Walter Cardinal Kasper was born in Heidenheim-Brenz, Germany, in 1933 and was ordained in 1957. He studied at the University of Tübingen where he later became professor of dogmatic theology. He also taught in the United States at the Catholic University in Washington, D.C., in 1983. In 1987 he was ordained bishop of Rottenberg-Stuttgart, Germany. Widely respected for his work in Christian ecumenical relations, Kasper was chosen in 1979 as one of a dozen Catholic theologians to sit on the World Council of Churches' Faith and Order Commission, one of...

Wendy M. Wright has taught the history of spirituality at the Weston School of Theology, Emmanuel College, the University of Nebraska, and Creighton University, She is the author of Sacred Dwelling and her articles on the spiritual life have appeared in such magazines as Weavings and Praying. She lives with her husband and three children in Omaha, Nebraska.

In the late 1960s and early 1970s Granberg-Michaelson served for eight years on the staff of U.S. Senator Mark O. Hatfield of Oregon. During that time, he was a member of Church of the Saviour in Washington, D.C., which molded much of his understanding of how commitment, spiritual growth, small groups, and social witness shape the life of the local congregation. From 1976 to 1980 he served as managing editor for Sojourners. Subsequently he moved to Montana to establish and serve as president of the New Creation Institute, working on...

William H. Shannon, an internationally known Merton scholar and priest of the diocese of Rochester, New York, was the general editor to more than 4,000 Merton letters. Msgr. Shannon was alsoa religious studies professor and first president of the International Thomas Merton Society.

William J. O’Malley, S.J., is a legendary high school teacher who began his career as a Latin and English teacher at Brooklyn Prep in 1957 and who taught English and theology at Fordham Prep in the Bronx for twenty-five years. He has also been an adjunct assistant professor of theology at Fordham University and has taught at several other universities around the country. In 1990 he was awarded the F. Sadlier Dinger Award for outstanding contributions to religious education in America. O’Malley has authored forty books, hundreds of articles, produced...

William Kelley is the co-recipient of the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for Witness, starring Harrison Ford, universally acclaimed as one of the finest screenplays in Hollywood history. He has also written five novels and dozens of scripts for television and film.

Wolfgang Beinert is Professor of Dogmatics and the History of Dogmatics at the University of Regensburg, Germany.