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<DIV><P><B></B></P><P>In the twelve months before his sudden death, Hans Urs von Balthasar had been writing a series of reflections on the twelve articles of the Apostles' Creed. These texts, which are undoubtedly among the last things he wrote, take on the character of a legacy, a spiritual testament. For they amount in their extraordinary compactness and depth to a little "summa" of his theology. What he had set out in detail in numerous books over five decades, he summarizes here in contemplative plainness and simplicity. </P><P>All the characteristics that make von Balthasar's work so distinctive and valuable are to be found here: breadth of vision, loveliness of style, and an intuitive-contemporary passion that allows him to "pray intellectually and think 'cordially'." </P><P>In his warm and extensive introduction to the book, Medard Kehl speaks of von Balthasar's "unclouded, almost childlike joy in the richness and beauty of the Mystery" of the threefold God, which "is evidenced in his interpretation of the creed." </P></DIV>

Credo: Meditations on the Apostles' Creed

<DIV><P>Pope Francis, in his foreword, states that one of the major themes in the thought of Joseph Ratzinger is the relationship between faith and politics: "His firsthand experience of Nazi totalitarianism led him even as a young student to reflect on the limits of obedience to the state for the sake of the liberty of obeying God."; In support of this, he quotes from one of Ratzinger's texts presented in this volume: "The state is not the whole of human existence and does not encompass all human hope."</P><P>Ratzinger explored various aspects of this subject in books, speeches, and homilies throughout his career, from his years as a theology professor to his tenure as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and most recently as Pope Benedict XVI. This is the only book that collates all of his most significant works on political themes inside one volume.</P></DIV>