Bl John Paul II is an all-round patron

BY SAMUEL FRANCIS

The old proverb Vox populi, vox Dei is usually attributed to the 12th-century William of Malmesbury. It means: the voice of the people is the voice of God.

During the 2005 funeral ceremony for Pope John Paul II, the crowds at the Vatican shouted “Santo subito!”—make him a saint now! This was their wish, they had spoken, and their voice became the voice of God.

Pope Benedict, who as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger presided over the funeral Mass of his friend and predecessor, has appointed May 1 as the date for John Paul’s beatification, the final step before sainthood. In addition, Bl John Paul II has been chosen the official spiritual patron of World Youth Day 2011. He is the one who founded World Youth Day and presided over many of its large gatherings around the world.

Having been the people’s pope, John Paul II certainly will become the people’s saint.

He brought the papacy closer to the people of all world cultures and was unafraid to mix with the masses. He is said to have been the most recognised person in the world, and his funeral is believed to have brought together the single largest gathering in world history.

As a saint, John Paul could become the patron of the following:

The Youth: John Paul II had a special affinity for young people, not because he was young, but because he was youthful. During his installation ceremony in 1978, he told the youth: “You are the future of the world, you are the hope of the Church, you are my hope.” And among his last words, reportedly delivered hours before his death on April 2, 2005, were also directed to the youth. In response to the thousands of young people praying and singing in St Peter’s square, he said: “I sought you and now you have come to me… I thank you.”

Pilgrims: Pope John Paul was the “pilgrim pope”. He is the most travelled pope in the nearly 2000-year history of the Church. During his papacy, he visited more than 120 nations and was seen in person by millions.

Politicians: At his funeral were four kings, five queens and at least 70 presidents and prime ministers. He was neither the president nor a state official in the United States, but when he died, President George W Bush ordered that the flags be flown at half mast at the White House and all federal buildings and military facilities until the pope was buried.

Africa: According to Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, John Paul II had a soft spot for Africa in general, and for the bishops of Southern Africa in particular.

Ecumenism: During his travels, he came into contact with believers of various divergent faiths. He had a good relationship with the Church of England and the relations between Catholicism and Judaism improved during his pontificate.

He became the first pope to visit the eastern Orthodox countries since the Great Schism; he was the first pope to enter and pray in a mosque and was visited eight times by the Buddhist religious leader, Dalai Lama.

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I attended his funeral; thus making history by becoming the first Orthodox ecumenical patriarch to attend a papal funeral since the Great Schism. The Anglican archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, was also present at papal funeral—the first time an archbishop of Canterbury did so since the Church of England broke with the papacy in the 16th century.

Also for the first time ever, the head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church, Patriarch Abune Paulos attended a papal funeral. And in a historic rarity, Protestant and Eastern Orthodox Christian leaders, as well as leaders in Judaism, Islam and Buddhism offered memorials and prayers of their own for their congregants, in solidarity and as a way of sharing in the grief of all Catholics.

Peace: John Paul made peace with his would-be assassin, the Turkish gunman Mehmet Ali Agca, who shot and critically wounded him in May 1981.

The pope was also very strong in his opposition to war, saying that wars generally do not resolve the problems but are, in fact, a defeat for humanity. He termed war as the most barbarous and least effective way of resolving conflicts. In addition, he invited religious leaders to Assisi to offer prayers for peace in the world.

The sick: John Paul perhaps inspired more people in his death than he did in life. In his final years, his step became halted by illness and infirmity and his speech became laboured, but his indomitable spirit touched, taught and inspired many.

Just as he was the people’s pope in life so will he become the people’s saint in death. He interceded for the Church as the successor of Peter, now he will intercede for humanity as a beatus.

Samuel Francis is a student of theology at St Joseph’s Theological Institute in Cedara, KwaZulu-Natal.