Influential People

The Miracle of Hope

Political Prisoner, Prophet of Peace

Life of Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan

By Andre Van Chau

Paperback

Written by a personal friend of Cardinal Van Thuan, this moving biography chronicles the life of the man Pope John Paul II says was "...marked by a heroic configuration with Christ on the cross." From a communist jail cell, to Rome as the leader of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan remained a man of unshakable faith and undying hope.

MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

Spirit-Led Prophet, A Biography

New and Updated Edition

Author: Richard Deats

Paperback

Martin Luther King, Jr.: Spirit-led Prophet tells the compelling story of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. pastor, theologian, scholar, orator, civil rights leader, martyr. Spirit-led Prophet chronicles King's activities illustrating his nonviolent faith and how he lived it out in his ministry. In the midst of a tumultuous public life, King prayed for guidance and depended upon God's spirit to lead him. Despite the cruelty and violence of the forces arrayed against the movement, King stressed the necessity to love ones enemies, to believe that unearned suffering is redemptive and to have faith in God's just purposes.

Is truth knowable? If we know the truth, must we hide it in the name of tolerance? Cardinal Ratzinger engages the problem of truth, tolerance, religion and culture in the modern world. Describing the vast array of world religions, Ratzinger embraces the difficult challenge of meeting diverse understandings of spiritual truth while defending the Catholic teaching of salvation through Jesus Christ. "But what if it is true?" is the question that he poses to cultures that decry the Christian position on man's redemption. Upholding the notion of religious truth while asserting the right of religious freedom, Cardinal Ratzinger outlines the timeless teaching of the Magisterium in language that resonates with our embattled culture. A work of extreme sensitivity, understanding, and spiritual maturity, this book is an invaluable asset to those who struggle to hear the voice of truth in the modern religious world.

"Beyond all particular questions, the real problem lies in the question about truth. Can truth be recognized? Or, is the question about truth simply inappropriate in the realm of religion and belief? But what meaning does belief then have, what positive meaning does religion have, if it cannot be connected with truth?"
—Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger
From the Preface

Paperback, 280 pages

Introduction to Christianity, 2nd Edition,Revised Edition

Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger

One of Cardinal Ratzinger's most important and widely read books, this volume is a newly revised second edition with an improved translation and an in-depth 20 page preface by the Cardinal. As he states in the preface, since this book was first published over 30 years ago, many changes and significant events have occurred in the world, and in the Church. But even so, he says he is firmly convinced that his fundamental approach in this book is still very timely and crucial for the spiritual needs of modern man. That approach puts the question of God and the question about Christ in the very center, which leads to a "narrative Christology" and demonstrates that the place for faith is in the Church.

Thus, this remarkable elucidation of the Apostle's Creed gives an excellent, modern interpretation of the foundations of Christianity. Ratzinger's profound treatment of Christianity's basic truths combines a spiritual outlook with a deep knowledge of Scripture and the history of theology.