This book was a lengthy project that could not have been accomplished without the intercession of the saints as well as the help of many friends a little closer to home.
Since I am not an academic, I was worried that despite my efforts at research, I might make some inadvertent mistakes in retelling the lives of the saints. (In telling stories from my own life, however, I felt on firmer ground!) So toward the end of my writing, I mailed each chapter to an “expert” on each saint for a more scholarly review. The letters and comments I promptly received in reply (which did in fact correct some errors) were always full of the most insightful comments and suggestions. So I am enormously grateful for the time and effort of my saintly experts: Janice Farnham, RJM (Joan of Arc, Bernadette Soubirous); Steven Payne, OCD (Thérèse of Lisieux); Lawrence S. Cunningham (Thomas Merton, Francis of Assisi); Daniel J. Harrington, SJ (Peter); John Padberg, SJ (Ignatius of Loyola, Aloysius Gonzaga, Pedro Arrupe); Robert Ellsberg (Dorothy Day, Joseph); Kathryn Spink (Mother Teresa); John W. O’Malley, SJ (John XXIII); Joseph Koterski, SJ (Thomas Aquinas); Aylward Shorter, MAfr (the Ugandan martyrs); and Elizabeth Johnson, CSJ (Mary). There is no way I could have completed this book without their generous help and learned insights. I am so fortunate to know them and count them as “friends of God and companions.”
In addition, John Donohue, SJ, and Janice Farnham, RJM, read a very early draft of this book and offered suggestions and advice that helped me determine which path the book should take. And as the manuscript continued to take shape, Richard Leonard, SJ, provided a detailed list of comments that improved the focus of the book immeasurably. I am also grateful to George Lane, SJ, Jim Manney, Matthew Diener, and Joe Durepos at Loyola Press for their enthusiasm about this book, as well as Vinita Wright for her amazingly astute edits, and Heidi Hill, for her superb fact checking, a colossal effort for a book like this one. One hears many complaints these days from writers about the supposedly lost art of copyediting and fact checking: I have none. Vinita and Heidi were exceptionally good.
Thanks also to those who helped with some very specific parts of the manuscript: Michael Hilbert, SJ, of the Pontifical Gregorian University, in Rome, read the chapter on St. Aloysius and ensured that my memory of the Ignatian sites in Rome was accurate. Julie Sosa Meza corrected my poor Spanish. Peggy Pennacchi, who traveled with me throughout Europe all those years ago, kept a diary of our trip and reminded me of many details I had forgotten. (And we did, believe it or not, arrive in Orléans on All Saints Day.) Tony Wach, SJ, in Kampala, Uganda, helped refresh my memory of the physical layout of the martyrs’ shrine in Namugongo. James Carr, SJ, then serving as assistant novice director in the Jesuit novitiate in Boston, Massachusetts, tracked down the titles of the (numerous) biographies of Ignatius that we read in the novitiate. Drew Christiansen, SJ, of America magazine, helped inform my discussion of John XXIII’s encyclical Pacem in Terris. Thanks also to Kevin O’Brien, SJ, and Dave Nantais for cheerfully accompanying me on the hottest weekend of the year to the Abbey of Gethsemani, in Kentucky, in the summer of 2003. And to George Williams, SJ, and Brian Frain, SJ, for their company on our pilgrimage to Lourdes the next summer—as well as to Rob Lively of the Order of Malta for his kind invitation.
There were many others who read the book at various points or otherwise offered helpful suggestions or encouragement on the project. Happily, the list of Jesuits who have been companions during this project is a long one, so just assume an “SJ” after the following names, presented in no particular order: David Donovan, Bill Barry, Damian O’Connell, George Williams, Kevin White, Jim Hayes, Myles Sheehan, Dave Godleski, Ross Pribyl, Jim Bowler, Bill Clarke, Bob Reiser, Chris Derby, Mike Bayard, Jim Keegan, John Long, Vinnie O’Keefe, Dennis Linehan, Roger Haight, George Collins, Rick Curry, Chris Devron, Steve Schloesser, Howard Gray, Jim McDermott, Dan Berrigan, Bob Levens, Bob Gilroy, Matt Malone, Jim Keane, Phil Ganir, Brad Schaeffer, David McCallum, Richard Leonard, Steve Katsouros, Matt Cassidy, Tom Reese, Walter Modrys, Cardinal Avery Dulles, Jack McLain, Kevin O’Brien, and Rick Deshaies. To them and to all my brother Jesuits this book is dedicated. I am also very grateful to James Alison, Joan Chittister, Bishop Tom Gumbleton, Robert Ellsberg, Jeremy Langford, Bill McNichols, John Jones, Frank Oveis, Paul Elie, Paul Mariani, Ron Hansen, Maddie Tiberii, Dave Gibson, Bill McGarvey, Tim Reidy, and Grant Gallicho for their advice and prayers. Thanks also to my family—my mother, sister, brother-in-law, and nephews—for their continuing love and support.
In the space of the writing of this book, five editorial interns at America magazine have come and gone, and all helped with the editing and typing (and retyping) process. So I would like to thank Joseph McAuley, Shaila Dani, Brian Pinter, and Jackie Finlan for their always cheerful assistance and willingness to read my lousy handwriting. A special thanks to Casie Attardi, who lent me enormous help as the manuscript neared completion, including making endless copies to send out to readers.
Finally, thanks to all the holy men and women whom I’ve written about in these pages—for their lives, their examples, and, especially, their prayers.