabwe is a good example. We have always been the undisputed leaders in Mozambique and the former British colonies bordering it, the two Rhodesias, now Zambia and Zimbabwe. Robert Mugabe, dictator of Zimbabwe, was brought up and educated at Catholic missions. Even though Soviet Communists armed and trained his so-called ‘Freedom Fighters,' terrorists are what they are. Then, with the help of African-Americans like Andrew Young, the British were persuaded to give Rhodesia to Mugabe. He then chose to ignore the Orthodox establishment. So we won that one over the patriarch. That was in 1979. Since then the Russians have given their Orthodox Church far greater freedom to proselytize the world. And with the fall of Communism, the Orthodox Church has been the main catalyst for Russian territorial expansion in parts of Africa.”

Tim Shanahan listened patiently to Motupu and then, succinctly as always, presented his own estimate of the situation. “It is important for me to find out exactly what the Russians want. Remember what John Paul II warned in his letter!”

Moputu breathed deeply. “Just how the
avviso
affects Africa I am unsure. But Tim, by all means, see what the Russians want, what sort of compromises they want to make. They made none to us in Russia when they shut Catholicism down five or six years back.”

“I'll tell the Russian ambassador that a preliminary conference between the pope's intermediary and his representative should be arranged at once,” Kirby, the only politician present, suggested. “Then let's move up a notch and have Cardinal Motupu here meet the patriarch prior to any private audience between him and the pope.”

“Excellent, Ed,” the pope enthused. Then to Tim he went on, “I doubt that the patriarch has any fear of, or for that matter belief in, the thoughts given to us in the
avviso.
But Gus has convinced me that we should smoke out his intentions as soon as possible before we get ourselves into some kind of religious war.”

“I'll talk to the ambassador this afternoon,” Ed declared.

“Strange … they outlaw us in Russia, yet send a top man here as ambassador,” Al Cippolini mused aloud.

“He was Yeltsin's press secretary, but wrote a laudatory biography about his boss and critical of other government officials, which upset the ex-Communist party leaders, so Yeltsin appointed him to the Vatican as ambassador.” Kirby grinned. “He's a fun guy, but don't meet him in the morning. Instead of cappuccino, you'll get a water glass of Stolichnaya.”

The others chuckled and Ed dryly went on. “Perhaps you are unaware of this, but the Vatican may be the world's best diplomatic listening post once you learn how to hear things. The Russians are also hard to beat at intelligence gathering, especially in spots like Africa. Of course, with Vladimir Putin as President of Russia, my friend may not be in his job here much longer. It will be interesting to see what Putin's attitude toward following the Orthodox Church back into Africa will be.”

*   *   *

Ed Kirby had set up the Russian connection by evening that same day. Pleased he had been able to organize the meeting between Tim Shanahan and Bishop Yussotov so promptly, and in Rome, not Moscow, the ambassador sensed that he was playing into the hands of the Russians. He had never fallen for détente and for the softening of the historically hostile relationship between the former USSR dictators who now would have cozied up to the West. “Stalin, Khrushchev, Brezhnev, even Gorby—I wouldn't trust any of them,” Kirby said openly. “They are all a bunch of butchers.”

Bishop Yussotov was flown into Rome the next day, and that night he and Tim Shanahan had their first private meeting. The Russian ambassador provided his ornate library for the meeting, complete with a large political wall map of Africa covering one end of the room from the floor to the ceiling. Both the Russian and American clerics were dressed similarly, in black suits with the white collar above black silk vests. The Russian was tall and swarthy, with black hair hanging down to his shoulders and parted in the middle. Tim, with his neatly trimmed, graying, reddish-blond locks and slightly rotund figure, stood in contrast to the lean and taller bishop. Decanters of vodka and brandy stood on the table in the middle of the room, and two stuffed armchairs faced one another in front of the map. Before each chair was a small table with pads, pencils, and pens laid out, and a carafe of water.

Ed Kirby had taken his leave of this meeting, explaining that it was policy for an American official not to get involved in such discussions without State Department permission. The Russian ambassador made light conversation with the two clerics, each of whom had been given a biographical sketch of the other to read. Tim was armed already with basic knowledge about the bishop's background, lurid details of which had been collected by Motupu in Africa.

Bishop Yussotov and Tim bowed to each other like adversaries, and the former monk poured a glass of cold vodka for himself and offered Tim either vodka, scotch, or brandy. Tim chose water, citing Vatican policy, and the bishop disdainfully poured him a glass as the two ecclesiastical emissaries settled down to hopefully productive negotiations.

The bishop first asked about Cardinal Motupu. Would he be renewing their acquaintanceship during this visit to Rome? Tim assured the Russian that Motupu would attend all subsequent meetings.

Gesturing toward the large hanging map of Africa, the Orthodox bishop moved closer to it, his finger tracing the new Republic of the Congo, formerly Zaire and before that Belgian Congo. “This is very interesting country.” Despite Yussotov's thick accent Tim had to score one for the bishop who, at least, could negotiate in English. Few Americans could negotiate in Russian.

Seeing the dialogue getting under way, the Russian ambassador excused himself, leaving the two clerics to work out their own agenda. The former monk of Odessa poured himself another drink, filled Tim's glass again with water, and they started talking in earnest.

*   *   *

The following morning Tim Shanahan reported to Motupu and the pope in the pontiff's library. “Would you believe it? After our meeting, Yussotov went out to some disco clubs to meet Italian girls!”

“So much for the sanctity of our Orthodox bishop,” Motupu growled. “What was the upshot?”

“The bishop and his patriarch want to divide up your continent between us on religious lines,” Tim replied. “He wants the Republic of the Congo. He'll give us Nigeria and Angola and the rest is up to us to negotiate after we meet in Africa, and as soon as possible.”

“Absurd,” the pope choked. “This isn't some Treaty of Versailles or Malta conference where you divide up continents politically. We're contemplating the fate of the very souls of a continent's people.”

“Correct, Your Holiness,” Tim agreed fervently.

There was a long silence, since the outcome of the meeting to come was a foregone conclusion and only the pope could express it. “How soon can we make the necessary travel and security arrangements?” Pope Peter asked. Motupu was hard-pressed to keep from clapping his hands in glee.

Tim answered the question. “It all depends who handles this trip. You can call in Robitelli and he will assign the Jesuit, Father Roberto Tucci, head of Vatican Radio and overall director of papal visits. He is a wise and thorough man. It will take six months. Or you can allow us to find a new, more expedient way to do things.”

“The latter, Tim. And so for Yussotov, let's expedite this visit. I have a feeling that time is of the essence. I can sense, particularly after talking with Ed Kirby, that the Russians have discovered some new way of subjugating land areas. Give their Church establishment maximum backing, including military when needed, and let them propagandize for hearts and souls.”

Pope Peter let out a guffaw. “If you'll excuse a crudity that came out of the Vietnam War, let me quote an American politician. The Russians believe that ‘if you have the people by the balls, their hearts and minds will surely follow.'”

*   *   *

To nobody's surprise, Cardinal Robitelli had deep misgivings about the pope's trip to Africa. He was openly critical of Cardinal Motupu, who had met with the Russian bishop the day after the nighttime conference between Shanahan and Yussotov. They had agreed to a meeting between the pope and the patriarch in Africa. No agenda was set for the encounter. It would be informal, although it was understood that spheres of influence in Africa would be the main topic of discussion. The actual venue was to be decided later. The secretary of state probed the pope's intentions, trying to read what he had in mind, and the replies he heard did little to alleviate his concerns about the African situation.

“To tell you the truth,
Eminenza,
” the pope chuckled, “I haven't a clue about what is really going on down there. And I can't mount my agenda if I know nothing about the place. But I can promise you that the Church will still be here long after you and I are dead and gone, the prophecy of Nostradamus not withstanding.”

The trip to Africa, while hardly clandestine, was not a Vatican high-profile publicity extravaganza, only a mission by the leader of the Roman Catholic Church to study saving millions of souls for Christ and millions of lives as well.

It was important that the trip not be understood as a power struggle between Russian Orthodoxy and the Catholic Church, or for that matter between Patriarch Alexis and Pope Peter II. Equally the dispute must not drag the Russian government into a struggle which could then draw in the United Nations and the United States. Much was riding on this African summit, even though a new, modern pope ostensibly planned it as only another spiritual pilgrimage.

36

AFRICA UP CLOSE

Even without the benefit of Father Tucci's usual painstaking preparations and guidance, the flight to the Dark Continent went off almost as if it were a planned spy mission. The pope had quietly left the Vatican dressed in a long black overcoat and cap. It was not a highly publicized visit, although in Angola, the first stop, it was heralded as a major event in African history. This event, of course, was at the behest of Cardinal Motupu, who would greet the pope upon his arrival.

Flying south from the Mediterranean coast over Algeria, Monsignor Tim Shanahan described to the pope the many reports of brutality and oppression directed at Catholics. A very serious threat was developing in that region of the world, and no pope or patriarch would go anywhere near there, or Sudan or Libya or some of the other fundamentalist countries, for that matter.

It took the pope's jet plane over an hour to cross the Sahara before they came to green jungle foliage below. “Now, here is where black Africa begins and stretches all the way down to Cape Town, South Africa.”

In another hour they were flying over Nigeria. “We'll stop there on the way back. Motupu has contacted the bishop, and you'll visit the most active seminary in Africa. There is no shortage of priests and seminarians studying to become priests in this country. I would say that the patriarch would find it tough to proselytize there. Despite the round of rapacious military dictators that have run Nigeria and its large Islamic population in the south, the country has the largest share of properly ordained priests in Africa.”

For the next two hours, as they flew south over Cameroon and the Republic of the Congo, Tim pointed out other items of interest below. “Down there used to be Belgian Congo, then Zaire, and now the Republic of the Congo. It is potentially Africa's richest nation. Minerals, diamonds, and oil. This is where the patriarch and Bishop Yussotov, with the full backing of Moscow, are launching their biggest efforts to win Russian Orthodox converts.”