A CHRISTMAS GIFT
ONE MONTH EARLY
In less than a month Ignatius Press will be publishing a book by a fairly well-known man that is sure to get some attention:
Light Of The World The Pope, The Church and The Signs Of The Times, the third book-length interview by German journalist Peter Seewald of Pope Benedict XVI.
The first two interviews,
Salt of the Earth, and
God and the World, took place before Cardinal Ratzinger was elected pope; Seewald is also the author of
Benedict XVI: An Intimate Portrait. Light of the World is wide-ranging and unprecedented:
Never has a Pope, in a book-length interview, dealt so directly with such wide-ranging and controversial issues as Pope Benedict XVI does in
Light of the World. Taken from a recent week-long series of interviews with veteran journalist Peter Seewald, this book tackles head-on some of the greatest issues facing the world of our time. Seewald poses such forthright questions to Pope Benedict as:
•What caused the clergy sexual abuse in the Catholic Church?
•Was there a "cover up"?
•Have you considered resigning?
•Does affirming the goodness of the human body mean a plea for "better sex"?
•Can there be a genuine dialogue with Islam?
•Should the Church rethink Catholic teaching on priestly celibacy, women priests, contraception, and same-sex relationships?
•Holy Communion for divorced-and-remarried Catholics?
•Is there a schism in the Catholic Church?
•Should there be a Third Vatican Council?
•Is there any hope for Christian unity?
•Is Christianity the only truth?
•Can the Pope really speak for Jesus Christ?
•How can the Pope claim to be "infallible"?
•Is there a "dictatorship of relativism" today?
Twice before, these two men held wide-ranging discussions, which became the best-selling books
Salt of the Earth and
God and the World. Then, Seewald's discussion partner was Joseph Ratzinger, head of the Vatican's chief doctrinal office.
Now, Joseph Ratzinger is Pope Benedict XVI, the spiritual leader of the world's over one billion Catholics. Though Seewald now interviews the Pope himself, the journalist "pulls no punches", posing some of the thorniest questions any Pope has had to address.
Believers and unbelievers will be fascinated to hear Benedict's thoughtful, straightforward and thought-provoking replies. This is no stern preachment or ponderous theological tract, but a lively, fast-paced, challenging, even entertaining exchange.
The Foreword to
Light of the World was written by George Weigel, whose new book,
The End and the Beginning: Pope John Paul II—The Victory of Freedom, the Last Years, the Legacy, is available through Ignatius Press.
Of the thousands of literally ravishing photographs that are available of Pope Benedict XVI, why do book publishers always manage to choose the most 'pedestrian' [for lack of a more appropriate word to characterize their oh-so-undistinguished picks!] for their covers??? GRRRR!!!!
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 29/10/2010 23:35]