John Allen RIP

John L Allen Jr in 2015 - Wiki Image

John L Allen Jr, editor-in-chief of Crux whose decades-long career in journalism defined him as one of the authoritative voices on the Vatican and the Catholic Church, died in Rome last Thursday, 22 January after a long struggle with cancer. He was 61 years old.

His Requiem Mass will be celebrated at the Basilica of Sant'Eugenio in Rome on Monday, January 26, at 3pm.

Born on 20 January 1965, John grew up in Hays, Kansas, and earned a Philosophy degree from Fort Hays State University, and a Masters in Religious Studies from the University of Kansas.

After several years teaching journalism at Notre Dame High School in Los Angeles, he joined the staff of the National Catholic Reporter, where he worked as a writer and a Vatican correspondent from 1997 to 2014. In 2014 he joined Crux, which launched that year as a project of the Boston Globe. The newspaper transferred ownership of Crux to its staff in 2016, with Allen serving as its editor until his death. John was also the author of multiple books, including two biographies of Pope Benedict XVI, a history of Opus Dei and a profile of Cardinal Timothy Dolan.

John is survived by his wife, Elise, Crux's senior Rome correspondent.

Fr James Martin, SJ wrote on X: "Intensely sad news. For a long time, my friend John Allen, who died today after a long battle with cancer, was one of the best Vatican reporters around, in any language. John consistently broke stories, offered incisive analysis, had the best sources and pulled it all together in clear, sparkling and often witty prose.

"For those who weren't around in those days, his omnipresence in the mainstream media is hard to describe: he seemed to be everywhere at once. John's knowledge of the Vatican and of church history, as well as his familiarity with everyone from a cardinal-prefect of a Vatican dicastery to the newest papal appointee in a far-flung diocese, was nothing short of encyclopedic.

"In between his dogged reporting, he also wrote several terrific books on the Catholic Church. For a young adult book club at a Jesuit parish in New York, for example, I used his excellent book 'Conclave,' published in 2002, which expertly laid out the conclave (both the procedures and the players) that would elect Pope Benedict XVI. For a group of young parishioners who had never experienced a conclave, the book was something of a revelation.

"Moreover, as a friend, John was tremendous fun to be around. He was also exceedingly kind to me both personally and professionally. For a 10th anniversary of my book "My Life with the Saints," he wrote a gracious introduction. I will miss him immensely. Please pray for the consolation of his wife and all who knew him. May he rest in peace."

James Abbot, Director of Communications Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales said: "I was deeply saddened to learn of the death of the highly accomplished journalist John Allen Jr. He was an excellent writer known for the clarity of his reporting on a wide range of Vatican and Church matters.

"One abiding memory was from my early days working in communications for the Church. I went to interview Archbishop Piero Marini, Master of Ceremonies for Pope St John Paul II for many years, who was visiting London. John was also interviewing the Archbishop so, naturally, I invited him to go first. Not only did he decline the invitation but proceeded to help with Italian translation when one or two of my questions hit a brick wall. I was struck by his generosity in putting himself second to what was an in-house interview and his patience and desire to make sure I got the best answers I could.

"That was almost twenty years ago and has stayed with me as a mark of a good man and a good journalist. He will be sorely missed as will his considerable contribution to the coverage of the Church - not least in setting up Crux when the Catholic press needed to stride confidently into the digital age."

Papal biographer and journalist Austen Ivereigh wrote: "You can tell from the tributes from all sides in Rome since he died that he was one of the greats. He defined the meaning of vaticanista for a whole generation, especially in the latter days of John Paul II and throughout the Benedict years. His analyses were always sharp, he had an enormous gift for explaining and demystifying, and there was always a great energy and clarity to his writing.

He was tireless in cultivating contacts, and worked the Vatican like no one before or since. I think his great gift to Catholic journalism was his need to understand, rather than judge - to have his finger on the pulse, to demystify, to show that people in the Vatican are driven by theological passions as well as human weaknesses.

"But he never had the contacts and access under Francis that he had under Benedict, and never understood Francis in the same way. John was a man of ideas and concepts, whereas Francis operated differently, through spiritual discernment, and I think John struggled with that, as he would admit. It felt often as if his closest contacts were people deeply critical of the pope, like cardinal Pell.

"As his illness took hold, John wasn't out and about in the same way. But he remarried in 2020, and that brought him great happiness. Elise, his wife, Crux's Rome correspondent, cared for him beautifully during his sharp decline last year, yet they somehow covered the conclave, and Elise landed the first biography and interview with Leo. So I think he died with plenty to be proud about: that an American became pope, and that Crux was at the centre of the new pontificate.

"I'll always remember his sense of fun, his kindness, his generosity, and the way he blazed the trail for so many others, nurturing talent. He showed you could be a faithful, rigorous, hardworking Catholic journalist, serving the Church by explaining it to itself. He was a superstar, and I was grateful to be among his many friends."

The Requiem Mass for John L Allen Jr is at the Basilica of Sant'Eugenio in Rome on Monday, January 26, at 3pm.

LINKS

Read Christopher White's tribute: www.ncronline.org/opinion/guest-voices/former-ncr-rome-correspondent-crux-founder-john-l-allen-jr-dies-61

Clement Lisi on Religion Unplugged: https://religionunplugged.com/news/john-allen-a-life-spent-making-sense-of-power-and-faith