Wojtyła’s Women: How Women, History and Polish Traditions Shaped the Life of Pope John Paul II and Changed the Catholic Church

I chose this the tile for my book about Pope John Paul II not only to emphasize the role of women in his life but also to show how their role and his attitudes and views about women were influenced by Polish culture, traditions and history. Here is short description I wrote for the cover.

Wojtyla's Women: How They Shaped the Life of Pope John Paul II and Changed the Catholic Church by Ted Lipien

John Paul II, the most charismatic and influential Pope in centuries, reshaped many facets of Catholic thought. Yet Church policy on women during his papacy remained deeply resistant to popular modern ideas on gender roles. WOJTYŁA’s WOMEN explores John Paul II’s views on women, marriage, family and sexual ethics from both feminist and conservative Christian perspectives. Previously untapped sources reveal the influence of his upbringing in Poland at the outset of the 20th century, a time when deeply rooted traditions collided with rapid social change and new ideas, against a backdrop of war, genocide, and political oppression. As the book reveals, women were a remarkable and unexpected influence on John Paul’s understanding of gender issues and the Catholic Church’s theology.

Wojtyła’s Women was published in June 2008 by O-Books, a publisher of religious and spiritual books in Great Britain. It is availabe in bookstores in the U.K. and the United States and can also be purchased through O-Books and Amazon websites.