Pope Dreams - D'Agata, Stephen

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Résumé :
Pope Anthony is dead. But then, on the night of his funeral, each cardinal has a dream in which they meet the next Pope. Their dreams reflect their own personal interests and desires, as all dreams do, but only the two Irish cardinals recognise the Pope in their dreams as one Peter MacDonald, a married father of six and a lay pastoral councillor active in the Dublin Archdiocese. The cardinals' decision on how to respond to this miraculous revelation could change the Roman Catholic Church for ever. Pope Dreams: Pope Peter the Improbable is a satirical novel exploring the juxtaposition between the doctrinal Church hierarchy who promote themselves as the conduit to a puppet-master God, and their progressive congregations who recognise a universal God that inextricably connects everyone and everything. In his first novel, Stephen D'Agata uses comedy and satire to expose the Pope and cardinals as only mere mortals who do not have a monopoly deciding on moral and social values - and could learn a thing or two from their humble congregations.

Biographie:
Born in Melbourne, Australia on the Feast of Stephen in 1962, Stephen is the fifth of his migrant parents' seven children. His ethnic background covers six countries. An Australian by birth but genealogically Italian and Armenian, his parents were born and raised in Alexandria, Egypt, and his grandparents were born in Turkey, Sicily, and Syria.In his youth, Stephen balanced his interest in writing and performing against academic achievements in maths and sciences. The technical side eventually won out and in 1987 he completed a degree in civil engineering. A successful career in water supply, sewerage, and stormwater management has followed.In 1992, Stephen met his wife Maria. Almost two years to the day later, they were married and went on to produce a family of three frustratingly fabulous children. Sadly, less than 20 years after their first encounter, Maria lost a six-year long battle with breast cancer.Fostering the frustrating fabulosity and artistic talents of his offspring led Stephen to re-connect with his own artistic side. Over the past decade, as well as writing this novel, Stephen has contributed to three published anthologies in the We Inspire Now series (Live Your Truth, A Message to your Younger Self, and The Spirit Within). He has also written and performed comedy and prose for open-mic events, performed on stage in amateur theatre productions, and produced online content for YouTube.www.stephendagata.au...

Sommaire:
Born in Melbourne, Australia on the Feast of Stephen in 1962, Stephen is the fifth of his migrant parents' seven children. His ethnic background covers six countries. An Australian by birth but genealogically Italian and Armenian, his parents were born and raised in Alexandria, Egypt, and his grandparents were born in Turkey, Sicily, and Syria.In his youth, Stephen balanced his interest in writing and performing against academic achievements in maths and sciences. The technical side eventually won out and in 1987 he completed a degree in civil engineering. A successful career in water supply, sewerage, and stormwater management has followed.In 1992, Stephen met his wife Maria. Almost two years to the day later, they were married and went on to produce a family of three frustratingly fabulous children. Sadly, less than 20 years after their first encounter, Maria lost a six-year long battle with breast cancer.Fostering the frustrating fabulosity and artistic talents of his offspring led Stephen to re-connect with his own artistic side. Over the past decade, as well as writing this novel, Stephen has contributed to three published anthologies in the We Inspire Now series (Live Your Truth, A Message to your Younger Self, and The Spirit Within). He has also written and performed comedy and prose for open-mic events, performed on stage in amateur theatre productions, and produced online content for YouTube.www.stephendagata.au...