Joseph F. Girzone

Joseph F. Girzone was born in 1930 in Albany, New York. He studied theology at the Catholic University of America and at Fordham University. In 1955 he was ordained as a Catholic priest.

For many years he kept a busy and stressful schedule ministering to the needs of street gangs and prisoners in addition to parishes, schools and community groups. In 1981, a life threatening illness forced him to retire from the active priesthood. Never happy with the prospect of giving up his care of others, Girzone felt that writing could allow him to share his faith and love of Jesus Christ with a world that was searching for meaning. So he embarked on a successful second career as a writer and international speaker.

He became famous through the publication of the novel Joshua in 1983.

For Girzone writing has been ultimately satisfying. After writing Joshua he said.

“ A lot of healing has taken place among people who have been touched by my book. It seems to me almost as if God wanted Joshua to be written. To get it done, he had to kick me out of the mainstream church, keep me away from ecclesiastical structure, and give me the freedom to do it.”

Girzone’s books have sold throughout the world. His bestselling books include Joshua, Never Alone, Portrait of Jesus and What is God?

His latest book published through HarperCollins is Portrait of Jesus.

The complete list of Girzone books published by HarperCollins are:
Joey
Joshua and the City
Joshua in the Holy Land
Joshua: A Parable for Today
Never Alone
Portrait of Jesus
What is God?