Robert F. Kennedy: A Spiritual Biography

by Konstantin Sidorenko

This spiritual biography of Robert F. Kennedy shows how Kennedy reconciled the two sides of his humanity: the hard-driven ruthless prosecutor with the devout believer of God. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0824523555
• ISBN13: 9780824523558
• Release Date: December 2000
• Publisher: Crossroad Publishing Company
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.7" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

It takes an outsider....

The author poses some interesting questions: Did, as author Ronald Steel has suggested, Bobby Kennedy use the rhetoric of religion--along with civil rights and liberal causes as a ruse for personal gain?Was Kennedy a chameleon using change simply to feed his personal ambitions?Or wasn't it more to the point that growth was a constant theme in Kennedy's life--"a steady evolution and not based on epiphanic interruptions"?Author Konstantine Sedorenko is very convincing when he says Faith was "neither politics nor pandering" for Robert Kennedy and that his spiritual and religious training kept him from embracing only worldly ambitions.True, ambition brought him to the edge, but, as the author smartly shows, worldly purpose fused with religious imperatives and values in Bobby's case, and the final leap into national politics, the political and social issues of his day, and finally, the presidential pool "came from his deep moral essence."Is worldly purpose necessarily at odds with religious and moral values or principals and standards? Bobby Kennedy's history and story, if one stands back and attempts to view objectively--as perhaps only an outsider can--would indicate quite the opposite.Kennedy's legacy indeed, to quote Sedorenko, "set the stage whereby future politicians could lead with no less conviction and hope."Finally, one thing that definitely can be said about Robert F. Kennedy: he never pulled any punches--not with his cohorts and not with the American public. Neither does Sedorenko in this dynamic portrait of a most complex man--one who could and firmly did--take a moral stance in a time when America needed "more than the advice cold war tacticians could supply."

good, balanced journalism

The spirituality of RFK is perhaps ambitious for such a small work, but Mr. Sidorenko does successfully capture the core essense or spirit of, and with pretty sound objectivity, his subject. The book is memorable, and RFK's story movingly rendered. If this is the year you promised to pull yourself out of "the deep wells of cynicism," you might just give Robert F. Kennedy: A Spiritual Biography a try.

Refreshing unbiased account

Certainly in the short form popular biography (192 pages) there is not room for major departures, nor radical reinterpretations or troves of previously unknown information. But Sidoreno treats his subject with discernment, clarity and elegance and is not afraid to take a strong stand. And it's this stand or point of view that sets his book gently at odds with other more recent accounts of RFK. The spiritual angle is persuasive and without banging any religious drum. The chronology is very thorough but I found it a bit confusing, or awkward, as it consists of a biographic chronology and an historic one (this is always fascinating in chronologies) but are not thusly and clearly identified (I did quickly figure it out but it would have been nice to have it identified as such). The book is a quick, lively and intelligent read; just what someone might be looking for, who does not have the time to get mired in a 500-page tome on RFK. Staying absolutely clear of sensationalism and speculation, the author still manages to provide us with a terricly intersting, and even entertaining story. Very glad to see the short biographies coming back. This particular book is a great book for those who do not know where to start with all the scores of books out there on RFK (and especially as an unbiased account) and it would seem a gem for college courses on the politics of the 60s.

DEFINITELY WORTH READING!

This is one of the best biographies of Robert Kennedy I have read to date. This author not only treats him with respect, but has the foresight and good sense to stay with factual information and not speculations and sensationalism. Mr. Sidorenko does an excellent, probing in-depth analysis of Robert Kennedy. What makes this book such a welcome contribution is that it focuses on the late Senator's spiritualism. A devout Catholic, Robert Kennedy took his faith seriously from all accounts. He is the only one of the sons who wears the stamp of Rose Kennedy. Religious and reclusive, the redoubtable matriarch left an indelible stamp on this penultimate son. His face is the face of Rose; the physical resemblance is quite strong. His faith was inspired by her own; he was the altar boy who would, later in his life travel with his Bible and admit how important Catholicism was to him. A man of strong convictions, Robert Kennedy let himself be pushed into public service in early adulthood. He admitted his own self doubts on numerous occasions, but never once shirked a duty. He was the man who pushed himself in all areas of his life; as a boy, he tried to teach himself how to swim. Some 35 years later, he would work with top mountain climbers to prepare to climb a Canadian Mountain that was named after his late brother, President Kennedy. Robert Kennedy suffered from acrophobia, yet he was able to table his fear and climb that mountain! Once atop Mt. Kennedy, the then new Senator made the Sign of the Cross and did, throughout the remainder of his life make spiritual references to the late president.Robert Kennedy was a self-educated man; he would, in adulthood make himself aware of Civil Rights related issues. He would also develop a strong knowledge base of classical literature. He drew on a myriad of references and, from all accounts kept his mind open to receiving new information.This is such a wonderful book. I highly recommend it.

a spiritual biography? surprisingly convincing

Very timely--particularly considering the 2000 elections and the 2 major candidates attempting, at least in the beginning & to a large extent, to construct their campaigns on a religious or "spiritual" and moral basis. Invoking God seems to be in in politics this time around but Mr Sidorenki makes a pretty convincing case for Bobby Kennedy as being the last politician who could use a true religios sense to steer fellow citiczens "from the deep wells of cynicism".Without any sensasionalism the author, in just a 192 pages, deftly weaves a detailed and clear, moving account of one of the most important leaders of the 20th century. Steering clear of the temptation to romanticize, and with what appears to be resolute avoidance of sentamentality, the author provides us with more than just a good introduction to Robert Kennedy, but a vigorous, fair and candid portrait of a vivid politician.Would especially recommend to those new to Robert Kennedy and those interested in the politics of the 60s. But even other Kennedy "enthusiasts" will find this one refreshing and without the baggage other authors (pro & con) tend to bring to the subject of Bobby Kennedy. Great job. My only criticsm is with the sidebar pages; they are very well written, very interesting, even entertaining and break up the text, but still I found them somewhat distracting (but maybe that's just me, i am a rather fussy reader.).