These profound pieces are the fruit of Cardinal Henri de Lubac's lifelong study of the paradoxes of the Christian faith. They are rich and thought-provoking gems, spiritual aphorisms, and meditative reflections, which explore the incongruities and the challenges of the spiritual life.
De Lubac s magnificent language, clarity, spiritual understanding, and shrewd discernment are on display in every chapter, as he discusses a variety of topics including Christian witness, incarnation, suffering, and faith. His mastery of the subjects is the result not only of intellectual study but of a life lived for Christ even in the darkest of times, as when he participated in the underground resistance to the Nazi occupation of France.
A leader in nouvelle th ologie, an intellectual movement characterized by interest in the Fathers of the Church and the concerns of contemporary men and women, de Lubac was named a cardinal by Pope John Paul II.
"The very word paradox is paradoxical. Let the paradox be. Remember, after all, the Gospel is full of paradoxes, that man is himself a living paradox, and that according to the Fathers of the Church, the Incarnation is the supreme Paradox."
-- Henri de Lubac, from the Preface