Sede Vacante: The Life and Legacy of Archbishop Thuc Revised Edition

Sedevacantism, American Catholicism's only homegrown New Religious Movement (NRM), argues that the Church has sunk into heresy at the hands of false popes. The only Roman Catholic bishop ever to publicly adhere to the ultra-traditionalist thesis of Sedevacantism was Archbishop Thục. Ngô-dinh-Thục (1897-1984) was an Ngô-dinh, part of Vietnam's notorious political dynasty. He was a CIA contact, a cunning businessman, and an apologist for his brothers' brutal, failing regime. Exiled from Vietnam in the wake of revolt and war, Thục helped launch the fanatical Palmarian cult, earned a rare double-excommunication, and reemerged as mascot for a new hardline movement called Sedevacantism. This book meticulously reconstructs Thục's remarkable story using archive documents, declassified materials, and scholarly research. Through colonialism, war, occupation, and Communist revolution, to the doomed US-backed puppet regime, Thục's story is also the tragic story of Vietnam. This book examines Thục's role in Vatican II, the Palmarian cult, and the theological ramifications of his exploits; it explains why Catholics and non-Catholics alike should be aware of Sedevacantism.