Blessed John Paul

(Karol Jzef Wojtya)

May 18, 1920 to April 2, 2005


Sources:
Pope John Paul II Fast Facts; CNN Library, July 11, 2013
(http://edition.cnn.com/2013/07/02/world/pope-john-paul-ii-fast-facts/index.html)




Biography
Birth date: May 18, 1920
Death date: April 2, 2005
Birth place: Wadowice, Poland
Birth name: Karol Jozef Wojtyla
Father: Karol Wojtyla, officer in the Polish Army
Mother: Emilia Wojtyla
Education: Doctorate in Philosophy and a Doctorate in Sacred Theology, Jagiellonian University

Other Facts:
Pope John Paul II died in April 2005 at the age of 84. His official cause of death was septic shock and
cardio-circulatory collapse. He had suffered from Parkinson's disease, arthritis and other ailments for
several years before his death.
Upon his election in 1978, John Paul II was the first non-Italian Pope in 455 years. His official title was:
Bishop of Rome, Vicar of Jesus Christ, Successor of the Prince of the Apostles, Supreme Pontiff of the
Western Church, Patriarch of the West, Primate of Italy, Archbishop and Metropolitan of the Province of
Rome, Sovereign of the State of Vatican City.
Achievements:
- There were 455 years between Pope John Paul II's election in 1979 and the last time a non-
Italian served as pope. Adrian VI (1522-23) was born in the Netherlands.
- Pope John Paul II was the longest serving pope of the 20th century. (Pope John Paul served 26
years as pontiff.)
- Pope John Paul wrote five books that were published during his papacy: "Crossing the
Threshhold of Hope" in 1994; "Gift and Mystery," an account of his early priesthood, in 1996;
"Roman Tryptych -- Meditations," a book of poems, in 2003; "Get Up, Let Us God," which
focuses on his years in Krakow, in 2004; and "Memory and Identity" in 2005.
- First Pope to visit the White House.
- First modern Pope to visit a synagogue.
- First Pope to visit Cuba.
- The most widely traveled Pope in history. (During his papacy, Pope John Paul II made 104
foreign trips, far more than any other pope.)
- Canonized more saints than any other Pope. (Pope John Paul II declared 482 saints during his
papacy - more than the number declared by all the popes in the last 500 years combined.)
- Pope John Paul II beatified 1,338 people during his papacy. Beatification is the last step before
sainthood.
- Created 232 cardinals.
- Re-established diplomatic relations with Great Britain after a 450-year break.
- In January 1984, re-established diplomatic relations with the United States which had been
broken since 1867.
- Established diplomatic relations with Israel and with the PLO.


Milestones:
May 18, 1920 - Karol Jozef Wojtyla is born in Wadowice, Poland, at 7 Koscielna Street. The little boy
nicknamed Lolek is the third and last child of Karol, an officer in the Polish Army, and Emilia. His brother
Edmund was born in 1906 and a sister, Olga, died in infancy in 1914.
1938 - After Karol Jr. graduates from high school, the Wojtylas move from Wadowice to Krakow. Karol
Jr. attends Jagiellonian University until World War II begins in September 1939.
1941 - Wojtyla and his friends start an underground theater, called the Rhapsodic Theater, to present
works in Polish in defiance of the Nazis. During the day, Wojtyla works in quarries and chemical
factories.
1942 - Wojtyla joins an underground seminary organized by Archbishop Sapieha.
1946 - Wojtyla is ordained by Cardinal Sapieha to become a priest and celebrates his first mass.
1946-1948 - Wojtyla studies in Rome, where he earns a doctorate in philosophy. After returning to
Poland, he also earns a doctorate in Sacred Theology from Jagellonian University in December 1948.
1958 - Wojtyla is consecrated as a bishop.
1962-1965 - Wojtyla participates in Vatican II in Rome. He sides with the reformers who want to
modernize the church. He also contributes to a document that states that the Church no longer
considers Jews responsible for Christ's death.
March 8, 1964 - Wojtyla is ordained as Archbishop of Krakow.
June 26, 1967 - In a secret consistory, Wojtyla is elevated to cardinal. Two days later, he is formally
installed in a Vatican ceremony.
October 16, 1978 - Cardinal Karol Wojtyla is elected to be the 264th pope, the first non-Italian in 455
years. He is also the youngest pope since 1846. He takes the name John Paul II to honor his three
immediate predecessors.
October 2, 1979 - Addresses the General Assembly of the United Nations in New York.
May 13, 1981 - Pope John Paul II is shot by Turkish gunman Mehmet Ali Agca in Saint Peter's Square. He
is wounded in the abdomen, arm and hand. Two others are wounded as well. Vatican Secretary of State
Agostino Cardinal Casaroli takes over as temporary head of the Roman Catholic Church.
January 27, 1983 - The Pope meets with Ali Agca at Rebibbia Prison.
January 10, 1984 - The United States re-establishes full diplomatic relations with the Vatican.
December 26, 1994 - Time Magazine names Pope John Paul II its Man of the Year.
October 5, 1995 - He addresses the General Assembly of the United Nations in New York,
commemorating the organization's 50th anniversary.
March 16, 1998 - The Vatican releases a formal apology to Jews for the Church's failure to do more to
prevent the Holocaust.
March 12, 2000 - Apologizes for the Church's mistreatment of Jews, non-Catholic Christians, women, the
poor, and minorities over the last 2,000 years.
March 16, 2004 - With 25 years and 5 months as pope, John Paul II becomes the third longest serving
pontiff in history, behind St. Peter's 32 years and Pope Pius IX's 31 years 7 months.
June 15, 2004 - Pope John Paul II asks forgiveness for the Inquistion, "for errors committed in the service
of truth through use of methods that had nothing to do with the Gospel."
February 1, 2005 - Hospitalized with a respiratory infection.
February 9, 2005 - For the first time in his papacy, John Paul II does not perform the Ash Wednesday
mass at the Vatican.
February 11, 2005 - Is released from the hospital.
February 24, 2005 - Re-hospitalized at Gemelli Hospital after relapsing with the flu. Successfully
undergoes a tracheotomy to relieve respiratory problems.
March 13, 2005 - Released from the hospital.
March 30, 2005 - The Vatican announces that the Pope is being fed by a nasal tube.
March 31, 2005 - Given last rites after developing a high-fever and a urinary tract infection.
April 1, 2005 - The Vatican says in a written statement that the Pope had suffered cardiocirculatory
collapse and septic shock. The Vatican denied reports that the Pope was in a coma and described his
condition as "lucid, fully conscious."
April 2, 2005 - Pope John Paul II dies at 9:37p.m. in his private apartment in the Vatican.
April 8, 2005 - His funeral takes place in Saint Peter's Square and he is buried in a crypt under Saint
Peter's Basilica.
May 1, 2011 - Is beatified, or declared "blessed", as a saint by his successor Pope Benedict XVI. A vial of
Pope John Paul II's blood is displayed before the crowd.
July 5, 2013 - The Vatican announces that Pope John Paul II will be made a saint. A date for the
canonization has not been announced.
























Why I want to Emulate Pope John Paul II
One of the best characteristics of being a leader is having a win-win attitude which results to a
favourable outcome for everyone involved. As a leader, one must make wise decisions for the benefit of
all his constituents. To make a wise decision, a leader must lay down his goals and objectives and design
a scheme that must be advantageous for everyone involved in order to achieve the desired favourable
outcome. However, this is not easy to do because it is difficult to determine what is really beneficial for
members having different culture, race, social status, educational background, etc.
A leader will not succeed without the participation of its members. He must bring out the best in
his members by motivating them. Hence, a good leader must possess good persuasion in motivating
others. The etymological meaning of persuasion is from Latin words per (which means through), and
suasio (which means sweetness). Thus in motivating his members, a leader must possess the quality
of sweetness in driving them to do things. A healthy motivation does not use force and intimidation for
other to do something but uses inspiration to convince others to do something for their own benefit.
This should be the outcome of having a win-win attitude: for the benefit of all.
Pope John Paul II is regarded as the most widely travelled pope in the history. In speaking before
the people of the place where he visited, his speeches were founded on Peace and Justice. Pope John
Paul II had the option of just writing his speech and send copies to his bishops with an order to read the
same before all the Catholics every Sunday mass. In that way, he didnt need to travel and spend money
and effort in just delivering a speech, and he could have just enjoyed the comfort and luxury of staying
in the chambers of his palace. But the pope opted to travel and visit as many countries as he could in
order to spread Peace and Justice. His presence was essential in motivating others to promote peace
and do what is just. Many people who saw Pope John Paul II felt that they were part of something holy.
As his eyes and smiles fell upon the people, they felt that they are loved. His presence shed many tears
not because of pain and sorrows but because people felt something mystic that words are incapable to
describe.
Lastly, I want to imitate Pope John Paul II because as a man of prayer, he led the Catholic Church
by motivating them to have a relationship with God through prayer.
The Catholic Church is led by the pope, through his cardinals, bishops, and priests. They lead the
Church by way of preaching the good news. Their teachings are basically premised on the idea that we
should imitate Christ and live His ways.
We, the members of the Church are always being reminded of imitating Christ in our day to day
lives. We should do what Jesus did in times of trials and sufferings. We should treat the poor, the needy,
the sick and the marginalized the way Jesus accepted and loved them. And most especially, we should
handle temptation the way Jesus dealt with it. I firmly believe that this was fulfilled by Pope John Paul II,
not only during his papacy, but during his entire lifetime.
It seems that every Christian, whether a leader or a member, has two basic duties to fulfil; the
duty to PREACH Christ ways and the duty to LIVE Christ ways. These duties are basic in the sense that
they are the foundation, I would say, of knowing and living our faith. But they seem to be not basic in
the sense that they are easy to fulfil.
In life, the most important question is WHY. In our everyday lives, we should at least spend
some time of reflection about our experiences to understand the reason behind the life has brought to
us. But I think, the more challenging question is HOW. After we have understood life, or at least have a
glimpse of it, we should also know how we can move on and continue living. It is not enough to
understand why we need to fulfil our duties. It is also significant know how we can answer to the call of
duty. I submit that we can only do this through prayer, as what Jesus did as what Pope John Paul II did.