In this book, Reuters correspondents bring together fresh, unique, and first-hand insights about Pope John Paul II, a vivid portrait of him as a man -- and a realistic, forward-looking assessment of his achievements, his legacy, and the Church he leaves to his successors. You will meet the man who, before joining the priesthood, was an athlete, an actor, a soldier, a stonecutter, and a published poet - who changed history by taking on Communism in Poland, then later denounced the spiritual impoverishment of untrammeled capitalism - who transformed the Church's tortured relationship with the Jewish community. You will meet the moral conservative and reformer who led the Church into its third millennium, watching him face storms of debate and scandal within his church, as he carries its message of faith to every corner of the world, and presides over its explosive growth throughout the developing world. This is the only book on Pope John Paul II to draw upon the extraordinary global resources of Reuters, the world's leading news agency. Notable amongst those resources: Vatican correspondent Philip Pullella, a world-renowned expert on Pope John Paul II who organized Reuters' highly-successful exhibition of Reuters photographs of the Pope that has been traveling through Europe and will appear throughout the United States to coincide with this book's publication.