This is a wonderful, very readable, book on history and apologetics that takes readers (chronologically) through 30 myths about the papacy and provides very clear answers. The myths cover topics such as: that Peter wasn't really a pope (because he refered to himself as a "fellow presbyter", that the Rock referred to in Matthew 16:10 was not really Peter, that Peter wasn't the ultimate authority in the Church because he was rebuked by St. Paul, that the papacy is merely a medieval Roman invention, that the existence of bad popes disqualifies the papacy as being part of Christ's plan for His Church, that Pope Pius XII was the last validly elected pope (the sedevacantist argument) and that Pope Pius XII was silent in the face of Nazi atrocities against the Jews during World War II.

In the tradition of St. Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologica, Patrick Madrid argues against some fairly compelling beliefs of "the other side" in order to help readers more fully understand Catholic doctrine and tradition, as well as be prepared to answer difficult questions posed by non-Catholics and confused Catholics.

Anecdotes and well-chosen quotes really help to illustrate the fallacies of the arguments and make the counter-arguments quite memorable. These responses include quite a bit of pertinent historical details, references to the Bible and the Catechism of the Catholic Church and lots of apologetics "ammunition" for conversations with those who stand against the Pope and the Catholic Church.

Suitable for high school and adult reading.