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God and the World: A Conversation With Peter Seewald [Paperback]

Pope Benedict XVI , Peter Seewald , Henry Taylor
4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)

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Book Description

August 2002
During his years as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, well-known Vatican prelate Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger has given three in-depth interviews. The first two interviews have become best selling books: The Ratzinger Report and Salt of the Earth. Because of the tremendous reception those books received, the Cardinal agreed to do another interview with journalist Peter Seewald, who had done the very popular Salt of the Earth interview. This third in-depth interview addresses deep questions of faith and the living of that faith in the modern world.

The interview took place over three full days spent at the Benedictine Abbey of Monte Cassino in a setting of the silence, prayer, and hospitality of the monks. For this meeting with the highly regarded Churchman, theologian, and author, the seasoned journalist, who had fallen away from the faith but eventually returned to the Church, once again provided a very stimulating, well-prepared series of wide-ranging questions on profound issues. The Cardinal responds with candor, frankness and deep insight, giving answers that are sometimes surprising and always thought provoking.


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God and the World: A Conversation With Peter Seewald + Salt of the Earth: The Church at the End of the Millennium-  An Interview With Peter Seewald + Light of the World: The Pope, The Church and the Signs Of The Times
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 460 pages
  • Publisher: Ignatius Pr; First American edition (August 2002)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0898708680
  • ISBN-13: 978-0898708684
  • Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 1.3 x 8 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #368,139 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Born in 1927 in Germany as Joseph Ratzinger, Pope Benedict XVI has been head of the Roman Catholic Church since April 2005. A prolific author, theologian and university professor, Ratzinger served as an "expert" at the Second Vatican Council, and was tapped in 1977 by Pope Paul VI to lead the German Archdiocese of Munich and Freising. In 1981, Pope John Paul II called him to Rome to head the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, where he served until his papal election.

Customer Reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
(13)
4.6 out of 5 stars
This is a very easy-to-read book. geridoc  |  4 reviewers made a similar statement
The book is worth reading by anyone, and a must reading by a Christian Catholic. Joseph Nastasi  |  5 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
44 of 44 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Recent reflections by the new pope April 22, 2005
Format:Paperback
Pope Benedict XVI, as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, gave an interview to Peter Seewald a few years before the turn of the millennium, in a book entitled 'Salt of the Earth'. A few years after the turn of the millennium, Seewald followed up this earlier publication with this book, 'God and the World'. In it, Seewald take a bit more of a systematic approach to discussing theological topics.

In the first section, the Prologue, Seewald continues in a vein similar to the earlier book, asking questions that are both academic and personal, discussing issues of faith, vocation, mystery and belief. Ratzinger speaks of his personal devotion and prayer practices, which include traditional forms of standard communal prayer (noontime Angelus, Vespers, Compline) as well as his own personal prayer practices, such as reciting a prayer before rising in the morning. He gives an account of how this kind of practice strengthens and reinforces itself, saying that 'the organ of sensitivity to God can atrophy to such an extent that the words of faith become quite meaningless.'

Seewald directs the questions in a format that might serve as a guide to following a systematic theology - while this is not Ratzinger's systematic theology by any means, one can see the philosophical and theological consistency even in the answers to the question-and-answer format. He speaks of God, creation, Christology, scripture, sacraments, ecclesiology, and more. These are done in creative but traditional ways - for example, the section of Christology (speaking of Jesus Christ), the conversation falls under broad headings of Revelation, The Way, The Truth, and The Light (as separate sections). He also explores issues of Mariology and the significance of the Cross.

The sections on the sacraments and the future are both firmly grounded in a sense that they need to be connected to the happenings in this world. Ratzinger looks forward to a resurgence of the spiritual in Christianity, and this perhaps taps into one of his namesakes, the St. Benedict who was an early pioneer in the development of monastic community and spirituality.

Interestingly, given Ratzinger's selection of papal name as Benedict XVI, this interview (the third in-depth interview with Seewald) was conducted at a Benedictine Abbey, the famous Abbey of Monte Cassino.

There are many books that can give good insight into the thinking of the new pope, but this book is a key text to show both his recent thinking, as well as his responses to crucial questions of concern in the current situation in the church and in the world.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars "The belief of Christendom from beginning to end" July 26, 2006
By geridoc
Format:Paperback
As a Cardinal the current Pope gave an astonishing interview to Peter Seewald. The astonishing part of this book is the breadth of the questions asked and the simple but deeply moving answers that were given. If you have read Ratzingers own works, you know that they are not easy reading. This book is very very different. It is an interview and the tone is conversational. Some of the questions asked of him are provoking eg., "Was Jesus a Catholic?" The answers are surprisingly moving, tolerant and reveal a depth of knowledge. Other questions such as "Is God male or female". "What does God look like?" "Is faith an auto-suggestion" etc are handled in the same manner.

If regular theology is too much of a chore for you but you want to know what the theology of Ratzinger/Benedict is, then look no further. This is a very easy-to-read book.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, Insightful, Approachable, Interesting! June 9, 2006
Format:Paperback
Read this book.

There are so many things that are wonderful about this book; it is hard to know where to begin. First and foremost, this is a fantastic comprehensive synthesis of Ratzinger's views regarding much of the current concerns of the Church and of the world.

Additionally, the question and answer format makes this book extremely accessible, even for those who might think they are too busy to read about the new Pope. I would even say that the topics that are discussed in this interview are of interest to everybody as they do not necessarily revolve around interior Church issues.

Like I said earlier, I suggest that you read this book. It's a great way to start learning more about what Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI) is like and how he thinks.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book to respond to common and logic interrogations that seem to...
As all of Ratzinger's work, this book explains in a common and simple approach the questions any teenager or adult have asked about Faith along the centuries. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Marcela Villarreal
5.0 out of 5 stars Better Than Expected
Similar to 'Salt of the Earth', this book- 'God and the World' is full of wisdom, common sense, truth and anecdotal information which enlightens and illuminates the Catholic faith. Read more
Published 21 months ago by aline
5.0 out of 5 stars a must read for Catholics (and anyone else)
In my opinion, Pope Benedict XVI is a brilliant theologian and I enjoyed reading this interview very much. Read more
Published on December 25, 2009 by E. J. Phelan
5.0 out of 5 stars 2 views - Pope Benedict's and Seewald's
Overall, an excellent, informative volume, useful for inspirational browsing. The one caveat arises by comparison to Pope Benedict's self-authored works, as opposed to this... Read more
Published on March 27, 2009 by Ed
5.0 out of 5 stars A Conversation with the Next Pope
In an interview with Peter Seewald, Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI) humbly expresses his views and beliefs about God, Jesus and the Church, which gives us an... Read more
Published on March 3, 2006 by M. Schleimer
4.0 out of 5 stars Thus Spoke Pope Benedict XVI
The book is an extensive overview of the Christian faith from a Catholic point of view, the format is question-answer, and the questions are by the well prepared (and friendly)... Read more
Published on February 23, 2006 by Joseph Nastasi
5.0 out of 5 stars A Fine Introduction to the Theology of Pope Benedict XVI
In a series of conversations, which took place over several days with journalist Peter Seewald, Cardinal Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI, offers theological insights and explains... Read more
Published on December 5, 2005 by Steven K. Szmutko
4.0 out of 5 stars A Portrait of a Truly Christian Soul
I had been quite surprised reading "Salt of the Earth" at Cardinal Ratzinger's measured response to Peter Seewald's questions. Read more
Published on September 15, 2005 by Arthem
5.0 out of 5 stars Ratzinger interview part 3
I don't like writing reviews, but I was moved to after reading the 2* review given to this book. After 'The Ratzinger Report' and 'Salt of the Earth', here we come to the 3rd... Read more
Published on November 25, 2003 by Joe
2.0 out of 5 stars a bit wishy washy and cotton wool
Ratzinger is rather ambiguous in this book in certain doctrines. he doesn't sound 'staunch' or 'orthodox'. seems to be trying to please everyone and it gets 'foggy' at times. Read more
Published on September 29, 2003 by D
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