I Was a Stranger: Hope for a Hidden World

What a powerful story of faith and courage! I felt that I was right there walking through Feliberto Pereira's moving experience. This is an inspiring read; it was evident that this man of great faith was chosen for this divine purpose. He leaves you believing that with faith and hope all things are possible. -Verron Thornton Author of "Get up girl", you've been sitting too long!

This is an inspiring and fabulous book. Everyone should read it. It will change your life.

I Was A Stranger is one of the greatest books I have read in my lifetime. This book shares a similar thread with The Diary of Anne Frank in that it tells a harrowing story of avoiding an oppressive government while still caring compassionately for those facing the threat of persecution and death on a daily basis. I imagine if Anne Frank had survived the Holocaust, she would have turned out to become a person similar to whom Feliberto Pereira is today--a compassionate man whose liberation from the torture camps of Castro left him extremely grateful and prepared to help others who seek asylum in this country from political and religious oppression. This well-written story placed me in the situations that Feliberto endured, and it seemed like I was living in Cuba right with him, sharing the emotions of happiness and despair--the emotional highs and the depressing lows. This is one of the most inspiring stories ever of a person who has been given the American gift of freedom and then sharing and seeking it for others--the "stranger" he once was. This is a must read for all those seeking an inspiring story of faith and change in a world of perverted values. I Was A Stranger - Hope for a Hidden World

Few books have made such an impression, touching the very core of the heart as this one. Much like "The Hiding Place" or "God's Smuggler" this book allows you to enter into the experiences of someone who has decided to not let anything steal the hope within. Whether you are feeling the panic of the nine year old boy running down the dusty path for home or the crushing weight of despair a young husband and father carried as he endured the labor camps... carried, but never overcome by, as he trusted in the hope found in his faith in God. This book is a man's journey of faith, a history lesson, and a revelation of finding the true meaning of liberty. The liberty to really be a human, being what God meant for us to be -- Aware that we really are brothers and sisters and called to care for one another, regardless.

Every once in a great while, I read a book that not only inspires me, but actually ingrains itself within my very being. I Was A Stranger: Hope for a Hidden World is the amazing true story of Feliberto Pereira, a Cuban minister who spent four years in Fidel Castro's brutal prison camps because he refused to denounce his faith. Pereira eventually gained his freedom and came to the United States, where he has devoted the past 40 some odd years to helping refugees persecuted by oppressive governments from across the globe. A modern day Good Samaritan, he provides clothing, shelter, and perhaps most importantly, security to people of all races and religions who have been forced to flee their homelands out of fear for their lives. Ultimately, Pereira's story demonstrates how faith and hope have the power to guide us through the most harrowing ordeals and defeat the most evil tyrannies. And in doing so, he teaches us how to befriend the stranger within each of us; he teaches us what it means to be human.