John Berosky
Th-100(8)
12/14/00
Pope John Paul II
Born in Wadowice, Poland on May 18,1920, no one knew that little Karol Wojtyla would live one of the most interesting lives of the Twentieth Century. Karol had humble beginnings, his father, Karol Sr., was an officer in the Polish army and his family was not that rich. As a child, he enjoyed playing sports like soccer and often went hiking and skiing. When he was a teenager, he became one of the most talented young actors in Poland. Many of his friends called him Lolick.
Karol�s youth was not without tragedy though. When he was just eight years old his mother, Emilia, died from heart disease. His brother Edmond, a doctor, died three years later from scarlet fever, a disease he contracted from a patient. The Wojtylas also had a small girl, Olga, but she died as an infant. Karol�s only living relative was his father. They became very close, and many family friends say that the two would pray for hours together. Some people believe that Karol became strongly religious from his father�s influence.
Another reason for Karol�s deep devotion to his religion is the country of Poland. Most of the Polish population is Catholic. Daily family prayer is very common there, and all Polish people make a pilgrimage to Our Lady of Chestahova. The painting of the Virgin Mary holding Jesus is extremely popular among Polish Catholics. From this painting, Karol got an extreme devotion to Mary. To this day, Pope John Paul II wears a button addressed to Mary that reads: �Totus Tuus� in Latin, which means �Totally Yours.�
Things seemed to be getting better for Karol. He had a promising acting career and was very close to his father. However, times would change. WWII began with the German invasion of Poland in September of 1939. During the occupation, Karol worked in a rock quarry during the day, and at night was involved in the Polish underground. The division of the underground Karol was in is not like the militant ones the French had. You see, when the Germans invaded Poland, they tried to wipe out the Polish culture and religion. Schools were closed, Polish literature was banned, and seminaries were closed. A few Poles believed that the best way to resist Nazi occupation was to keep the culture alive. At night, an underground theater was opened and Polish people could learn about their culture and national identity through actors. Thanks to actors and other people like Karol, the Polish people were able to keep some of their pride and nationalism.
Despite the success with teaching people about their culture and restoring some hope to the Polish people, Poland was still a war zone. Bombings, Nazi arrests, and death camps were always present. Karol had many Jewish friends and a lot of them were sent to the infamous Auswitz Concentration Camp. Even non-Jews were sent there for acts of hostility towards the Nazis. Karol was spared from this torture, but was deeply impacted by the loss of some of his friends. To make matters worse, Karol�s father died. Some of his friends think that Karol had always thought of becoming a Priest, but his father�s death was the deciding factor.
Becoming a Priest in Nazi-held Poland was not a simple task. Since the Nazi�s closed all colleges and seminaries, there was no place to train Priests. However, the Archbishop of Poland, Father Sayeashah, opened an underground seminary during the war. During the day, Karol continued to work as a laborman at the rock quarry, but at night he and some other brave young men trained to become the future generation of Polish Priests. In 1945 Poland was liberated. Karol was able to study for the Priesthood without fear of Nazi imprisonment. In 1946, Karol was ordained a Priest.
Over the next eighteen years, Karol was an Archdiocesan Priest, and teacher. Karol also wrote important documents in Vatican II through which he gained much acclaim. In 1964, he was appointed the Archbishop of Krakow. Three years later in 1967 he became one of the youngest Cardinals ever appointed in Catholic Church history at the age of 47. He then served as a Cardinal for eleven years until 1978 when he became the Pope. He chose the name Pope John Paul because those were the names of the previous two Popes.
For the past twenty-two years, Catholics have revered Pope John Paul around the world. The two failed assassination attempts and other near-death experiences he has had, proves that there is something very special about this man. He has also been known to use media to his advantage. The Pope has written a few books, and is the first Pope to use television to reach the people of the Church. Pope John Paul loves children, and stops to talk to them and ordinary people in his many trips. I was able to experience this during his trip to St. Louis, where at his evening prayer service at the New Cathedral, he blessed me. Another ephitate of the Pope�s is that he is the most-traveled Pope ever.
It has been a very interesting life for the boy they called �Lolick� back in Wadowice, Poland. Like all human beings, he has had many ups and downs. He has risen from humble beginnings to be one of the most known figures in the world. His papacy is known for helping bring down Communism, promoting peace around the world, and continuing Church reform. Pope John Paul II will be remembered as one of the best Pope�s in the Church�s history.
For this extra-credit project, I received information from the video The Life and Times of Pope John Paul II. Further information, such as dates came from http://home.tci.net/aatn/amance/apostles/johnpaul/me.html