In God's Hands (HarperOne)

Whenever I think of October, I think of Pope John Paul II. It was when his papacy began (October 16, 1978), and it is when his Feast Day is (October 22). Though, he was one of the longest reigning popes in history, I only knew of him for a brief time as he passed away shortly after my conversion. I own almost everything he has ever written (including published works before he was Pope), so when I heard there was a new book published I was instantly intrigued. The book is entitled In God's Hands: The Spiritual Diaries of Pope Saint John Paul II.

The book is approximately 500 pages in length and contains the personal notes and reflections, primarily related to retreats and reflection days between 1962 and 2003. Some of the retreats include his arrival in Rome for Vatican II,  the anniversary of his priestly ordination, and his election to the papacy, and even a Vatican retreat given by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI). The format of this book tried to maintain the integrity and format of the notebooks. In doing so, we see a lot of one-line notes which we can glean deep spirituality, but the pages would benefit more highly from actually having access to retreat transcripts. What is most telling about his notes is the self-reflection questions he asks himself. For example, he questions if anything is overshadowing his single work of being a sign of Christ. In this same reflection, we know that Christ is the Good Shepherd who knows His sheep. He then questions if he knows all his priests, and what can he do better? This shows a great deal of humility, self-awareness, and a desire to continuously improve.

Overall, the book was an interesting read. It is not a book that you just casually stroll through, but one that you read slow and have to dig deep into to get to the heart of the book. With that said, I was a bit conflicted reading this book. Pope John Paul II asked that his spiritual diaries be destroyed, but his secretary saw the merit in these works and preserved them for spiritual edification of others. I appreciate that, because the words of a great saint should not be destroyed, but I also understand the want to have your personal thoughts kept private and not published. You will have to ultimately decide if you feel comfortable reading this work or not.

This book was provided to me for free by HarperOne in exchange for an honest review.