The Divine Plan: John Paul II, Ronald Reagan, and the Dramatic End of the Cold War
Just six weeks apart in the spring of 1981, Pope John Paul II and President ­Ronald Reagan took bullets from would-be assassins.

Few realized at the time how close both men came to dying.

Surviving these near-death experiences created a singular bond between the pope and the president that ­historians have failed to appreciate.

When John Paul II and Reagan met only a year later, they confided to each other a shared conviction: that God had spared their lives for a ­reason.

That reason? To defeat Communism.

In private, Reagan had a name for this: "The DP"—the Divine Plan.

* * *

It has become fashionable to see the collapse of the Soviet empire as inevitable.

Hardly.

In this riveting book, bestselling author Paul Kengor and writer-­director Robert Orlando show what it took to end the Cold War: leaders who refused to accept that hundreds of ­millions must suffer under totalitarian ­Communism.

And no leaders proved more important than the pope and the president.

Two men who seemed to have little in common developed an extraordinary bond—including a spiritual bond between the Catholic pope and Protestant president. And their shared core convictions drove them to confront Communism.

To tell the full story of the dramatic closing act of the Cold War, Kengor and Orlando draw on their exhaustive research and exclusive interviews with more than a dozen experts, including well-known historians Douglas Brinkley, H. W. Brands, Anne Applebaum, Stephen Kotkin, John O'Sullivan, and Craig Shirley; the leading biographer of John Paul II, George Weigel; close Reagan advisers Richard V. Allen and James Rosebush; and Cardinal Timothy Dolan and Bishop Robert Barron.

You can't understand Pope John Paul II and President Ronald Reagan—or how the Cold War came to such a swift and peaceful end—without understanding how much faith they put in the Divine Plan.
1129968319
The Divine Plan: John Paul II, Ronald Reagan, and the Dramatic End of the Cold War
Just six weeks apart in the spring of 1981, Pope John Paul II and President ­Ronald Reagan took bullets from would-be assassins.

Few realized at the time how close both men came to dying.

Surviving these near-death experiences created a singular bond between the pope and the president that ­historians have failed to appreciate.

When John Paul II and Reagan met only a year later, they confided to each other a shared conviction: that God had spared their lives for a ­reason.

That reason? To defeat Communism.

In private, Reagan had a name for this: "The DP"—the Divine Plan.

* * *

It has become fashionable to see the collapse of the Soviet empire as inevitable.

Hardly.

In this riveting book, bestselling author Paul Kengor and writer-­director Robert Orlando show what it took to end the Cold War: leaders who refused to accept that hundreds of ­millions must suffer under totalitarian ­Communism.

And no leaders proved more important than the pope and the president.

Two men who seemed to have little in common developed an extraordinary bond—including a spiritual bond between the Catholic pope and Protestant president. And their shared core convictions drove them to confront Communism.

To tell the full story of the dramatic closing act of the Cold War, Kengor and Orlando draw on their exhaustive research and exclusive interviews with more than a dozen experts, including well-known historians Douglas Brinkley, H. W. Brands, Anne Applebaum, Stephen Kotkin, John O'Sullivan, and Craig Shirley; the leading biographer of John Paul II, George Weigel; close Reagan advisers Richard V. Allen and James Rosebush; and Cardinal Timothy Dolan and Bishop Robert Barron.

You can't understand Pope John Paul II and President Ronald Reagan—or how the Cold War came to such a swift and peaceful end—without understanding how much faith they put in the Divine Plan.
27.95 In Stock
The Divine Plan: John Paul II, Ronald Reagan, and the Dramatic End of the Cold War

The Divine Plan: John Paul II, Ronald Reagan, and the Dramatic End of the Cold War

The Divine Plan: John Paul II, Ronald Reagan, and the Dramatic End of the Cold War

The Divine Plan: John Paul II, Ronald Reagan, and the Dramatic End of the Cold War

Hardcover(1)

(Not eligible for purchase using B&N Audiobooks Subscription credits)
$27.95 
  • SHIP THIS ITEM
    In stock. Ships in 1-2 days.
  • PICK UP IN STORE

    Your local store may have stock of this item.

Related collections and offers


Overview

Just six weeks apart in the spring of 1981, Pope John Paul II and President ­Ronald Reagan took bullets from would-be assassins.

Few realized at the time how close both men came to dying.

Surviving these near-death experiences created a singular bond between the pope and the president that ­historians have failed to appreciate.

When John Paul II and Reagan met only a year later, they confided to each other a shared conviction: that God had spared their lives for a ­reason.

That reason? To defeat Communism.

In private, Reagan had a name for this: "The DP"—the Divine Plan.

* * *

It has become fashionable to see the collapse of the Soviet empire as inevitable.

Hardly.

In this riveting book, bestselling author Paul Kengor and writer-­director Robert Orlando show what it took to end the Cold War: leaders who refused to accept that hundreds of ­millions must suffer under totalitarian ­Communism.

And no leaders proved more important than the pope and the president.

Two men who seemed to have little in common developed an extraordinary bond—including a spiritual bond between the Catholic pope and Protestant president. And their shared core convictions drove them to confront Communism.

To tell the full story of the dramatic closing act of the Cold War, Kengor and Orlando draw on their exhaustive research and exclusive interviews with more than a dozen experts, including well-known historians Douglas Brinkley, H. W. Brands, Anne Applebaum, Stephen Kotkin, John O'Sullivan, and Craig Shirley; the leading biographer of John Paul II, George Weigel; close Reagan advisers Richard V. Allen and James Rosebush; and Cardinal Timothy Dolan and Bishop Robert Barron.

You can't understand Pope John Paul II and President Ronald Reagan—or how the Cold War came to such a swift and peaceful end—without understanding how much faith they put in the Divine Plan.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781610171540
Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing
Publication date: 06/10/2019
Edition description: 1
Pages: 288
Product dimensions: 6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 1.00(d)
Age Range: 3 Months to 18 Years

About the Author

Paul Kengor, PhD, is the New York Times bestselling author of God and Ronald Reagan, The Crusader: Ronald Reagan and the Fall of Communism, 11 Principles of a Reagan Conservative, Dupes, The Communist, and other books. A professor of political science and the executive director of the Center for Vision and Values at Grove City College, he has written for a range of popular and scholarly publications, including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, National Review, Political Science Quarterly, Christianity Today, the National Catholic Register, and the National Catholic Reporter. Kengor has appeared on Fox News, MSNBC, NPR, C-SPAN, and many other outlets. He and his family live in Pennsylvania.

Robert Orlando is an award-winning writer and filmmaker. The founder of Nexus Media, he has been involved in the production, development, or release of more than a dozen film and documentary projects. Sony Pictures released his most recent documentary, Silence Patton. Orlando wrote and directed the companion documentary to the book The Divine Plan.

Table of Contents

Prologue Two Actors In A Divine Plan 9

Act 1

1 The Grand Stage 19

2 The Acting Persons 35

Act II

3 Entrances 59

4 Transitions 79

Act III

5 "Be Not Afraid" 91

8 The Papal Stage And The Presidential Stage 103

7 The Bullets of Spring 1981 119

8 "How Providence Intervened" 131

Act IV

9 Code Name: Cappuccino 149

10 The Soviet Hand at Work 161

11 "It Is God's Will" 173

Act V

12 "I Didn't Bring The Wall Down" 187

Epilogue Curtain Call 199

Notes 205

Acknowledgments 219

From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews