POLCENTER.COM

POLISH CENTER OF JOHN PAUL II, INC

Holy Father
Pope John Paul II

1920 - 2005

Biography

He made his First Holy Communion at age 9 and was confirmed at 18. Upon graduation from Marcin Wadowita high school in Wadowice, he enrolled in Cracow's Jagiellonian University in 1938 and in a school for drama.

The Nazi occupation forces closed the university in 1939 and young Karol had to work in a quarry (1940-1944) and then in the Solvay chemical factory to earn his living and to avoid being deported to Germany.

In 1942, aware of his call to the priesthood, he began courses in the clandestine seminary of Cracow, run by Cardinal Adam Stefan Sapieha, archbishop of Cracow. At the same time, Karol Wojtyla was one of the pioneers of the "Rhapsodic Theatre," also clandestine.

After the Second World War, he continued his studies in the major seminary of Cracow, once it had re-opened, and in the faculty of theology of the Jagiellonian University, until his priestly ordination in Cracow on November 1, 1946.

Soon after, Cardinal Sapieha sent him to Rome where he worked under the guidance of the French Dominican, Garrigou-Lagrange. He finished his doctorate in theology in 1948 with a thesis on the topic of faith in the works of St. John of the Cross. At that time, during his vacations, he exercised his pastoral ministry among the Polish immigrants of France, Belgium and Holland.

In 1948 he returned to Poland and was vicar of various parishes in Cracow as well as chaplain for the university students until 1951, when he took up again his studies on philosophy and theology. In 1953 he defended a thesis on "evaluation of the possibility of founding a Catholic ethic on the ethical system of Max Scheler" at Lublin Catholic University. Later he became professor of moral theology and social ethics in the major seminary of Cracow and in the Faculty of Theology of Lublin.

On July 4, 1958, he was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Cracow by Pope Pius XII, and was consecrated September 28, 1958, in Wawel Cathedral, Cracow, by Archbishop Baziak.

On January 13, 1964, he was nominated Archbishop of Cracow,Poland by Pope Paul VI, who made him a cardinal June 26, 1967.

Besides taking part in Vatican Council II with an important contribution to the elaboration of the Constitution Gaudium et spes, Cardinal Wojty³a participated in all the assemblies of the Synod of Bishops.

Since the start of his Pontificate on October 16, 1978, Pope John Paul II has completed 104 pastoral visits outside of Italy and 146 within Italy . As Bishop of Rome he has visited 317 of the 333 parishes .

His principal documents include 14 encyclicals , 15 apostolic exhortations , 11 apostolic constitutions and 45 apostolic letters. The Pope has also published five books : "Crossing the Threshold of Hope" (October 1994); "Gift and Mystery: On the 50th Anniversary of My Priestly Ordination" (November 1996); "Roman Triptych - Meditations", a book of poems (March 2003); "Rise, Let Us Be On Our Way" (May 2004) and "Memory and Identity" (publication spring 2005).

John Paul II has presided at 147 beatification ceremonies ( 1,338 Blesseds proclaimed ) and 51 canonization ceremonies ( 482 Saints ) during his pontificate. He has held 9 consistories in which he created 231 (+ 1 in pectore) cardinals . He has also convened six plenary meetings of the College of Cardinals .

From 1978 to today the Holy Father has presided at 15 Synods of Bishops : six ordinary (1980, 1983, 1987, 1990, 1994, 2001), one extraordinary (1985) and eight special (1980, 1991, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998[2] and 1999).

No other Pope has encountered so many individuals like John Paul II: to date, more than 17,600,000 pilgrims have participated in the General Audiences held on Wednesdays (more than 1,160). Such figure is without counting all other special audiences and religious ceremonies held [more than 8 million pilgrims during the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000 alone] and the millions of faithful met during pastoral visits made in Italy and throughout the world. It must also be remembered the numerous government personalities encountered during 38 official visits and in the 738 audiences and meetings held with Heads of State , and even the 246 audiences and meetings with Prime Ministers

Seven Themes Key to John Paul's Papacy

• The Glory of God Is the Human Being Fully Alive
• The Dignity of the Human Being
• The Church as Defender of Human Rights
• Persons in Community
• Unity of Christians, the Unity of the World
• A New Evangelization
• The Third Millennium

Leaders of all stripes emerged in the 20th century but only Pope John Paul II thought to convene young people and offer a vision to the leaders of tomorrow.

Beginning in Rome in 1985 and continuing through to Toronto in 2002, John Paul has invited young people to join him for a series of World Youth Days.
By 2002, he had drawn millions of young people to international gatherings in Buenos Aires, Argentina (1987), Santiago de Compostela, Spain (1989), Czestochowa, Poland (1991), Denver, Colorado (1993), Manila, the Philippines (1995), Paris, France (1997), Rome, Italy (2000) and Toronto, Canada (2002).

The meetings showed the particular appeal of John Paul to young people. Speaking in the language of the country where each event took place, he tapped into their idealism with a message that they are the ones to bring peace to the world.

He bantered with them— to their chants of
"John Paul II, we love you," he responded, "John Paul II, he loves you too." He called them to be holy, bringing tears to their eyes; his words touched their hearts and souls. He reminded them that there are no limits to what they can do with God.

World Youth Day is for the hardy. It involves hiking for miles to a site for an all-night vigil marked by prayer with the pope, Scripture, community and song. The following day the young people participate in a Mass celebrated by the pope. Some years it has rained, leaving young people coated in mud. Other years it has been chilly. Other years, hot. Always, the event has inspired participants and observers.

The pope's visit to Denver in 1993 amazed even the cynical. "It's like Woodstock, with all of the good and none of the bad," boasted a Washington Post page-one story. Viewers were amazed that hundreds of thousands of youth could gather for a lively five days of prayer and celebration of their faith.

Even as the pope grew older, World Youth Day energized him. In 1993, organizers coined a new verb, youthen, to describe a phenomenon they saw; as in, the pope youthens when he meets young people.

In Toronto, nine years later, a visibly aging pope gathered energy from his first glimpse of youth from the plane. Given his increasing difficulty in walking, organizers prepared a device to lift the pope down when he disembarked from the Alitalia plane. To everyone's surprise, the pope walked down the steps and headed for the microphones. Young people were calling him and he responded, as always, with the affection he feels especially for them.

Perhaps no man has so greatly influenced recent history as Pope John Paul II.

JOHN PAUL II,
WE LOVE YOU AND WE WILL LOVE YOU FOREVER.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR GUIDANCE.

Polish Center Of John Paul II
Clearwater, Florida