A Kindly Providence: An Alaskan Missionary's Story

This comprehensive and illustrated volume is both a rich history of the Catholic Church in Alaska, and the autobiography of Fr. Louis Renner, S.J., who was a dedicated missionary in Alaska for 40 years. He tells here a compelling story of a full and fascinating life in service of the people and the Church of Alaska amid the incredible natural beauties, challenging elements and vast regions of the Great Land. Beautifully interweaving the history of the people and Church in Alaska, Fr. Renner tells his story of a dedicated missionary priest who loved the people he served. A scholar, a teacher, and always a Jesuit priest, he taught German and Latin at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, edited the Catholic newsletter The Alaskan Shepherd, and ran missions at two different Indian villages on the Yukon River. This pastoral priest became a friend to people in all sectors of Alaskan society. Tony Knows, the governor of Alaska, even presented him with the Governor's Award for Friend of the Humanities. The outline of Fr. Renner's life is fleshed-out richly in A Kindly Providence.