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THE POPE OF HOPE – WHAT’S THE TAKE AWAY AMERICA?

Papal Biographer Available for Analysis on Historic Visit

NORTH HAVEN, Conn., April 21, 2008 – The papal plane, Shepherd One, departed JFK Airport last night concluding a six day historic visit that surprised many people. Despite naming his trip, “Christ Our Hope”, many Americans were unsure what the theme of his trip would be, but both critics and champions of the world’s largest Christian denomination agree that what he brought to the United States was a renewal and revival of hope in the midst of a troubled nation.

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 For Pope Benedict XVI, Defending the Right to Life Is Very Personal

NORTH HAVEN, CT, Apr. 13, 2008 – Many people are expecting Pope Benedict XVI to speak out in defense of human life and against abortion during his visit to the United States next week. What few people, realize, however, is that the pope knows firsthand what happens when a society refuses to defend the most defenseless of its citizens.

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THE POPE: AN ORDINARY CHRISTIAN

New Biography Reveals Origins of Benedict XVI’s Attachment to Traditional Christianity

NORTH HAVEN, Conn., April 2, 2008 – Joseph Ratzinger once described himself as “a perfectly ordinary Christian.” As Brennan Pursell, author of Benedict of Bavaria, discovered in his visits to the Pope’s homeland, Joseph Ratzinger and his family were no different than their neighbors. They prayed daily, went to church on Sundays and holy days, and kept up the customs and devotional practices of the Church year. Over time it would become clear, however, that young Joseph was different from the other boys in the village—his was a profound faith illuminated by a truly brilliant mind.

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WHO IS THIS POPE FROM BAVARIA?

Soon-to-be-Released Papal Biography Reveals the Heart and Soul of Benedict XVI

NEW HAVEN, CT, April, 2008 – Was Joseph Ratzinger a Nazi? Have Catholic theologians been under attack since “God’s Rottweiler” became pope? Is Pope Benedict’s revision of the Good Friday prayer for the Jews insulting? Why did Benedict XVI bring back the traditional Latin Mass—is he trying to turn back the clock?

These questions and others like them try Brennan Pursell’s patience. As a professor of history he knows that a man’s character cannot be captured in a sound bite. And as frequent visitor to Bavaria (Pursell is fluent in German), it frustrates him that because Pope Benedict lived through the Nazi era there is a suspicion that he harbors Nazi sympathies.

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