In God's Hands: The Spiritual Diaries of Pope St John Paul II - Hardcover

Pope St John Paul II

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0008101051 ISBN 13: 9780008101053

Publisher: Catholic Truth Society, 2017

Synopsis

The spiritual diaries of Pope St John Paul II – published for the first time ever in English. The most intimate insight into the longest-serving pontiff of our time.

Ten years after his death, the popularity and devotion towards John Paul II, the pope who helped bring down communism in his native Poland, the great statesman, and the most-travelled pope in history, remains as strong as ever.

Since his early years as a priest in the 1960s, up until 2003, two years before his death, the pope kept a spiritual diary, recording his reflections on God, life, spirituality, the problems facing the church – and his own struggles.

Never intended for publication, these diaries were entrusted before his death to his personal secretary, who saw fit to have them published as they represent an unprecedented and important testament to the spirituality of this Christian leader, adored to this day by Catholics and non-Catholics alike.

About this title

Review:

“We remember [John Paul II] as a great Witness of the suffering Christ, dead and risen’
- Pope Francis

From the Back Cover:

As the head of the Roman Catholic Church from 1978 until his death in 2005, Pope John Paul II shaped his times in ways few other popes could claim. This powerful and now sainted leader made headlines by conferring with heads of state, inspiring and leading fellow Catholics and other Christians, and building the foundations for making Rome the head of a truly global church.

What the headlines failed to capture, however, was Karol Jozef Wojtyla's longstanding practice of taking regular spiritual retreats for which he recorded his thoughts, worries, meditations, hopes, and prayers. From 1962 until two years before his death, John Paul II filled a series of private diaries, written in his native Polish and never before made public. These journals provide intimate and deeply moving insight into a man, a priest, and a saint, revealing a life devoted completely to God.

In God's Hands lays bare the soul of this powerful, influential statesman, revealing a devout man untouched by his celebrity status; a selfless servant of God who spent decades questioning whether he was worthy of the role he was called to carry out. Over forty years, from his bishopric in Krakow to his election to the papacy to his final years, one question guided him: "Am I serving God?"

Entrusted to his personal secretary--who defied John Paul II's instructions to burn them after his death--these notebooks provide us with a privileged glimpse into the life of a humble man whose faith helped change the world and his beloved church.

About this edition

• Publisher: Catholic Truth Society
• Publication date: 2017
• ISBN 10: 0008101051
• ISBN 13: 9780008101053
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 512