John Paul II presided over as the Pope and Sovereign of the State of the Vatican City for almost 27 years. Credited with being the second-longest pontificate till date, His Holiness has too many firsts to his credit. One of the most traveled leaders of the world, Pope John Paul II is considered as one of the most influential leaders of the world. His influence was not restricted to the Catholics across the globe. Rather, a true world statesman, Pope John Paul II brought changes in the image of the church, across the globe. During his long reign as Pope, he said 'sorry' to Jews, Galileo, women, victims of the Inquisition, Muslims slaughtered by the Crusaders and almost everyone who had suffered at the hands of the Catholic Church through the years.
Pope John Paul II, baptized as Karol Józef Wojtyla, was born on May 18, 1920, in Wadowice, Poland. His mother died when he was only eight years old and after a couple of years (1932), Karol lost his elder brother as well. During his youth days, Karol enjoyed playing soccer, as a goalie. In the year 1938, he shifted lodgings to Kraków, along with his father. It was here that Karol broadened his horizons of knowledge. Enrolling himself in Jagiellonian University, he learned almost 12 languages and also participated in various theatrical groups, as a playwright.
In 1939, when the Nazi Germans occupied Poland, Karol was amongst the worst hit. His university had closed, leaving him with no choice other than to earn a living by doing petty jobs. His father left for the heaven abode in 1941, leaving him all alone in the world. It was, thence, that he realized his calling for priesthood and started studying in the clandestine underground seminary run by the Archbishop of Kraków, Adam Stefan, Cardinal Sapieha. After surviving an accident with a Geman truck, Karol's decision to become a priest became all the more firm.
Ordained as a priest on November 1, 1946, Karol Wojtyła was sent to Rome, at the Pontifical International Athenaeum Angelicum, to study theology. In 1948, after attaining a licentiate and doctorate in sacred theology, he returned to Poland. His first-ever work as a priest was in the village of Niegowić, fifteen miles from Kraków. A year later, Karol relocated to Saint Florian's parish in Kraków. A teacher of ethics at Jagiellonian University and the Catholic University of Lublin, Karol assembled a group of about 20 young people that eventually expanded to 200 people. These participants met for prayers, philosophical discussions and helping blind and sick people.
It was in the year 1954 that Karol gained his second doctorate, in philosophy. A holder of two doctorates, he started his literary career by writing for the newspaper 'Tygodnik Powszechny', also known as Universal Weekly. Herein, he wrote about the contemporary church issues. Karol dealt with issues like war, life under communism and his pastoral responsibilities, as the themes for his poems and plays. He distinguished his literary writings from his religious ones by publishing the former under pseudo names, so that they get recognition on merit and not on his name. It was in 1960 that Karol wrote an influential theological book 'Love and Responsibility', a defense of the traditional Church teachings on marriage, from a new philosophical standpoint.
It was during his kayaking vacation, in July 1958, that Karol came to know about his nomination for the position of auxiliary bishop of Kraków. Agreeing to serve as auxiliary to Archbishop Eugeniusz Baziak, he was consecrated to the Episcopate on September 28, 1958. With this, he became the youngest bishop in Poland. After the death of Baziak, Bishop Karol was elected as Vicar Capitular, or temporary administrator, of the Archdiocese. Becoming a Bishop, henceforth, he participated in the Second Vatican Council.
Bishop Karol also contributed in the Decree on Religious Freedom (in Latin, Dignitatis Humanae) and the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (Gaudium et Spes). He took part in the assemblies of Synod of Bishops. Admiring his worthy contributions and laudable role as a temporary administrator, Pope Paul VI appointed him as the Archbishop of Kraków, on December 1963. Archbishop Karol was promoted to the Sacred College of Cardinals, on June 26, 1967. Later on, he became instrumental in formulating the encyclical Humanae Vitae, which dealt with sensitive issues of abortion and artificial birth control.
Following the death of Pope Paul VI, Albino Luciani was appointed as the next Pope - Pope John Paul I. However, the latter left for the heaven abode after only 33 days of his papacy, thereby causing another conclave of the cardinals. Cardinal Giuseppe Siri and Cardinal Giovanni Benelli were the two main contenders for the post. However, observing the scale of their opposition, Cardinal Franz König, Archbishop of Vienna, individually suggested Karol, the Polish Cardinal, as a compromise candidate.
Surprisingly, Cardinal Karol won the election on the eighth ballot on the second day. According to the Italian press, he received 99 votes, from the 111 participating electors. With this, Cardinal Karol Józef Wojtyła succeeded Pope John Paul I and became Pope John Paul II. He was the youngest Pope to be elected, in the history of Rome, since Pope Pius IX (1846), who was 54 years old. Becoming the 264th Pope, Pope John Paul II received his simplified Papal inauguration ceremony on October 22, 1978, dispensing with the traditional Papal coronation, just like his immediate predecessor.
Pope John Paul II visited as many as129 countries as the Bishop of Rome. Attracting large crowds everywhere he went, he became one of the largest-traveled Popes. The number of trips he made to foreign countries was more than that of all his predecessors, put together. Probably, this is the reason why Pope John Paul II was also given the title of the 'Pilgrim Pope'. Though amongst the 129 countries, there were many countries that had been visited by his predecessors; he is entitled with a lot of firsts. Pope John Paul II was the first Pope ever to visit Mexico, Cuba and Ireland, a few names amongst his long list.
Pope John Paul II was also the first pope to travel to the United Kingdom (1982), Egypt and Jerusalem (2000). His Holiness also became the first Catholic Pope to visit and pray in an Islamic mosque (Umayyad Mosque) in Damascus, Syria (2001). There, he also visited Umayyad Mosque, where John the Baptist is believed to be interred. Pope John Paul II's visit to Luneta Park, Manila, (Philippines) attracted probably the largest single gathering in Christian history. The visit took place on 15th January 1995, during the X World Youth Day. In 2001, this Servant of God also traveled to Kazakhstan, to celebrate 1,700 years of Christianity.
Pope John Paul II was shot and critically wounded on 13th May, 1981, as he was entering St. Peter's Square to address an audience. The shooter was Mehmet Ali Ağca, an expert and trained Turkish gunman of the militant group Grey Wolves. A second assassination attempt took place on the Pope, on 12th May, 1982. In Fátima, Portugal, a man tried to stab him with a bayonet, but was stopped by security guards in time.
Pope John Paul II was diagnosed with septic shock, a widespread form of infection - characterized by a very high fever and profoundly low blood pressure, on March 31, 2005. Despite this, he was not taken to the hospital and was given medical aid by a team of consultants at his private residence. On April 2, 2005, Pope John Paul IIleft for the heaven abode, 46 days short of his 85th birthday. He was cremated at St. Peter's Basilica.
John Paul II is one of the four Popes, who have been referred to with the title 'the Great'. He has been called 'John Paul the Great' through popular and continued usage, since there is no official process for declaring a pope "Great". In 2007, the successor of Pope John Paul II - Benedict XVI began his beatification process. He bypassed the normal restriction of five years having been passed since a person's death, for beatifying him/her, citing "exceptional circumstances". The Vicariate of Rome, on March 8, 2007, declared that the diocesan phase of John Paul's cause for beatification was at its conclusion.
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