It’s not often that I feel moved to post a publisher’s press release about a new book but this new title from Ignatius Press seems to demand our attention. It would seem to be a dream come true, or, at any rate, the answer to a fervent prayer, that the Holy Father should be moved to speak candidly on the leading issues of the day to a sympathetically oriented journalist. Reading this book gives us privileged access to the Pope’s private thoughts. It might not be as good as a personal audience in which the Holy Father invites us to ask him anything we liked but it’s pretty much the next best thing. It invites us to be the proverbial fly on the Vatican wall, affording us the privilege to listen to the Pope’s conversation. Put simply, this book is not to be missed!
Here’s the press release:
Pope gives full-length interview in the most unanticipated book of the year
Ignatius Press to publish book-length exclusive interview of Pope Benedict XVI
http://www.ignatius.com/Products/LIWO-H/light-of-the-world.aspx
SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 10, 2010 – Never before in history has a Pope answered a journalist’s wide-ranging, personal, and controversial questions in a direct, one-on-one, book-length series of interviews. But for six days this past July, Pope Benedict XVI did just that with journalist Peter Seewald. The result is a no-holds-barred, 239-page book of candid, explicit, and often surprising questions and answers.
“Light of the World: The Pope, the Church and the Signs of the Times” will be released globally on Nov. 24.
“What the Pope sees,” says best-selling papal biographer George Weigel, “and what he discusses with frankness, clarity, and compassion in this stimulating conversation with Peter Seewald, is a world that … has lost its story: a world in which the progress promised by the humanisms of the past three centuries is now gravely threatened by understandings of the human person that reduce our humanity to a congeries of cosmic chemical accidents: a humanity with no intentional origin, no noble destiny, and thus no path to take through history.”
In “Light of the World” journalist Seewald poses such challenging questions as:
- What caused the sexual-abuse scandal in the Church?
- Was there a cover-up?
- Did you think of resigning?
- Should the Church rethink her position on contraception, and same-sex relationships?
- Do you fear assassination?
- Did you make mistakes in the beginning of your papacy?
- What about homosexuality in the priesthood?
- What do you think about the global climate crisis?
- Can there be dialogue with Islam?
- Did early Christian leaders change the original message of Jesus?
- Is Christianity the only truth?
“Of course, many-maybe most-Americans will disagree with the Pope on the controverted issues of our time. But they might be surprised to learn the reasons he gives for his positions. And they might find it difficult to mount a credible counter-argument,” says Jesuit Fr. Joseph Fessio, a former student of Pope Benedict and the publisher of the new book in the US.
“Light of the World” is lively and fast-paced. Pope Benedict XVI and Peter Seewald enjoy a challenging and, at times, entertaining exchange. This truly is the most UN-anticipated book of the season.
For more information about “Light of the World” or to schedule an interview with experts on the book, please contact Lisa Wheeler or Christine Schicker with The Maximus Group at 678-990-9032.
For More Information:
Lisa Wheeler, 678.990.9032; ext 102
Christine Schicker, 404-610-8871
Unfortunately, Joseph, it’s out of stock.