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In this book, author Paul Kengor draws parallels between Pope John Paul II and Ronald Reagan. Not only in their great desire to rid the world of the threat of communism but also in events that happened during their lives. The focus is mainly on the history of these two individuals and their combined efforts against what they saw as the greatest threat to liberty and faith but there is considerable thought and room given to the historical stance of the leadership of the Catholic Church. As I am a Christian but not a Catholic, much of this information was new (and informative) to me.
The events the two leaders shared start with their childhood influence of a deeply religious parent (father with the Pope and mother with President Reagan) to their first careers as actors to the loss of their fathers mere weeks apart in 1941 and then to their attempted assassinations (again weeks apart) in 1981. The two men, once they met in 1982, developed a good relationship in their efforts and became close friends with what President Reagan called a shared “Divine Plan”.
The book also chronicles some of the history of the Catholic Church's stand against Communism when the rest of the world seemed to see it as less of a threat. It also touches on the history of Nazi Germany and other totalitarian movements but the main focus of the book is the relationship and the actions that two of the foremost Christian leaders of their time took to bring down what President Reagan dubbed “the evil empire”.
While I generally read historical accounts of much older events than these (some of which happened during my lifetime), I found the book both interesting and thought provoking.
The events the two leaders shared start with their childhood influence of a deeply religious parent (father with the Pope and mother with President Reagan) to their first careers as actors to the loss of their fathers mere weeks apart in 1941 and then to their attempted assassinations (again weeks apart) in 1981. The two men, once they met in 1982, developed a good relationship in their efforts and became close friends with what President Reagan called a shared “Divine Plan”.
The book also chronicles some of the history of the Catholic Church's stand against Communism when the rest of the world seemed to see it as less of a threat. It also touches on the history of Nazi Germany and other totalitarian movements but the main focus of the book is the relationship and the actions that two of the foremost Christian leaders of their time took to bring down what President Reagan dubbed “the evil empire”.
While I generally read historical accounts of much older events than these (some of which happened during my lifetime), I found the book both interesting and thought provoking.
About the Author
Paul Kengor, PhD, is the New York Times bestselling author of God and Ronald Reagan, The Crusader: Ronald Reagan and the Fall of Communism, 11 Principles of a Reagan Conservative, Dupes, The Communist, and other books. A professor of political science and the executive director of the Center for Vision and Values at Grove City College, he has written for a range of popular and scholarly publications, including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, National Review, Political Science Quarterly, Christianity Today, the National Catholic Register, and the National Catholic Reporter. Kengor has appeared on Fox News, MSNBC, NPR, C-SPAN, and many other outlets. He and his family live in Pennsylvania.
