With the simple power and astonishing candor that made his 1988 autobiography, The Ragman's Son, a number one international bestseller, Kirk Douglas now shares his quest for spirituality and Jewish identity -- and his heroic fight to overcome crippling injuries and a devastating stroke. On February 13, 1991, at the age of seventy-four, Kirk Douglas, star of such major motion-picture classics as Champion, Spartacus, and Paths of Glory, was in a helicopter crash, in which two people died and he himself sustained severe back injuries. As he lay in the hospital recovering, he kept wondering: Why had two younger men died while he, who had already lived his life fully, survived? The question drove this son of a Russian-Jewish ragman to a search for his roots and on a long journey of self-discovery -- a quest not only for the meaning of life and his own relationship with God, but for his own identity as a Jew. Through the study of the Bible, Kirk Douglas found a new spirituality and purpose. His newfound faith deeply enriched his relationship with his own children and taught him -- a man who had always been famously demanding and impatient -- to listen to others and, above all, to hear his own inner voice. Told with warmth, wit, much humor, and deep passion, Climbing the Mountain is inspirational in the very best sense of the word.

Adolph Saphir's classic meditation on chapter four, verse eight of the Book of James is treasured for its poignant spiritual assessment of the New Testament. "Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you." is the message at the heart of The Hidden Life. For the author, these words summarize most perfectly the exactness of God's message through the New Testament. With this as his basis, Adolph Saphir proceeds to discuss how to live with the Holy Trinity in mind. Yet his contemplations are rich in their variety; he visits such topics as Eastern mysticism found in religions of India and Islam, the discussions between God and Biblical figures such as Nicodemus, and the message brought by Christ to humankind. The meditations herein are supported by references to chapters of the New Testament, together with a variety of quotations from spiritual authors of antiquity and early modern times. Though his inquiry is winding with touches of eclecticism, Saphir never loses sight of the objective: growing closer to the spiritual essence of the Lord and Jesus Christ. The Saphir family converted from Judaism to Christianity when Adolph was a child. Intellectually apt, Adolph gained a Master's degree from Glasgow University, and went on to serve as a minister and missionary of some renown in the 19th century. Glasgow University made him an honorary Doctor of Divinity in 1878.