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John Paul II: "I would have liked to stay with you longer, but I find consolation in the words of Jesus. He tells us the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all I have said to you. The Father sends his Spirit of truth and love into the world, and the Spirit guides us in the ways of peace. Therefore do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid. Dear brothers and sisters, the Holy Spirit is with you."
Blessed John Paul II - the Pilgrim Pope
During the 26½ years of his pontificate, John Paul II was a pilgrim to 129 different countries on 104 apostolic voyages, traveling 1,247,613 km (approx 750,000 miles). Click here to see which countries JPII visited when, watch Vatican footage, link to the countries & read JPII's encouraging words.
JPII described: "These trips are visits to each local Church and demonstrate their place in making up the universality of the Church.. Each trip made by the Pope is 'an authentic pilgrimage to the living sanctuary of the People of God'... the Pilgrim-Pope feels at home everywhere, even "among strangers". The proof of this lies in the relationship that they have with him."
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3 2us on John Paul II by Mgr Leo Maasburg
"John Paul II was a very courageous man, not only during the Nazi occupation when he was studying for the priesthood himself secretly and was ordained priest. But also later on in his life he never shrank back from things which his heart told him to do. A few weeks after his election to the See of St Peter, I had a friend with advanced cancer and she asked me if it would be possible to meet the Pope ... After Mass, he came out and greeted us and said to her: "Il tuo sorriso mi indica la presenza di Dio in te' - 'Your smile indicates to me the presence of God in your heart.' .. When I had the occasion to meet him together with Mother Teresa of Calcutta, the way they met, how they communicated with each other, it was such a joy, but the atmosphere was so normal, although there was a big, big tenderness in their relationship. And I noticed that when they had finished talking about their business hardly anything was said, they didn't speak anymore. The Pope normally accompanied Mother Teresa to the door, but they didn't speak, they just walked and sometimes the Pope put his arm round Mother Teresa. So I thought real love doesn't need any words and maybe even forbids small talk, and they were two such big personalities they didn't need to cover something through their talking but they could let love shine through them just by a simple gesture." ¤
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One of the great treasures that John Paul II gave to us, "to the Church and to all people of good will" were his 'encyclicals' - profound writings full of beauty and truth. Within months of becoming Pope, John Paul II had written his first one and it was on Jesus, the Redeemer of Man. His second was on the Mercy of our Father. He went on to write about the Holy Spirit, Our Lady, the Eucharist. The encyclicals reveal the depth of John Paul II"s thought on the identity of man, his search for truth and the crisis facing contemporary society. 3 encyclicals focused particularly on truth, life, and the need for both faith and intelligence. John Paul II wrote 14 encyclicals in total and many of them are now listenable to / downloadable on Totus2us .. as they're ACE and so worth a read / listen! Click here for more.
John Paul II - Man of Prayer
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Novena in thanksgiving for the life of JPII
With a different JPII quote each day plus 2 daily prayers:
O Lord Jesus Christ, you are our future & our hope, in you we live & love & work.
Make us witnesses of your Word, mirrors of your goodness, friends for each other, light in the darkness, comfort for those suffering and a place of grace for all who seek your face, O Lord. (JPII prayer)
O Blessed Trinity, we thank You for having graced the Church with Pope John Paul II
and for allowing the tenderness of your Fatherly care, the glory of the Cross of Christ,
and the splendour of the Holy Spirit, to shine through him.
Trusting fully in Your infinite mercy and in the maternal intercession of Mary,
he has given us a living image of Jesus the Good Shepherd,
and has shown us that holiness is the necessary measure of ordinary Christian life
and is the way of achieving eternal communion with you.
Grant us, by his intercession, and according to Your will, the graces we implore,
hoping that he will soon be numbered among your saints. Amen.
Click here to read the prayers as well as listen to the novena. The providential gift of John Paul II's 5th anniversary falling on Good Friday in 2010 prompted this 1st Totus2us novena, begun on the Feast of the Annunciation.
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Pope John Paul II introduced Divine Mercy Sunday in the Jubilee year 2000, canonising the 1st saint of the new millennium, Sr Mary Faustina Kowalska, on the Sunday after Easter. JPII died on the vigil of Divine Mercy 2005.
During Lent you might like to say the Divine Mercy chaplet (it's in 10 languages on Totus2us's Divine Mercy podcast), and the Divine Mercy Novena starts on Good Friday and leads up to Divine Mercy Sunday (in English & French).
Fr François-Marie Lethel OCD (who gave the Lenten retreat to Pope Benedict on 'The light of Christ in the heart of the Church: JPII & the theology of the saints') - has said: "I am convinced that JPII's beatification is an event of enormous significance for the Church & for the world. It calls for a profound spiritual preparation on the part of the whole people of God, & in an exemplary manner on the part of the Holy Father & his closest collaborators.. JPII's beatification is like the crowning of his extraordinary pontificate precisely under the sign of sanctity."
Totus Tuus - 'All Yours' - was Pope John Paul II's motto, having entrusted his life, his priesthood, his 'all' to Mary.
"This phrase is not only an expression of piety, or simply an expression of devotion. It is more. During the Second World War, while I was employed as a factory worker, I came to be attracted to Marian devotion. At first, it had seemed to me that I should distance myself a bit from the Marian devotion of my childhood, in order to focus more on Christ. Thanks to Saint Louis de Montfort, I came to understand that true devotion to the Mother of God is actually Christocentric, indeed, it is very profoundly rooted in the Mystery of the Blessed Trinity, and the mysteries of the Incarnation and Redemption." JPII
