Letter to a Jewish Friend: The Simple and Extraordinary Story of Pope John Paul II and His Jewish School Friend

This little gem of a book recounts the story of a friendship lost and a friendship regained. Pope John Paul II and Jerzy Kluger were close school friends in Wadowice, Poland, until they were separated by the Nazis and the war. In 1965, the two were reunited in Rome; and in 1989, on the occasion of the unveiling of a commemorative plaque at the Wadowice synagogue, the Pope writes a letter to Kluger urging a solidarity between Jews and Catholics based upon the memory of their common suffering during the war in Poland. A heartwarming story that offers glimpses into the personal experiences behind Pope John Paul's well-known condemnations of anti-Semitism. (Jan.)