This is the fifth volume in a printed series of catechises on the Catholic faith by Pope John Paul II. If you are looking to learn about The Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, then look no further. This book is a compilation of addresses given by The Holy Father on Our Lady. Easy to read because it's a transcript of his addresses, so it reads like the spoken word. Each address is short (most are 3 pages) so it allows for a natural break, allowing the reader to stop and reflect in prayer. Different style than Scott Hahn's "Hail Holy Queen". Deeper and more reflective. A must read for fan's of the Blessed Mother.

"Through The Year With Pope John Paul II" consists of a collection of inspirational thoughts for each day of the year. Each entry consists of a short scripture passage followed by a few paragraphs from a public statement made by His Holiness, either in the first three years of his Papacy or during his priestly service in Poland.

This book is an excellent source of daily spiritual inspiration. Buy it and keep it handy.

This is an excellent study of John Paul II's difficult encyclical on faith and reason. Most of the contributions deal with the vexed issue of "Christian philosophy," a much disputed topic in the 1930s which has been given new life by our reigning philosopher-pope. Highlights are the fine essays by Avery Cardinal Dulles, placing the current issues in historical context, and the remrkable essay by David Meconi on the Marian dimension of philosophy.

This book offers some really insightful pieces on the Pope John Paul II's "Veritatas Splendor." Especially thought-provoking was O'Keefe's piece on Augustine and perfectionism. A great resource for those who really want to think through this Vatican document.

The book was very informative and it gives you alot of information on the last three popes that the roman cathlolic church has had.

Unlike nearly everyone else who's written anything about John Paul II (most especially including the American media, which is obssessed with judging everything by the same standards it applies to American politics and/or entertainment), George Weigel demonstrates in this book that he clearly understands his subject. As a result, he has written a book that gives the reader a complete portrait of a man who will undoubtably do down in history as one of the most important figures of the 20th Century and, most likely, one of the most influential successors to St. Peter in the 2000 year history of the Catholic Church.

At some points, this book will probably be hard for the average reader to get through; Weigel's discussions about the extensive, impressive, grounding in philosophy that Karol Wojtyla had before he became Pope may be too technical for some people, for example. Those defects, however, pale in comparison to the truly inspiring narrative that Weigel has created here; for example, his telling of the rise, fall, and ultimate triumph of the Solidarity movement, and John Paul's undeniable role in the collapse of Soviet Communism, is truly fascinating.

This isn't a book just for Catholics, or Professors of theology, it is the story of a quite ordinary man from Krakow who, due largely to what he would consider the hand of God (though I would add that his intellect had alot to do with it as well), rose to become the answer to Josef Stalin's contemptuous, ultimately foolish, question "How many divisions has the Pope ?"

This book is a long read, but, in the end, well worth it.

This is an excellent book that shows us why our current Pope will someday be known as Pope John Paul II the Great! It is an insightful look into both the pope's life, thought, and faith. It addresses the often neglected Theology of the Body. I had the honor of meeting the Holy Father face to face with my wife after our wedding on our honeymoon and it was an awesome experience. I recommend it to anyone who would like to understand both the man and the Catholic Church as it enters into the third millenium of Our Lord.

For this Presbyterian, George Weigel's book about Pope John Paul II was a revelation not only about a remarkable figure in history, but also about Catholic thought and practice. Weigel has written far more than a conventional biography. "Witness to Hope" is also a sweeping history of John Paul's times and his papacy, a trenchant observer's comments on politics in the '70s and '80s, and a sharp-minded theologian's explication of John Paul's voluminous writings. A couple of critics have sniped that Weigel's book lacks "incisive criticisms" of John Paul. In fact, Weigel does speak critically at many points; he simply does so with such civility and respect that bloodthirsty adversaries of the Pope and his church are likely to be disappointed. Far more valuable is Weigel's fidelity to a principle that he states at the outset: that John Paul's life and papacy can only be understood "from the inside." Weigel's vantage point is as "inside" as any author is likely to get; footnote after footnote reveals that information provided by Weigel comes directly from conversation with John Paul II. Weigel's own credentials as a religious thinker and writer, his access to the Pope and to senior officials of the Holy See, the dramatic life of his subject--- all these make the nearly 900 pages of this immense book richly rewarding for the serious reader. Consistently throughout "Witness to Hope," George Weigel paints a fervently evangelical and intellectual Pope who presents Christianity as demanding, but exciting and fulfilling. One might say the same about George Weigel's book: it makes greater demands upon the reader than would a more superficial, sentimental biography--- but it richly rewards the reader with its account of an important life.

This book spells out the beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church. Be sure and go to the source of the Catholic faith by reading what the Bishops and Popes actually profess.

This book takes the Apostle's Creed and the sacraments as a foundation and builds the beliefs of the Catholic faith around them. The Catechism uses the Bible, the Church Fathers, the Doctors of the Church and Vatican II to detail out the real facts of the Catholic Church.

Get this, read it and decide for yourself!

Also, the leather binding and the pages are of high quality. The book is a value and when you get it you will wonder why it does not cost 3 times more!

Every Christian -- Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox -- should have a copy of this book.

It is more than just an excellent reference book. It is a history of the Church, a prayer book and a book on spirituality. When reading about any of the hundreds of topics covered, one gets the impression that a synopsis of the Holy Spirit's workings throughout history is being conveyed to the reader. It is very easy, fun and informative reading. And it flows. Intertwined throughout the text are thousands of quotes and references to Scripture, Council documents and popes' encyclicals, letters and speeches. A topic is covered in totality and supported with a tremendous amount of easy-to-understand references. Each circumstance is very well evidenced and footnoted. (For this reason, I would also recommend the "Companion To The Catechism Of The Catholic Church" which has the complete text referenced in the Catechism.) The Index is exhaustive.

A wonderful book for all followers of Jesus to read!

Why not buy a bunch of these books and give them away to all your friends that question their faith or yours? I guarantee they will devour the book and come to see what it is we believe as Christians.

There are many nice things about this book. First of all, the hardcover is well bound, and lays flat when open to a particular page, without the pages flipping around to other places within the book (except perhaps at the very beginning and end of the book). This makes it very easy to open the book and keep it open when taking notes or studying. The material in this edition is the authentic teaching of the Catholic Church, but take note of the Glossary at the end (page 864 hardcover); the end of the Glossary's prefatory note states that the Glossary is faithful to the language, but the Glossary itself does not participate in the approval of the text of the Catechism given in the Apostolic Constitution Fidei depositum of Pope John Paul II. That is, the Glossary is given in addition to the Catechism, not as an integral part of it. This may be an important point for persons studying fine theological points and using the Glossary to enhance their understanding of particular points of dogma and doctrine.

While many Protestants object to a "Catechism" at all, they may overlook the fact that there are many Protestant catechisms which really are publications of dogma and doctrine of their particular churches. Also, many, if not most, of these Protestants carry "Study Bibles", which sometimes contain more explanatory notes than Scripture, peruse the NIV study Bible for example to see what I mean. These explanatory notes function for them in much the same way that catechisms work for Protestant Churches that use them, and the Catechism of the Catholic Church for Catholics. They are particular explanations and interpretations of the Christian Faith. For anyone wanting to truly understand what Catholics believe, and for Catholics who need a refresher in understanding their own faith, the Catechism of the Catholic Church is an indispensable part of the study needed (along with, not in place of, the Bible) to gain a true understanding of the Church that Jesus Christ established, on the apostles (Matthew 16:17-19; 18:10-21; 28:19-20; Luke 10:16; 24:44-45; John 13:20; 16:12-13; 20:21-23; Acts 1:15-26; Psalm 109:8; Ephesians 4:13-14; 1 Timothy 3:15; Philemon 1:14; 2 Peter 1:20; 3:16).

I was most interested in what the Pope had to say about other religions, especially Buddhism (being a Buddhist, I suppose this is natural). Since I am not Catholic I will leave aside any evaluation of the rest of the material--Catholics, and many Christians, will no doubt be inspired and educated by what the Pope says, and that is all well and fine. But I think it is interesting that people (in this case Catholics/Christians) turn to a member of their own religion to get information and explanation of some other religion. Would you, after all, go to a biologist to get an explanation of physics, or to a chess player for an explanation of black jack? As irrational (and, indeed, absurd) as it seems, this is rather a popular past time among Christian writers, and now the Pope has joined the fray. Since I would contend that I know and understand Buddhism considerably better than the Pope (I have been a student of the subject for almost 20 years) I can only say this: a criticism or critique of something, a subject or whatever, is only meaningful if the person doing the critiquing has both knowledge and understanding of his/her subject. Yet the Pope's knowledge is obviously second hand. Has he, for example, ever gone on a vipassana retreat, or read--with proper guidance--any Buddhist scriptures? I would guess not. Consequently, his understanding is at best, misguided, and at worst quite distorted. If it were not, I should--as someone knowledgeable of the subject of Buddhism--be able to concur with his statements as both factual and meaningful descriptions of the Buddha's Teaching. But I cannot, and therefore must dismiss the Pope's writing on Buddhism as inane babble. In fact, so obviously prejudiced is the Pope on the subject, that (and here I am going to step out on a limb) he reveals himself as not only a deeply prejudiced individual lacking in sound judgement, but as also a rather shallow intellect. The Pope, far from being infallible as some of his followers like to claim, is quite human and quite fallible and--dare I say it--has more than just a bit of hatred for things he does not even understand. I would expect better from someone who is the spiritual leader of more than a billion people, but then, truth (fortunately) is not a democracy.

This is the best little book on theology one could ever hope to read- Catholic or Protestant. Vittorio Messori (think of him as the Larry King of Italian television) poses the questions and the Pope responds in his own script! It was supposed to be a television interview. The theme is pure and simple and so right-BE NOT AFRAID. From Christmas mystery to Good Friday tragedy to Easter joy, be not afraid- God is there- with us. The first chapter is almost humorous. Vittorio says to the Pope, 'Some people are nervous about you calling yourself the 'Vicar of Christ''. Says the Pope,in so many words, 'Don't worry about it-be not afraid- look at the big picture- trust God- He will see you through'. The whole thing is done with humility and compassion.

Crossing the Threshold is a very interesting treatise from the Holy See written in the form of an interview, where the Pope explains his views of various Christian beliefs - including his belief in God, his views of non-Christian and non-Catholic faiths, and Mariology. His views appear to negate the claims put forth by anti-Catholics and tend to look to the new millennium with hope instead of fear.

An important message in this book is reiterated strongly by JPII's pontificate: Be not afraid. Great advice from probably the greatest Pope we've had in a long time.

This book gives an eye opening view of the current Pope. It shows how his upbringing in Poland led him to have his feelings of friendship with the Jewish people. He is presented as a true "tzadik". The book also briefly relates on how the works of Pope John XXIII and Cardinals Willebrands, O'Connor and Spellman have brought about a better understanding of Judaism in the Church. If their messages could only filter down to the populace...

This is a fabulous book. I am neither Catholic nor Jewish, but I was fascinated by the depth of the man we all call Pope. I had no idea of his personal journey, and the breadth of his goodness. Too many times, we don't look beyond the title and the robes. This is truly a saintly man.

I found this book very informative on the Pope, who has always been a hero of mine. It was very indepth and historical. Although it was not negative about the Pope it did seem to contain some incorrect statments on the views of catholics and the teachings of the Church. I felt it was assumed that catholics are, in general, negative towards Jews. I have always been a believing catholic and have never thought of Jews as "Christ Killers" or anything like that. I have never found anything in Catholic teaching that would support those views, most of these from writings from before John Paul II. Usually I read that we are all personally guilty of the crucifiction by our own sins. Over all it was a good and worthwhile reading.

This is an impressive book on the moral thought of John Paul II. The Jesuits write with verve about the moral views of the pope. The viewpoints go from liberal to conservative. The most interesting chapters talk about how the Pope's moral theory affects the political activism of the church.

John Paul II has changed the face of the world. The rebirth of democracy in Eastern Europe, in Latin America, and in the Philippines is in large measure his work and the work of his church. The Jesuit writers of this book explain the moral vision behind the Pope's titanic political struggle---and they are clearly cheering him on!

I was aware of the many moral positions taken by John Paul II on different issues. But this book explains the philosophical and theological background to the positions. The chapters on conscience, law, and freedom are especially good. Very careful scholarship.