This is a work in progress (slow progress at that), last updated January 2018.
I will indicate on this page some of the most helpful material I have found in my work. There will be several categories:
- biography of Wojtyła / Pope John Paul II;
- reflections by Pope John Paul II
- writings of Wojtyła / Pope John Paul II;
- studies of his writings and thought.
Note: Many of these books have multiple editions from several publishers.
John Paul’s own writing can be categorised in different ways. I suggest three basic ones: foundational scholarly texts, personal reflections and meditations, and papal documents. The trouble is that there is a huge overlap: many of the personal reflections and books comprised of interview in fact contain crucial insight into his scholarly work.
Currently, I am inclined to think that a good place to begin with the study of Pope John Paul II would be with the personal reflections and meditations of the Pope himself. But then again, sometimes that does not yield its full harvest without an understanding of his scholarly works.
My own approach to the particular document that I am researching requires reading in different fields, including philosophy and soteriology, in order to penetrate the rich layers of meaning.
Biography
Author | Title | Place of publication: Publisher | Date | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Weigel, George | Witness to Hope. The Biography of Pope John Paul II. | London: Harper Collins | 2005. | This very substantial biography by George Weigel is essential reading. Some of the material Weigel uses is found in the autobiographical reflections of John Paul referenced below. These are actually easier reading than Weigel. |
Weigel, George | The end and the beginning : Pope John Paul II : the struggle for freedom, the last years, the legacy | New York: Dubleday | 2010 | The sequel |
Malinski, Mieczyslaw | Pope John Paul II, the Life of Karol Wojtyla | New York: Crossroad | 1981 | Despite its conversational style this is an important book written by a long term friend of John Paul II, and it is quoted by the authoritative writers. |
Reflections by Pope John Paul II
Author | Title | Place of publication | Publisher | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
Pope John Paul II | Be not afraid : Andre Frossard in conversation with Pope John Paul II | London | Bodley Head | 1984 |
Pope John Paul II | Crossing the Threshold of Hope | New York | Knopf : Distributed by Random House | 2003 |
Pope John Paul II | Gift and Mystery: On the Fiftieth Anniversary of My Priestly Ordination | New York: | Doubleday | 1996 |
Pope John Paul II Translated by Walter Ziemba |
Rise, Let Us Be on Our Way | London | Jonathan Cape | 2004 |
Papal Writings
Most of the papal writings of John Paul II can be found on the Vatican website. Among the more important in this context are the following:
Redemptor Hominis (1979)
Dives in Misericordia (1980)
Dominum et vivficantem (1986)
Redemptionis Donum (1984)
BOLLA D’INDIZIONE DEL GIUBILEO PER IL 1950° ANNIVERSARIO DELLA REDENZIONE
Veritatis Splendor
Vita Consecrata
Scholarly Works of Karol Wojtyła
Author | Title | Place of publication and Publisher | Date |
---|---|---|---|
Karol Wojtyla | Faith according to St. John of the Cross | Eugebe, OR: Wipf and Stock | 2009 |
Karol Wojtyla | The Acting Person | Dordrecht, Boston, London, D. Reidel Publishing Company | 1979 |
Karol Wojtyla,Translated by Theresa Sandok OSM. Catholic Thought from Lublin; V 4. edited by Andrew N. Woznicki |
Person and Community : Selected Essays | New York: P. Lang | 1993 |
Karol Wojtyla | Sources of renewal : The Implementation of the Second Vatican Council | London Collins, Fount Paperbacks | 1980 |
About the thought and writing of John Paul II
Author | Title | Place of publication: Publisher | Date | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Buttiglione, Rocco; Translated by Paolo Guietti and Francesca Murphy | Karol Wojtyła, the Thought of the Man Who Became Pope John Paul II | Grand Rapids, Michigan / Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company | 1997 | Excellent indepth introduction to the background and thought of Pope John Paul II: essential reading. |
Guellec, Ronan, director | Jean-Paul II, Pape Personnaliste : La Personne, Don Et Mystère | Toulouse: Carmel | 2008 | |
Hayes, Michael A. and Gerald O’Collins | The Legacy of John Paul II. | London: New York | 2008 | |
Kupczak, Jaroslaw. | Destined for Liberty : The Human Person in the Philosophy of Karol Wojtyła/John Paul II. | Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America Press | 2000 | |
Mannion, Gerard, editor | The Vision of John Paul II. | Collegeville : Liturgical Press | 2008 | |
McDermott, John M | The Thought of Pope John Paul II : A Collection of Essays and Studies.. | Roma: Editrice Pontificia Università Gregoriana | 1993 | |
Ide, Pascal | Une Théologie Du Don: Les Occurrences De Gaudium Et Spes, N. 24, §3, Chez Jean-Paul II. | Anthropotes 17 | 2006 | |
Schmitz, Kenneth L. | At the Center of the Human Drama : The Philosophical Anthropology of Karol Wojtyła/Pope John Paul II. | Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America Press | 1993 | |
Williams, George Huntston | The Mind of John Paul II: Origins in His Thought and Action. | New York: Seabury | 1981 | |
Williams, Thomas D | Who is my Neighbour?. | Washington, D.C. Catholic University of America Press | 2005 | |
Dauphinais, Michael and Matthew Levering | John Paul II & St. Thomas Aquinas. | Ann Arbor, MI: Sapientia Press of Ave Maria University | 2006 |
Read more: Theology of Consecrated Life, My Approach, My contribution and the Abstract of my thesis.
© Mary Stevens July 2018