God, Country, Notre Dame: The Autobiography of Theodore M. Hesburgh

“William F. Buckley might disagree, but the former university president is clear on the three most important things in life.” —New York Magazine

“Father Hesburgh says that each one of us can do something effective in the cause of a better world. God, Country, Notre Dame itself embodies an obvious refutation of the apathetic notion that ‘in the modern world one person cannot make a difference’.” —Commonweal

“The temptation is to subtitle this book, ‘Adventures of Superpriest.’ If Father Hesburgh made it all up, it would still be a wonderful story, a compendium of what-ifs . . . its warmth and humanity are infectious, and most readers will not have the nerve to fight off the pleasure of going along.” —Chicago Tribune


FLAP COPY
I have traveled far and wide, far beyond the simple parish I envisioned as a young man. My obligation of service has led me into diverse yet interrelated roles: college teacher, theologian, president of a great university, counselor to four popes and six presidents. Excuse the list, but once called to public service, I have held fourteen presidential appointments over the years, dealing with the social issues of our times, including civil rights, peaceful uses of atomic energy, campus unrest, amnesty for Vietnam offenders, Third World development, and immigration reform. But deep beneath it all, wherever I have been, whatever I have done, I have always and everywhere considered myself essentially a priest. —from the Preface