Benedict XVI - Böcker

In 50 brief chapters, originally delivered as public audiences to the faithful in St Peter's Square, Benedict XVI offers absorbing, perceptive, and often edifying sketches of some of Christianity's greatest thinkers and writers. The book is divided in four parts: The Apostolic Fathers: Witnesses from the first generations after the New Testament; The Patristic Theologians: From councils and controversies, from Origen to Augustine; Early Medieval Thinkers: The beginnings of scholastic and monastic theologies; Later Medieval Thinkers: The flowering of Christian theology in the high Middle Ages. Benedict discusses the most notable theologians from East and West, along with figures whose primary witness was as ascetics, poets, mystics, and a number of popes, politicians, and missionaries. The historical circumstances and theological ideas of each are explained with the clarity of an experienced teacher. Benedict always has an eye to their deepest religious convictions and struggles as well as to their present importance to the church and Christian life today.

These five superb homilles by the newly elected Pope, Benedict XVI, provide a clear and biblically based explanation of the first few chapters of the Bible. Reissued with a new cover and ISBN to celebrate Joseph Ratzinger's election. While the stories of the creation of the world and the fall of humankind have often given rise to conflict - fundamentalists twist them into science and history while rationalists approach them by 'divorcing God from creation' - the Pope presents the Catholic middle ground in explaining the vitality of these early Old Testament writings. Beginning each homily with the selected text from Genesis, the Pope discusses, in turn, God the creator, the meaning of the biblical creation accounts, the creation of human beings, sin and salvation, and the consequences of faith in creation. In the Beginning presents a compelling account of the value of creation for our times.