A Ministry of Risk is the definitive collection of Philip Berrigan's writings. Authorized by the Berrigan family and arranged chronologically, these writings depict the transformation of one revolu­tionary soul while also providing a firsthand account of a nation grappling with its martial obsessions. From the battlefields of World War II to the front lines of peace activism, Philip Berrigan evolved from soldier to scholar, priest to political prisoner. Confronting the fundamental nature of America's military-focused culture, Berrigan took an unyielding stance against societal evils-- war, systemic racism, unchecked materialism, and the baleful presence of nuclear weapons. Imprisoned by his government and ostracized by the Church, Berrigan's life is a courageous example of nonviolent resistance and liberation in the face of overwhelming odds.--Back cover.

Foreword: Witness and wisdom / Bill Wylie-Kellermann -- Preface: Frida Berrigan -- Introduction: Brad Wolf -- Prologue: Worlds on fire / Philip Berrigan -- . Part I: A Catholic trying to be a Christian, 1957-67. Christ in our midst ; What's it going to be with you? ; The freedom rides ; JFK and the Cuban Missile Crisis ; The nature of Christian witness ; Segregation and the Nuclear Arms Race ; Questioning the Christian "Credo" ; I will take my stand, come what may ; Peace is the duty of our time ; Faithful enough to suffer, daring enough to serve ; The priest and society ; Liberation from the pathology of war ; Pacifist or peacemaker ; The Gospel means peacemaking -- Part II: Resisting the Vietnam War, 1967-73. Diary from the Baltimore City Jail ; Christianity and revolution are synonymous ; Trying to serve love ; Times for confronting injustice ; All of us are prisoners ; We claim a higher law ; The Christian roots of protest ; After the trial, hope ; Truth creates its own room ; Liberation from fear ; Acts of faith ; Our eesponsibility to each other ; We have trouble with surrender ; The Sinless One continues to haunt me ; Following the Man of Calvary ; Resistance is essential ; Withstanding the attacks ; Marriage with Liz ; Smear and ridicule ; The USA vs. Philip Berrigan ; Revolution, Berrigan style ; Obeying God's Word can get you killed ; We constitute the church in chains ; Fasting in prison ; Resistance, liberation, and fear ; Prayer, risk, and generosity ; The strength and faith of Liz ; Renewing wedding vows ; Truth and peace mean resistance ; An enemy of the state ; Our acts are nonviolent ; On self-pity while in prison ; What we do to the Vietnamese, we do to ourselves ; The plastic Goliaths ; Acquittal ; To create hope is to wrestle with death ; Dealing with the "blahs" in prison ; Thanksgiving 1972 ; Finally free...for a while -- Part III: Community, Plowshares, and the Bomb, 1973-2002. Paying dearly for our love ; Religion and politics ; A ministry of risk and liberation ; Disarm or dig graves ; Resisting nuclear suicide ; A leaflet at Christmas: Christ or the bomb ; A time when no leader can buy us ; The Kenosis of Christ ; Fools on Christ's account ; Thoughts from Alexandria Jail ; Prophecy and life ; Hostage to the bomb ; Back to the Pentagon ; We cannot be silent if we want peace ; Letter from prison to Dorothy Day ; A call to faithfulness ; Naming the beast ; Tribute to Liz ; Liz in prison ; Beating swords into plowshares ; Liz resists the arms race, again ; Disarming the nuclear Navy--and ourselves ; Empire and the super-rich ; Free enough to go to jail ; Commemorating Martin Luther King Jr. ; Isaiah in North Carolina ; Hellholes, courts, jails: a triple source of resistance ; Suffering servanthood ; Working for the long haul ; My roots are in the church ; "From prison, old militant struggles on" ; Reliance on community ; Ash Wednesday action ; Agenda for renewal ; No freedom without love ; Loving our enemies ; We aren't doing OK by ourselves ; A harvest of death ; The trial of depleted uranium ; God becomes light to us ; The healing act of forgiveness ; Doing good and resisting evil ; Time for a national strike ; Notes from prison on 9/11 ; Final journal entries 2002 ; Phil's last statement, unfinished, November 2002.