This early work captures much of the mood, but not exactly the style that will be prevalent in Bernhard's later work. Written as what can best be described as one long prose poem, the storyline is drawn in fragments of conversation, emotion, images, etc. and can be hard to follow at times. However, what's distilled here is an atmosphere of clausterphobia and approaching madness that is definitely Bernhard's forte. I found it to be incredibly lyrical and poignant, and this piece has remained my favorite even after reading several of his more mature works. Maybe because of the dog (read the book!).

His earliest but already matured prose/A thin(143 pages)book made up of one towering sentence/Dis- turbing plot,problematic hero but gripping tale/ challenging but satisfying masterpiece...

Schimmelpfennig provides the lay reader - and the historian - with a guide that is both accessible and relatively detailed on what is to most an obscure subject. At his best when discussing the political interactions between the papacy and the Carolingian/Holy Roman empires, this book opened up my interest in a host of contemporary issues, from the schism to the Cathar heresy. Good reading.

PS - A must if you are a fan of Umberto Eco

This book is a phenomenal resource for any inquisitive mind desiring to delve into the brilliant panoply of the history of the Roman Catholic Church, and in specific that of its greatest and founding institution: The Papacy. The author's narrative and flowing literary style makes it a joy to read and indeed this book needs no pictures or illustrations whatsoever, so vibrant is the written word. I highly recommend it to any and all who are looking for a thorough, well-written and researched, and easily-digested history. One of the best books available today in the area of papal history.

This is the fourth book in this series and the fourth one I have read. They all have been good and each one I read I think is better than the last one. Ben has agreed to defend a member of a white supremacy group for the murder of a Vietnamese young man. Did the man commit the crime?? He won't say he did or he didn't. Ben uses all his knowledge and people to try to prove him innocent. The whole crew is here, Ben, Christina McCall, Mike Morelli, Jones and Loving. When someone asked if Jones and Loving had a last or first name, Ben's reply was, No, they came that way. The book will hold your attention from beginning to end. Ben gets beat up and then nearly killed. The ending will really suprise you, at least it did me. The courtroom scenes are great. I think you will really like this book.

This is my favorite of all of the "Justice" books. You get a strong sense of the depth of the major characters, as well as a chance to explore the "wrong" side of a case Ben has chosen to defend. This book is more dedicated to exploring the grey areas between what looks like two cut-n-dried sides than most of the others. The unusual twist at the end will have you re-reading the book again looking not for clues that you missed, but character reactions and motives.

Father Bernard Haring is a prolific author on ethical and moral issues, the state of society and the state of the church today. He has given his vast experience and critical insight into this wonderful book, Priesthood Imperiled. Fr. Haring was a professor of moral theology for 25 years at the Lateran University in Rome, as well as having taught at Yale, Brown, Fordham, Georgetown, and Temple universities. The author of more than 80 books, this book is perhaps an eloquent coda on all that he has published and taught before.

Joan Chittister describes this book as

'...a beautiful piece of applied gospel. Its major value, perhaps, lies in the fact that it doesn't come out of theological theory; it comes out of Father Haring's own life. He is what he speaks. But more than that, his book is such a sign of hope for the rest of us.'

This is a very candid book, that explores what is right and what is wrong with the priesthood, or, to be more specific, with particular views of the priesthood, from the inside and outside. He examines the following questions:

'What was the intent of Jesus? Does the priesthood today look like anything Jesus would have actually envisioned or instituted?

How has the idea and enacting of priesthood changed over time, particularly over the past generation?

What attracts people to the priesthood in the first place, and should this be changed?'

Arguing strongly against the tendencies toward elitism and careerism in the priesthood, present those whose vocations were formed both before and after the changes instituted by the Second Vatican Council, he looks for a stronger, more personally connected, more servant-leadership model that the church can truly embrace as the exemplar of priestly character.

'Priests who are not persons for others are living contradictions of their calling.'

Perhaps in no other statement in his book does Haring embrace the idea that Jesus was calling for in the world of discipleship and service. So often in education and formation of ministers of every denomination, the tendency away from actual practice of ministry toward either academic concentration or leadership emphasis takes people away from their true calling.

'Knowing about poverty and living it are two different things. Becoming a disciple of the Son of Man requires that we meditate daily in the here and now, in our lived context, on what it means to be 'one of us'.

Looking at many of the problems with ministry, specifically for Fr. Haring in the Roman Catholic church, but with more general applicability to other denominations and faith traditions, he sees problems arising from a lack of true spirituality on the part of the institutions and the individuals who comprise the institutions. For example, how can a church function in the 'real world' and be a credible witness if it worries about the validity of ministry being dependent upon whether or not the one being ordained touched a chalice, paten, and altar bread at the ceremony?

Also, Fr. Haring decries the tendency toward clerical careerism, resulting in ever more elaborate titles and designations and rights that take the cleric further from the true purpose of ministry, and fills one instead with a sense of self-importance.

'Priesthood is not at all a step upward on the social ladder, but rather a particular commitment to descend, in humility and service, to where the people are, so as to be 'one among them.'

In all, this should probably be a required text of anyone thinking about the priesthood or ministry, or who is already serving in the priesthood or other forms of ministry. Again, while some of the issues are specifically Roman Catholic, the majority of Fr. Haring's thesis applies across the board to ministers of all denominations. Recapturing the spirit of Christ in communion with the world is key to successful ministry, and Fr. Haring does an excellent job of pointing out the journey.

"Those promoters... forever harkening back to antiquity and blaming the Council (Vatican II) remain impregnated with, and ossified by, a timeless, classicist philosophy and theology that renders all things changeless." Pg. 115.

A concerned Father Haring, incisivly, but lovingly, calls for a shift from the moralistic paradigm of obedience over to an ethic of responsibility and co-responsibility amongst priests and bishops so that the leadership of the Church might reassume its role as sentinel and prophet. Haring decries the diminished hier-archic leadership resulting from the self-exemp-tion bishops seem to have presumed from their own promulgations at Vatican II: viz. that clerics ought live amongst the people, to guide them with first hand knowledge and care, as ministers from their midst.

Bernard Haring discusses the need for re-engagement of the now-prohibited dialog on the contemporary issues confronting the Roman Church: marriage, sexual morality, a married clergy, women priests, birth control, end of life issues and the emergent theological and ethical issues of cloning, genetic engineering, as well as, tissue and organ usage.

Presuming that the successors of the current pope will reestablish theological discourse in the academy and in society, which is presently prohibited, Haring calls for an intellectual and theological renewal of the magnitude of Vatican II.

No longer can bingo and buildings be the voca-tional measure of priesthood in the modern world. Sacramental and spiritual leadership, intellectual integrity and courage, conjoined with prophecy and moral guidance must define vocation for priesthood in the new millenia. Nothing, notes Haring, theologically limits priesthood, but the fear of growth or the fear of engaging the third-millenial intellect.

billcondon@aol.com Wm.G.Condon, csc

I am a great admirer of Ruth Bernhard's work. Her photographic books often refer to her father's lack of sympathy for her, but it was shocking to realize how poorly both of her parents treated her. As a result, it was incredibly heart-warming to realize that she had forgiven both of them. The book goes on to detail a woman who mostly raised herself and became an outstanding contributor both as an artist and as a teacher. The book contains many photographs of Ms. Bernhard, her family, and her work. The memoir is a perfect complement to her books of photographic images such as the remarkable, The Eternal Body.

This book is based on recorded conversations between Ms. Margaretta Mitchell (no relation) and Ms. Bernhard when Ms. Bernhard was well past 90. So the main outlines of her life are there, but many of the details are fuzzy.

Ms. Bernhard's parents were divorced when she was two. She could not remember seeing her mother until she was nine. Closer to her father, he too was distant. "Really, he didn't like children at all." On the other hand, her father, "Lucian Bernhard was the most important person in my life until I met Edward Weston." Through most of her life, she "wanted to be her father, the artist."

Lucian Bernhard was a graphic artist who later expanded into painting and sculpture. He was known as the "father of the German poster." He was exceptionally precise and punctilious in all aspects of his life. Both of his marriages seem to have been severely troubled, and he seemed emotionally barren. Financially, he was supportive of his daughter, even though he was a disaster in failing to provide a shoulder to lean on.

Both of her parents remarried, but those new marriages produced siblings and step-parents who made things more difficult for Ms. Bernhard. She could really relate to all of those fairy tales about evil step-mothers. One of the saddest moments in the book comes when she recounts how her mother passed up a chance to see her one last time in order to tend to her dogs instead.

As a result of seeing these marriages, "I never considered marriage for myself." She did have loving relations with both men and women that provided her an emotional foundation that childhood did not.

The book also recounts how she took photographs of nude models for her father's illustrations and posed nude for one of her first lovers. These experiences gave her a special sense of the model's perspective in nudes that made her work surpass everyone else. Ansel Adams called her "the greatest photographer of the nude."

More details about her relationship with Edward Weston are provided here than I have seen elsewhere, including some correspondence published for the first time. "When I first saw Weston's work, I burst into tears." This was the first time that the potential of photography to become art became clear to her.

Although she admired his work and had a terrific relationship with him, it was flirtation rather than indescretion. Mrs. Weston saw her as a rival, though. In this book, Ms. Bernhard notes that she came to see the flaws in the way Weston did his nudes . . . manipulating the models in ways that she finds inappropriate. You will find these comments to be interesting when you compare the works of the two photographers. I think Ms. Bernhard definitely has the better work of the two with nudes.

I especially enjoyed the section on her teaching, and the ending of her career in taking photographs.

You will also learn about the carbon monoxide poisoning that affected her health during her later years.

I came away with even greater admiration for Ms. Bernhard than I could ever have imagined. She is a marvel for having transformed her personal pain into so much beauty for us all.

When she said, "light is the real teacher" I think that she was modestly saying that whatever she learned, she taught herself.

After you read this story, I suggest that you think about how you can take events and circumstances that make you feel unhappy or unloved and transform them into beauty.

Open up all of the wonder in your imagination to see the beauty waiting to be revealed to your heart!

Ruth Bernhard Between Art & Life is a perfect compliment to The Eternal Body. This new book gives the reader a very intimate glimpse of Ruth Bernhard's personal development and artistic development. Her ability to see light and natural forms and to express her vision as a master photographer stems from her very lonely early years as a child.

Her father Lucian Bernhard, a renowned artist and type designer denied her love and recognition, had poor, egocentric relationships with women, yet encouraged her free thinking and artistic expression. It is ironic, and a tribute, that Ruth Bernhard found her identity, forgave her father, and expressed her sense of natural, eternal beauty through photography.

The book contains most of the images in The Eternal Body with stories about their creation and the the models. The text explains the photographs are a result of intuition, and does not delve into technical aspects.

This is a beautiful venture by Ruth Bernhard and Margaretta Mitchell. I collect fine art photography and related books and feel this is the most revealing book about a master photographer in my collection. You will be pleased.

For those who are interested in inspiring portrayal of the human body, this book is a must! It is one of the finest collections of female nudes ever done. The images, reproduction, and paper are all superb. The book clearly deserves more than five stars!

The images in this book would garner an R rating if the book were a motion picture.

Ms. Bernhard takes a different approach to nude photography, partly in reaction to the exploitive work that some men do. She says, "I photograph a woman as part of the universe." She feels that "a minute insect, a mountain range, a human body -- all share equal significance." As a result she notes that "much of my work shares a similar intention [to a Japanese Haiku]." She wants to "illuminate the innate life force and spirit as well as the underlying remarkable bone structure." She looks on these photographs as being similar to the problem of composing a still life. She wants to create a "heightened emotional response" and is "deeply aware of my spiritual connection with it." She is responding to a "great yearning for balance and harmony beyond the realm of human experience, reaching for the essence of oneness with the Universe."

Margaretta Mitchell (no relation) points out that the work stands primarily for going "beyond cultural stereotypes of women." In doing so, Ms. Bernhard has created "focused meditations." She "directs her forms with studio lighting where the model is transfigured by light into sculpture." As a result, you see an "ideal radiant form." She is one of the "masters of the subtleties of lighting." The work evokes much of the majesty of Michaelangelo, Rodin, and Henry Moore.

Finally, from Ms. Bernhard, "The female body is the bearer of new life, it is so very innocent."

You will come away from seeing these images refreshed and reawakened.

My favorites here include: At the Pool, 1951; Dancer in Repose, 1951; Draped Torso, 1962; In the Box, Horizontal, 1962; Two Forms, 1963; Perspective II, 1967; Sand Dune, 1967; Profile, 1967; Transparent, 1968; Dream Figure, 1968; Rice Paper, 1969; Hourglass, 1971; Balancing, 1971; Spanish Dancer, 1971; Symbiosis, 1971; In the Window, 1971; and Resting, 1972.

Many of these images use the human body to evoke nature, our connection to nature, and the similarity of forms throughout nature. For example, in Sand Dune a woman's body is transformed into a landscape.

After you have enjoyed this great book, I suggest that you consider where else you can see connections from one person to another, and from people to objects and vice versa. That can expand your enjoyment of all that surrounds you, as well as open you to experiencing more joy.

Look for the eternal in all you examine!

Ruth Bernhard's photographs are much sought after and the prices have climbed incredibly the past five years. This book explains why without words. Her nudes are classic in every sense of the word. Easily enjoyed by anyone, this book can also serve as an exceptional instruction tool for aspiring photographers.

This brand new bio balances scurillous with serious, and carefully explains background. It's a good intro.

Honegger successfully locates Bernhard in his milieu, the Viennese theater and Austria as a national scandal. Tina Brown in Talk recently wrote about British "genial malice", whereby they can carp at Tony Blair *because* he made a good speech. Bernhard went further: he was more like Eminem today than anyone in the US now.

a "you can't jail me, so try to sue me!" writer.

Honegger reveals lots of new stuff, especially about Bernhard's relationships and the high regard given Bernhard by Austrian aristocracy. Her points about Bernhard's laboring successfully to be an aristocrat hit the mark.

Honegger also notes his Mallorca interviews with Justine Fleischmann. Let's hope they're translated soon.

We need to read more German writers who say writers are worse than dogs because no one trains them where to pee.

The USA with its cargo cults of celebrities and public officials is becoming more like Austria in its public celebrations every day, with interminable strife about being more crude or more subtle played out daily in the press, dishonestly of course. A book on Bernhard and the reaction to pollution that nurtured him can't be more timely.

This book arrived today and I have just read the first half. This is a terrific and, I believe, important book on Bernhard and his art. Honegger is a very subtle reader of Bernhard. What is most appealing is the way she connects Bernhard's writing with his own personal history and the history of Austria. With this work readers of the English-language translations of Bernhard's work now have a first-rate guide to this talented genius.

Peter Filkins has never ever written a review that did not carry some outrageous assertion refuted by the content of the books by the author that he is supposed to have read

I'm pleased that this book is finally in print by a serious publisher. These are amazingly everyday stories, like we hear on the 11:00 news. A bus of school children goes off the road and into a ravine. What event years later would make a town recall this event?Two men look through a telescope over a glacier. One of them drops dead, and the other one lives after having looked through the same lens.On and one, these 104 short stories work on you, as the language grows more complex and compelling.

This book is definitely worth reading from cover to cover! Told in the personal narratives of Monika Schwinn and Bernhard Diehl, it is the story of their survival in the prison camps during the Vietnam Conflict. Through hunger, sickness, and the injustices of war, their undaunting courage courage and perseverence, even in the most intolerable conditions, astounded me. After reading this book, it made me appreciate life, freedom, and peace to greater degree.

Monica and Bernhard were two of five German nurses captured and subjected to four years of death, starvation and misery. As an American POW held with them, I can attest to their strength, their resolve, and their total bravery. While three of their compatriots died quickly, these two managed to survive in the brutal "Jungle POW camps."

Professor Bernhard has written a lucid yet dense explanation of phenomenon that, while much commented on, remains unexplained: Central Bank Independence. Considering the relationship between legislators, parties and central bank independence, Bernhard inserts politics back into a topic where it was previously neglected.

A valuable contribution to political economy and comparative politics.