Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
With unprecedented cooperation from John Paul II and the people who knew and worked with him throughout his life, George Weigel offers a groundbreaking portrait of the Pope as a man, a thinker, and a leader whose religious convictions defined a new approach to world politics- and changed the course of history.
The man born Karol J zef Wojtyla played a crucial yet underrated role in some of this century's most momentous events. This includes the fall of communism, the Holy See/Israel negotiations of 1991-92, the disintegration of the Nicaraguan, Chilean, and Paraguayan regimes during the 1980s, and the unprecedented papal visit to Cuba. Witness to Hope explains how it is that this "man from a far country," as he describes himself to the Roman crowds on the night of his election, did all of that, and what his accomplishments might portend for the future of both the Church and the world.
George Weigel, a Senior Fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, is a Roman Catholic theologian and one of America's leading commentators on issues of religion and public life. He has been writing about the Pope since the first days of his pontificate, and became good friends with him. He is the author or editor of fourteen books, including The Final Revolution: The Resistance Church and The Collapse of Communism.
"A tremendous achievement."
- The Washington Post
Synopsis
INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER
"A remarkable book. Weigel's biography is likely to remain the standard one-volume reference on John Paul II for many years to come." -- Pittsburg Post-Gazette
?"Fascinating. . . sheds light on the history of the twentieth century for everyone." --New York Times Book Review
The definitive biography of Pope John Paul II that explores how influential he was on the world stage and in some of the most historic events of the twentieth century that can still be felt today
Witness to Hope is the authoritative biography of one of the singular figures--some might argue the singular figure--of our time. With unprecedented cooperation from John Paul II and the people who knew and worked with him throughout his life, George Weigel offers a groundbreaking portrait of the Pope as a man, a thinker, and a leader whose religious convictions defined a new approach to world politics--and changed the course of history. As even his critics concede, John Paul II occupied a unique place on the world stage and put down intellectual markers that no one could ignore or avoid as humanity entered a new millennium fraught with possibility and danger.
The Pope was a man of prodigious energy who played a crucial, yet insufficiently explored, role in some of the most momentous events of our time, including the collapse of European communism, the quest for peace in the Middle East, and the democratic transformation of Latin America. With an updated preface, this edition of Witness to Hope explains how this "man from a far country" did all of that, and much more--and what both his accomplishments and the unfinished business of his pontificate mean for the future of the Church and the world.