With God in America The Spiritual Legacy of an Unlikely Jesuit

2017 Independent Press Awards, Winner: Biography: General
2017 Catholic Press Association Book Awards, Third Place: Spirituality: Soft Cover

In 1963, following twenty-three years of hard labor and abuse in Russian prison camps, Walter J. Ciszek, S.J., finally returned to America. Had he come back a bitter man, or a man of diminished faith, it would have been hard to fault him. But he didn&;t. For the remainder of his years, until his death in 1984, Fr. Ciszek&;s grace, faith, and wisdom touched&;often in profound and lasting ways&;everyone who came into contact with him. With God in America is a collection of previously unpublished writings on Ciszek&;s post-imprisonment life and thoughts. The contents&;which include articles he wrote, speeches he delivered at retreats, letters he sent to people he was counseling, and interviews with individuals who knew him personally&;present a man unbroken by all that he had endured and eager to share God&;s love with others. From Ciszek&;s first days back home in the States to his final words before his death, With God in America demonstrates that saintliness isn&;t primarily about acting heroically in dramatic or devastating circumstances, but about honoring the ordinary, everyday aspects of life as treasured gifts from God.