Panelists say late pope's last book rooted in his Polish homeland

Published: 2005-05-17

NEW YORK (CNS) -- "Memory and Identity," the last book by Pope John Paul II, shows him developing his thought from the specific perspective of his home country, according to participants in a panel who discussed the book in New York May 16. Cardinal Edward M. Egan of New York said that in this book the pope "let his hair down" and allowed his love for his native land and culture to show through. In "Memory and Identity," the pope developed his philosophy and theology through the lens of his own experience as a "son of Poland," and created a work that will help in understanding his more formal writings, the cardinal said. Held at the Italian Academy of Columbia University, the panel was arranged by the Crossroads New York Cultural Center, a recently established agency of the lay Catholic movement, Communion and Liberation. The publisher of the pope's book, Rizzoli, jointly sponsored the event.

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