On January 10th, 2018 the Intercollegiate Studies Institute (I.S.I.) hosted Paul Kengor and Robert Orlando to talk about the relationship between Pope John Paul II and the former President of The United States of America, Ronald Reagan. I was invited to attend the presentation due to my work on the philosophy of John Paul II. It was one of the best presentations I have seen in a long time. The presentation was captivating. The two speakers are entertaining, approachable and engaging. They have done an immense amount of research on the lives of that pope and that president. Paul Kengor and Robert Orlando are the writer and producer for the upcoming movie/documentary called “The Divine Plan.” You can see a clip of the project on Vimeo: “The Divine Plan”. If you are interested in the relationship between Pope John Paul II and President Ronald Reagan and their role in ending the Soviet Union and the Cold War then you will love the work of these two guys.
Kengor has been writing books on President Ronald Reagan and other political figures for years. He has several top selling books. You can check them out here: In his recent book “A Pope and a President,” Kengor brings out similarities and parallels in the lives of these two men from the time they were just young boys. We also learn of the amazing events that shaped their lives and brought them together.
Orlando is a movie producer who has several themes close to his heart. He has teamed up with Kengor to bring out the events of history which Reagan and those around him called the “Divine Plan” or “DP.” (Kengor, 2017 “A Pope and a President”) Reagan believed God had a plan in bringing him and the pope together. The president met with Pope John Paul II on several famous occasions. As president he re-established diplomatic ties with the Vatican and forged an important alliance with the pope, a friendship and a plan which altered the course of history.
Kengor’s book, “A Pope and a President,” is a history lesson as well as a lesson in Mariology and important Faith principles. We learn many behind the scenes details of World War II, including the rise of Marxism and its hatred of God and religion which it had from the very beginning. In a few short years atheistic, Marxism was growing worldwide. It had a perverse, deceitful plan to take over the world with a new Godless ideology. It also had the passion and commitment to violence to carry it out. Unfortunately, despite the victories of such persons as Lech Walesa, Vaclav Havel, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, President Reagan and Pope John Paul II, that struggle is not entirely over. In “A Pope and a President,” we learn of the pact between Hitler and Stalin as well as its demise. The book is packed with great stories about Polish saints and heroes like St. Sister Faustina Kowalska, St. Maximillian Kolbe, Cardinal Mindszenty and Jerzy Popieluszko. Kengor intertwines faith and history in a fashion which I believe are of interest to both the skeptic and the believer. For example, the prophetic messages of Fatima and Divine Mercy are incorporated in a way that allows the skeptic to consider those claims from the perspective of their unique insights prior to the actual events while bringing out interesting details and connections for the believer.
It is absolutely amazing to those of us who grew up in the shadow and fear of the Cold War to imagine that there are adults today who have never known that fear and shadow. For those young adults and teens “A Pope and A President,” is an entertaining way to experience those events. In this book you can almost enter into the fear of War and impending war that millions of us in the WWII and post WWII era lived with every day. Yet, there remains a penetrating message of hope that God has a plan to bring us out of the chaos and barbarism of atheistic regimes.
I can remember the first time I met a Russian youth in a crowd in Poland. I mean one that did not come to the West on a scholarship to study. This ordinary young man ran up to me in a crowd at World Youth Day ’91. Excited, he asked me, “Are you an American?” When I replied “Yes” he grabbed me by the arm and proclaimed happily, “I am Russian, I want to meet you alllll my life!” I felt his emotion and realized the same thrill. You see, we had always believed we would meet one day on the battlefield but today because of John Paul II, Reagan, Gorbachev, and Lech Walesa we were meeting in Peace, as youth at a youth rally led by John Paul II!
The book “The Divine Plan” is a project funded by I.S.I. through donations from those who want to communicate this important message of recent history. They believe in the monumental contribution that a few ordinary, dedicated individuals can make. Out of the wreckage of WWII, Nazism, Marxist Communism and the senseless slaughter of the early 20th century came an actor and a soldier’s son who changed the world. If you would like to learn more check out the sources above. “The Divine Plan” movie is completed and funded separately.
If you would like to get involved as a financial supporter of the project please drop me a line and I will put you in touch with the organizers.
About the author:
John Corrigan holds a Ph.D. in philosophy and is under contract to publish a book on the philosophy of Karol Wojtyla/John Paul II. (forthcoming 2019) He is a former employee of I.S.I. At that time the President of I.S.I. was T. Kenneth Cribb. Mr. Cribb is a former member of Reagan’s cabinet and was a personal friend of Reagan. He has many great inside stories on the life of President Reagan.
Dr. Corrigan did research at The Center for Documentation and Research of the Pontificate of John Paul II in Rome during his doctoral studies at The Pontifical University in Santiago, Chile. He lives and teaches near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Contact: jcorrigan@uc.cl
* published January, 2019 by “Center for Documentation and Research of the Pontificate of John Paul II in Rome” https://jp2doc.pl/en/2019/01/25/the-president-and-the-pope-a-divine-plan/