Roberto de Mattei

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Roberto de Mattei (born 21 February 1948) is an Italian traditionalist Catholic historian and author.^[1] He studies the history of religious and political ideas in European history between the 16th and 20th centuries. He is known for opposing evolution, relativism, and the Catholic Church after the Second Vatican Council.

De Mattei was born in Rome, Italy. He was^[when?] a student and assistant to the philosopher of politics Augusto Del Noce and to the historian Armando Saitta at the Faculty of Political Sciences of the Sapienza University of Rome. Among other academic positions, de Mattei was^[when?] Professor of Modern History at the Faculty of Arts of the University of Cassino.

From February 2002 to May 2006, de Mattei was Adviser for International Affairs to the Italian Government. He has cooperated^[how?] with the Pontifical Council for Historical Sciences and been awarded^[when?] the Order of Knighthood of St. Gregory the Great.^{[citation needed]}

Between 2003 and 2011 de Mattei was vice-president of the National Research Council of Italy.^[2] In that role, he was highly criticized for his scientific ideas, in particular for having organized and funded a meeting supporting antievolutionism. This led part^[who?] of the Italian scientific community to request his resignation.^[3][4] Further controversies were caused when de Mattei said that the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan was a divine punishment and that the "contagion of homosexuality" had caused the fall of the Roman Empire.^[5]

De Mattei is a member of the Board of Directors of the John Paul II Academy for Human Life and the Family,^[6]. He is editor-in-chief of the monthly review Radici Cristiane,^[7] and the weekly Corrispondenza Romana.^[8]

De Mattei has published a history of the Second Vatican Council (Il Concilio Vaticano II. Una storia mai scritta, Lindau, Turin 2010, translated in English as The Second Vatican Council – An Unwritten Story with Michael M. Miller as editor). The book suggests an historical view on the event which is antithetical to that proposed by the School of Bologna.^{[citation needed]} Reviewers^[who?] have noted the book's "archival discoveries from the ultra-traditionalist Lefebvrians"^[9] and its new information concerning the role of the traditionalist Coetus Internationalis Patrum at the council.^[10] The book drew criticism from both Catholic conservative and progressives because of its questions about the nature of the intents of the Council's main theologians and Popes, Mattei's book drew heated criticism from both Catholic conservatives and progressives. Fr. Jared Wicks, S.J. and Massimo Faggioli, both progressives, described the book as "critically flawed" for its "denigration" of the council's presiding Popes, and of the Council members who followed their reform agenda,^[11] as endorsing a "conspiracy-driven Lefebvrian interpretation" and being "essentially useless" for developing an understanding of Vatican II.^[9] Conservative Catholic historian Archbishop Agostino Marchetto described the book as an "ideological and hyperbolical work", which represents the opposite side of the School of Bologna, paradoxically coming to the same conclusion, i.e. that Vatican II was a break in the Church tradition;^[12] Traditionalist Catholic sociologist of religion Massimo Introvigne denounced the book as "following a critical method which devalues the texts of the Conciliar documents".^[13]

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, de Mattei published a book entitled Le misteriose origini del Coronavirus (The mysterious origins of Coronavirus) published in 2021 with Edizioni Fiducia, which supported the lab leak theory. He also published a book on the moral permissibility of vaccines.

De Mattei describes himself as "above all a disciple of Professor Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira".^[2] De Mattei has been described by progressive theologian Massimo Faggioli as "a renowned apologist for ultra-traditional Catholicism".^[9]

De Mattei was a critic of Pope Francis.^[14] He was one of 40 Catholic priests and lay scolars who signed a 25-page letter entitled Correctio Filialis De Haeresibus Propagatis,^[15] which was critical of Pope Francis and was sent to him on 11 August 2017.^[16] In it, it states that the pope, in his apostolic exhortation Amoris laetitia and other words, acts and omissions, has endorsed 7 heretical positions, concerning marriage, moral life and the reception of the sacraments, and has caused the spread of these heretical views in the Church.^[16] In February 2014, Mattei's monthly radio program on Radio Maria, Radici Cristiane (Christian Roots), was cancelled because of Mattei's increasingly "critical position regarding the Pontificate of Pope Francis".^[17]

De Mattei opposed the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine and those who supported Russia, distancing himself from traditionalist Catholics who sided with Vladimir Putin, including Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò.^[18] De Mattei's perspective on the conflict is not limited to geopolitical aspects, but he rather believes that the key of interpretation for such dramatic events is the message of Fátima, as he recently stated.^[19] In this regard, de Mattei considered valid the Consecration, made by Pope Francis on 25 March 2022, of Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary according to the dictates of Our Lady in the 1917 apparitions in Fatima.^[19]

• 1900–2000 – Due sogni si succedono: la costruzione la distruzione, Rome, Edizioni Fiducia, 1988, ISBN 9788886387002.
• Il crociato del secolo XX. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira, Milan, Piemme, 1996, ISBN 9788838426438. Translated in 1997 in Portuguese, I edition: Civilização, ISBN 972-26-1433-9, II edition: Artpress Editora, 2015, ISBN 978-85-7206-240-4; in French, L'Age d'Homme, ISBN 9782825110225; in Spanish, Encuentro Ediciones, ISBN 9788474904574; in English, Gracewings, 1998, ISBN 0-85244-473-7; in German, TFP, 2004, ISBN 3-9501846-0-0; in polish, Piotra Skargi, 2004, ISBN 83-89591-06-5.
• Alta Ruet Babylon. L'Europa settaria del Cinquecento. Lineamenti storici e problemi ecclesiologici, Milano, Istituto di Propaganda Libraria, 1997, ISBN 88-7836-429-0. Second edition A sinistra di Lutero. Sette e movimenti religiosi nell'Europa del '500, Roma, Città Nuova, 1999, ISBN 88-311-0326-1. Third edition, Solfanelli, Chieti, 2017, ISBN 978-88-7497-667-6.
• Pio IX, Milano, Piemme, 2000, ISBN 88-384-4893-0. Translated in Portuguese, Civilização, 2000, ISBN 972-26-1910-1 and in English, Gracewing, 2003, ISBN 0-85244-605-5.
• La souveraineté nécessaire. Réflexions sur la déconstruction de l’Etat et ses conséquences pour la société, Paris, Editions François-Xavier de Guibert, 2000. Translated in Italian, il Minotauro, 2001, ISBN 978-88-8073-060-6 and in Portuguese, Civilização, 2002, ISBN 972-26-2077-0. Second edition, I libri del Borghese, 2019, ISBN 978-88-7557-611-0.
• Quale papa dopo il papa, Milano, Piemme, 2002, ISBN 883846524X.
• Guerra santa guerra giusta. Islam e Cristianesimo in guerra, Milan, Piemme, 2002, ISBN 88-384-6980-6. Translated in Portuguese, Civilização, 2002, ISBN 972-26-1686-2 and in English, Chronicles Press/The Rockford Institute, 2007, ISBN 978-0972061650.
• L'identità culturale come progetto di ricerca, Rome, Liberal Edizioni, 2004.
• La "Biblioteca dell’amicizia". Repertorio critico della cultura cattolica nell'epoca della Rivoluzione 1770–1830, Naples, Bibliopolis, 2005, ISBN 88-7088-487-2.
• De Europa. Tra radici cristiane e sogni postmoderni, Florence, Le Lettere, 2006, ISBN 88-6087-002-X.
• La dittatura del relativismo, Chieti, Solfanelli, 2007, ISBN 88-89756-26-8. Translated in Portuguese, Civilização, 2008, ISBN 978-972-26-2738-2; in polish, Warszawa, 2009, ISBN 978-83-61344-06-3 and in French, Muller Edition, 2011, ISBN 978-2-904255-92-2.
• Il CNR e le Scienze Umane. Una strategia di rilancio, Rome, National Research Council, 2008, ISBN 88-89756-26-8.
• La liturgia della chiesa nell'epoca della secolarizzazione, Rome, Solfanelli, 2009, ISBN 978-88-89-75659-1.
• Turchia in Europa. Beneficio o catastrofe?, Milan, SugarCo, 2009, ISBN 978-88-71-98573-2. Translated in English, Gracewing, 2009, ISBN 978-0-85244-732-1; in German, Resch Verlag, 2010, ISBN 978-3-935197-95-3 and in polish, Piotra Skargi, 2010, ISBN 978-83-88739-26-2.
• Il Concilio Vaticano II. Una storia mai scritta, Torino, Lindau, 2010, ISBN 88-7180-894-0. Translated in German, Sarto Verlag, 2011, ISBN 978-3-96406-011-2; in Portuguese, Ambientes & Costumes, 2012, ISBN 978-85-61749-36-1; in polish, Centrum Kultury i Tradycji, 2012, ISBN 978-83-935242-1-1; in English, Loreto Publications, ISBN 9781622920020; in French, Muller Editions, 2013, ISBN 9791090947122; in Spanish, Homo Legens, 2018, ISBN 9788417407124; in slovak, Nadácia Slovakia Christiana, 2019, ISBN 9788097259761. Prize Acqui-Storia 2013.
• Il mistero del male e i castighi di Dio, Verona, Fede & Cultura, 2011, ISBN 978-88-64-09110-5.
• Apologia della tradizione, Torino, Lindau, 2011, ISBN 978-88-7180-950-2. Translated in Brazilian, Ambientes & Costumes, 2013, ISBN 978-85-61749-37-8; in French, Editions de Chiré, 2017, ISBN 9782851901880; in German, Grignon Verlag, 2018, ISBN 978-3-932085-67-3; in Spanish, Dufourq y Viano, 2018, ISBN 978-987-42-6940-9 and in English, Angelus Press, 2019, ISBN 9781949124033.
• L'Euro contro l'Europa. Vent'anni dopo il Trattato di Maastricht (1992–2012), Rome, Solfanelli, 2012, ISBN 978-88-74-97752-9.
• Pio IX e la rivoluzione italiana, Siena, Cantagalli, 2012, ISBN 978-88-82-72763-5.
• La Chiesa fra le tempeste. Il primo millennio di storia della Chiesa nelle conversazioni a Radio Maria, Milan, Sugarco Edizioni, 2012, ISBN 978-88-7198-643-2. Translated in French, Le Drapeau blanc, 2017, ISBN 979-10-93228-09-9 and in English, Calx Mariae Publishing, 2022, ISBN 978-1-8384785-3-7.
• Vicario di Cristo. Il primato di Pietro tra normalità ed eccezione, Verona, Fede e Cultura, 2013, ISBN 978-88-64-09199-0.
• Il Ralliement di Leone XIII. Il fallimento di un progetto pastorale, Florence, Le Lettere, 2014, ISBN 978-88-6087-865-6. Translated in French, Les Editions du Cerf, 2016, ISBN 978-2-204-10555-2.
• Motus in fine velocior. On Eve of 2015 Synod, Rome, Edizioni Fiducia, 2015, ISBN 978-88-86387-12-5.
• Europa cristiana risvegliati, Rome, Lepanto, 2015.
• Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira. Apostolo di Fatima. Profeta del Regno di Maria, Rome, Fiducia, 2017, ISBN 978-88-86-38713-2.
• La Chiesa fra le tempeste. Vol. 2: Dal Medioevo alla Rivoluzione francese, Milan, Sugarco, 2018, ISBN 978-88-71-98736-1.
• Trilogia romana, Rome, Solfanelli, 2018, ISBN 978-88-33-05079-9.
• La critica alla rivoluzione nel pensiero di Augusto Del Noce, Florence, Le Lettere, 2019, ISBN 978-88-9366-1157.
• Love for the Papacy and Filial Resistance to the Pope in the History of the Church, Brooklyn, NY, Angelico Press, 2019, ISBN 978-1-62138-455-7.
• L’Isola misteriosa, Chieti, Solfanelli, 2020, ISBN 978-88-3305-220-5.
• Pio V. Storia di un papa santo, Turin, Lindau, 2021, ISBN 978-88-3353-567-8.
• Sulla liceità morale della vaccinazione, Rome, Edizioni Fiducia, 2021, ISBN 978-1-8384785-0-6. Translated with the same publisher and in the same year in English, ISBN 978-88-86387-27-9; in Portuguese ISBN 978-88-86387-26-2; in German, ISBN 978-88-86387-30-9 and in French, ISBN 978-88-86387-29-3.
• Punishment or Mercy? The divine hand in the age of the coronavirus, London, Calx Mariae Publishing, 2021, ISBN 978-1-8384785-0-6.
• Le misteriose origini del coronavirus, Rome, Edizioni Fiducia, 2021, ISBN 978-88-86387-323. Translated in French, Editions David Reinharc, ISBN 9782493575180.
• I sentieri del male. Congiure, cospirazioni, complotti, Milan, Sugarco Edizioni, 2022, ISBN 978-88-7198-799-6.
• Breve Trattato sulla Divina Provvidenza, Rome, Edizioni Fiducia, 2022, ISBN 978-88-86387-36-1.
• I padrini dell'Italia rossa, Chieti, Solfanelli, 2022, ISBN 978-88-3305-408-7.
• Dio castiga il mondo? La fede di fronte al mistero del male, Verona, Fede & Cultura, 2022, ISBN 9791254780329.

• Finis Vitae. Is Brain Death Still Life?, Soveria Mannelli, CNR-Rubbettino, 2006. Translated in Italian, Rubbettino, 2007, ISBN 978-88-498-2026-3.
• Evoluzionismo. Il tramonto di una ipotesi, Siena, Cantagalli, 2009, ISBN 88-8272-500-6.
• Introduzione a San Pier Damiani, Liber Gomorrhianus, traduzione di Gianandrea de Antonellis, Rome, Edizioni Fiducia, 2015, ISBN 9788886387101. Translated in polish, Wydawnictwo, 2022, ISBN 978-03-7864-485-9.
• Il primo schema sulla famiglia e sul matrimonio del Concilio Vaticano II, Rome, Edizioni Fiducia, 2015, ISBN 9788886387118.
• Depositum Custodi, Rome, Edizioni Fiducia, 2018, ISBN 978-88-86-38715-6.
• Vecchio e nuovo modernismo. Radici della crisi nella Chiesa, Rome, Edizioni Fiducia, 2018, ISBN 978-88-86387-18-7.

• Hermeneutics of the Second Vatican Council

• Official website