On Sunday, Pope John Paul II will be beatified by his successor, Benedict XVI. Pope John Paul II touched the hearts and minds of millions throughout his 26 years of pontificate. In particular, his humility and positivity towards life appealed to the younger generation (but not only) in spite of his relatively senior age. This, in times when youths seemed to be distanced from the Catholic Church. Dancing to their chants required no effort from him. His jolly behaviour and speeches, characterised by simple language, drew young and adults alike towards him.
Wherever he travelled to and each place he visited, he was greeted warmly by huge crowds. Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, who served as his personal secretary for 40 years, stated that, in each country he visited, suppressed populations felt liberated.
Pope John Paul travelled to 129 countries, undoubtedly making him one of the most travelled leaders of our times.
In itself, this is testament to his strong belief in the universality of the Church.
His unstinting commitment in establishing closer ties between different religions and the praise he received from his counterparts are, likewise, testimony to a reinvigorated ecumenical effort. Throughout his pontificate, the Roman Catholic Church strengthened relations with the Eastern Orthodox Church, Islam, the Anglican Communion and Judaism.
I still recall a television documentary that included interviews with various people pertaining to different religions.
Each spoke highly of his great characteristic. You need not belong to his own religion or have any religion at all to attest to his righteousness for the common good.
Karol Wojtyla’s younger years were, however, spent quite differently. At the age of 20, he was not only an orphan but had no family members left alive. Hitler saw in Poland a place where Nazism could flourish. As a result, when Krakow fell to the Nazis, Wojtyla had no choice but to do manual work in a quarry. His appreciation to hard manual labour in his documents and encyclicals is undoubtedly reminiscent of these previous years.
In those times, the Nazi dictatorship deported the clergy, some were incarcerated, others were killed. Fr Maximilian Kolbe, who Wojtyla proclaimed saint later on during his pontificate, is representative of all those who met their death in Auschwitz – in his words “the calvary of the world”. Fr Kolbe gave up his life in exchange to that of another, a father of a family. In this light, Pope John Paul’s words come as no surprise that “Poland is the great martyr of Europe”.
Just as Nazism was defeated, Poland went under communist dictatorship. Here, Wojtyla’s mission would reach new heights. As Archbishop of Krakow and, later, as cardinal, his colleagues saw his approach of passive resistance through silent and peaceful protests as a sign of weakness. The communist police continuously followed him and had all his conversations tapped, such that he was forced to have the more serious discussions in open spaces and gardens. Yet, in times when religious freedom was considered an act against the dictatorship, Cardinal Wojtyla used to wave and smile back to the police who constantly followed his each and every move.
On his first visit to Poland since his election to the papacy, the communist-controlled national television station would not bring one single wide-angle shot of the large crowds that had gathered to welcome him.
Indeed, his peaceful yet relentless efforts in support of freedom of religion and belief were central to the fall of communism in Poland.
Not only but, further afield, across eastern Europe. On a wider European and international context, he encouraged leaders not to “be afraid to remove the borders of states”. This is the European Union we live in today – borderless, open and accessible. For hundreds of years, European leaders have fought against one another to expand their territories. This is now history and history it ought to remain.
This Sunday’s beatification is a tribute to the mission of the great Pope John Paul II, homage to a great man who lived among us, transcending his love, faith and inspiration. Not only, it is a commemoration of the good that prevails against all evil, many times against all odds.
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