John Paul II

John Paul II was born in Wadowice, a small town near Kraków, on May 18, 1920. He was the youngest of three children and the only son of Karol Wojtyła and Emilia Kaczorowska, who died in 1929 and 1932, respectively. He was baptized on June 20, 1920, in the parish church of Wadowice. He attended elementary and secondary school in Wadowice, where he excelled in academics, languages, and sports. He also developed a passion for theater and poetry. He enrolled in the Jagiellonian University of Kraków in 1938, where he studied Polish literature and philosophy. However, his studies were interrupted by the Nazi invasion of Poland in 1939, which forced him to work as a manual laborer in a quarry and a chemical factory to avoid deportation. He also joined an underground theater group and a cultural resistance movement. During this time, he felt a growing call to the priesthood and began to study secretly at an underground seminary run by the Archbishop of Kraków, Adam Stefan Sapieha. He was ordained a priest on November 1, 1946, and sent to Rome to continue his studies at the Pontifical Angelicum University, where he earned a doctorate in theology in 1948. He returned to Poland and served as a parish priest, a university chaplain, and a professor of ethics and social philosophy at the Catholic University of Lublin. He also earned a second doctorate in philosophy in 1953. He was appointed as an auxiliary bishop of Kraków in 1958, and became the archbishop of Kraków in 1964. He participated in the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965), where he contributed to the drafting of several important documents, such as the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (Gaudium et Spes) and the Declaration on Religious Freedom (Dignitatis Humanae). He also established a close friendship with the future Pope Benedict XVI, then a young theologian. He was created a cardinal by Pope Paul VI in 1967. He was elected as the successor of Peter on October 16, 1978, becoming the first non-Italian pope in 455 years and the first Slavic pope in history. He took the name John Paul II, in honor of his predecessors John XXIII and Paul VI. He was inaugurated on October 22, 1978, and chose as his motto Totus Tuus (Totally Yours), expressing his devotion to the Virgin Mary. John Paul II was one of the most influential and charismatic leaders of the 20th century. He traveled extensively, visiting 129 countries and covering more than 1.2 million kilometers. He was seen by more than 250 million people, making him the most widely seen person in history. He was a champion of human rights, democracy, and social justice, and a staunch defender of the dignity of every human person from conception to natural death. He played a key role in the peaceful collapse of communism in Eastern Europe, especially in his native Poland, where he supported the Solidarity movement led by Lech Wałęsa. He also promoted dialogue and reconciliation among different religions, cultures, and nations, and apologized for the sins and errors committed by the members of the Church throughout history. He was a prolific writer, authoring 14 encyclicals, 15 apostolic exhortations, 11 apostolic constitutions, 45 apostolic letters, and numerous books, speeches, homilies, and messages. He also initiated several reforms and innovations in the Church, such as the promulgation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the revision of the Code of Canon Law, the establishment of World Youth Day, the introduction of the luminous mysteries of the rosary, and the proclamation of the Jubilee Year 2000. He also beatified and canonized more saints than any other pope in history, including some of his predecessors, such as Pius IX, John XXIII, and Pius X. He also declared Mary as the Mother of the Church and the Co-Redemptrix of humanity. John Paul II suffered from various health problems, especially in his later years. He was shot and wounded by a Turkish gunman, Mehmet Ali Ağca, on May 13, 1981, in St. Peter's Square, but he survived and forgave his assailant. He also endured a tumor surgery, a broken femur, an appendectomy, a dislocated shoulder, and a Parkinson's disease. He died on April 2, 2005, at the age of 84, after a long and painful illness. He was mourned by millions of people around the world, who gathered in Rome or watched his funeral on television. He was buried in the grottoes of St. Peter's Basilica, near the tomb of St. Peter. He was beatified by his successor, Benedict XVI, on May 1, 2011, and canonized by Pope Francis on April 27, 2014, along with John XXIII. His feast day is celebrated on October 22, the anniversary of his inauguration. He is regarded as one of the greatest popes of all time, and as a saint and a hero by many Catholics and non-Catholics alike. He is also known as John Paul the Great, the Pope of the Family, and the Pope of Mercy.