Includes bibliographical references.

1. Mysterium Iniquitatis : the coexistence of good and evil -- 2. Ideologies of evil -- 3. The limit imposed upon evil in European history -- 4. Redemption as the divine limit imposed upon evil -- 5. The mystery of redemption -- 6. Redemption : victory given as a task to man -- 7. Toward a just use of freedom -- 8. Freedom is for love -- 9. The lessons of recent history -- 10. The mystery of mercy -- 11. On the concept of Patria (native land) -- 12. Patriotism -- 13. The concept of nation -- 14. History -- 15. Nation and culture -- 16. Europe as "native land" -- 17. The evangelization of Central and Eastern Europe -- 18. The positive fruits of the Enlightenment -- 19. The mission of the church -- 20. The relationship between church and state -- 21. Europe in the context of other continents -- 22. Modern democracy -- 23. Back to Europe? -- 24. The maternal memory of the church -- 25. The vertical dimension of European history -- 26. "Someone must have guided that bullet"

"In this volume, Pope John Paul II speaks for the first time on global politics. He discusses his views on freedom and democracy and speaks about the twentieth-century totalitarian ideologies of communism and nazism. Making an emphatic appeal for mankind to regard freedom "not only as a gift but a task" to be used for the common good, he calls for a dialogue between all the world's civilizations and religions. This work is a unique reflection on human life, and will be admired by thinkers of all religions and nationalities."--BOOK JACKET.