THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 23, 1994 TAG: 9410220067
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ESTHER DISKIN, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 85 lines
WHEN POPE JOHN Paul II publishes, he does it with suitable pomp and panache. On Thursday, 20 million copies of his new book - reflections on political and spiritual questions pitched to a general audience - were released in 21 languages in 35 countries.
``An international publishing event,'' the publisher, Alfred A. Knopf, gushed about its worldwide distribution of ``Crossing the Threshold of Hope.'' In the United States, about 1.5 million hardcover copies in English and Spanish went on sale for $20 each.
The release was timed to coincide with a papal visit to New York, New Jersey and Baltimore, but that tour was canceled last month due to the pope's ill health.
In Hampton Roads, the publishing event was a bust. By late Thursday, most Waldenbooks stores - the major bookstore chain in the area - hadn't received their shipments. Even the new Waldenbooks/Kids Superstore, in Chesapeake's Greenbrier Mall, was out in the cold.
``We did not receive the pope today,'' said Laurie McConnell, associate manager.
Even where it arrived, it wasn't leaping off the shelves.
Prince Books in downtown Norfolk gave the pope's reflection's big display: Crossing the Threshold'' sat under the sign ``Of Interest'' - next to paperback volumes of John Paul's poetry - on the showcase shelf facing the front door. Browsers in the store's religion section found the book sharing the shelf with ``Why Catholics Can't Sing'' and the Catechism, which sells for 5 cents less than the pope's book.
By late afternoon, the store had sold two copies. Turn the Page Inc., a bookstore on 21st Street, ordered three copies and sold none. ``A couple of people have looked at it, but no real interest,'' said store manager Deanna Hammond.
The publisher, which paid $6 million for English-language rights, hoped to get a sales boost from the pope's scheduled tour of the United States. Now, the cancellation of the tour has fed fears about John Paul's decline and fueled rumors about a political battle over his successor.
The 74-year-old pontiff was shot during an assassination attempt in May 1981 and has been hospitalized five times since then. He still has difficulty walking, after he injured his leg in April when he fell in the bathroom at the Vatican.
Even as John Paul's health problems limit his ability to travel to his people around the world, his book of intensely personal reflections helps spread his message to them.
The pope is the chief force in shaping Church encyclicals, pastoral letters that are the official statement of church teachings on subjects such as social justice and family life. But personal writings from a sitting pope are rare, though John Paul has been a prolific writer, both before and after he was elected pope in 1978.
These personal books from John Paul can help give Roman Catholics a one-to-one connection with their leader, says Father Michael Renninger of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Newport News.
``People are coming to me and saying, `What can we read that is solid?' There is a mistrust - and I think well-founded - in much that claims to be spiritual,'' Renninger said. ``Here's someone we can trust. The pope is not part of the latest spiritual trend.''
``Crossing the Threshold'' takes the form of a series of essays in response to questions. The book's questions were posed by Vittorio Messori, an Italian journalist who had sought a television interview with the pope last year on the 15th anniversary of John Paul's ascension to the papacy. When the interview was canceled due to scheduling conflicts, the pope decided to answer the questions anyway.
The questions are big enough to make the book's 244 pages seem too short: Does God really exist? What does ``To Save'' mean? Why is there so much evil in the world? The book's shortest chapter, titled ``Women,'' is only two pages long. In it, he talks about Mary as a ``powerful and creative inspiration.''
The Polish pope, known for his support of the Solidarity labor movement, says ``It would be simplistic to say that Divine Providence caused the fall of communism.'' Instead, he says communism collapsed because of its own abuses.
``It proved to be a medicine more dangerous than the disease itself,'' John Paul writes. ``It did not bring about true social reform, yet it did become a powerful threat and challenge to the entire world.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Last Thursday, 20 million copies of the pope's new book were
released in 21 language in 35 countries.
by CNB