COMMENTARY: Perhaps the most valuable trait John will be remembered for was his willingness to put into practice what popes have often taught about journalism: to report truth with charity.

John Allen, who died Thursday at age 61 after a lengthy battle with cancer, was a formidable and exemplary Vatican correspondent whose esteemed professionalism was matched by his sincere personal kindness and generosity.

Widely respected on all sides of the Church for his coverage, he blazed a trail in reporting on Rome events, conscientiously seeking to inform the wider public about Vatican and papal news at a time when religious-affairs editors were cutting back on resources and coverage was increasingly tainted by ignorance and superficiality. 

Before founding the Church news agency Crux in 2014, he served for 17 years as the Rome correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter (1997 to 2014), during which time he quickly gained a reputation for fair, accurate and balanced reporting — a significant feat given the partisan position of his bosses. He then coupled that with incisive, perceptive, informative analysis and, of course, his characteristic good humor. 

But none of his professionalism was achieved merely through research and observing the Vatican from afar. Rather, it was the fruit of much old-fashioned “shoe-leather” reporting: interviewing countless bishops and cardinals, nurturing Vatican sources, and attending an infinite number of Rome conferences and seminars — something new and which few other journalists did at that time.

He relished the work and was grateful for it. He would often say that he considered the Vatican to be the best beat for a journalist to cover because it encompassed so many core aspects vital to human existence, making it an endless source of interest and fascination. 

On a personal level, John was a friend of mine and of many of us in the Vatican press corps, regardless of the outlet we worked for or the ecclesiastical leanings he might not have shared. Indeed, his objectivity was such that at times it was hard to know where he stood.

Looking back at our email correspondence over the years, John’s messages invariably were ones of willing assistance, encouragement or, being the gregarious man he was, frequent invitations to drinks or dinner at his home — even, amusingly, via Zoom during the COVID lockdown.

When I unwittingly found myself at the center of a controversy involving Cardinal Walter Kasper in 2014 and felt obliged to issue a statement to clarify matters, John kindly complimented me on my handling of it — a gesture he didn’t of course need to do but which was greatly appreciated.

In 2020, when we were looking for a Vatican expert to appear on a televised panel at the launch of the book The Next Pope: Nineteen Leading Cardinal Candidates, John was the natural choice, having written the acclaimed 2003 book Conclave: The Politics, Personalities, and Process of the Next Papal Election. 

He happily obliged, and he helped enliven the discussion with his expert and invaluable analysis. He also defended the book from its detractors, and he did so againwhen we expanded on the book to produce The College of Cardinals Report last year. 

Naturally jocular, John had a knack for injecting appropriate lightheartedness into his reporting on what could often be grave matters, a much-needed trait at a time when there was a dearth of good news emerging from the Vatican. He also had a skill not only for engaging prose but for putting complex Vatican matters into sound bites that made him a darling of secular news outlets. 

But perhaps the most valuable trait John will be remembered for was his willingness to put into practice what popes have often taught about journalism: to report truth with charity. He warned about attributing malice to what is likely incompetence and would rarely take a sensational or surprising tone about Vatican news, remarking that for such an institution with its long history, nothing is really “unprecedented.” 

His widow Elise put it best in her touching tribute to him. Her husband, she wrote, was always “willing to give people the benefit of doubt and chose to interpret their words and actions through the kindest and most generous lens possible.” It’s a quality much needed in the public square today. 

Thank you for your invaluable work and loyal friendship, John. You will be greatly missed. May your soul rest in peace.

This article was originally published by EWTN News English.