The Issue: Pope John Paul II died Saturday What we think: Pontiff's message of human dignity leads faithful
If Pope John Paul II could address his church today, he would surely tell them "Be not afraid."
He was a man who led by example. He devoted his life to God, and was a beacon of light for the world's 1 billion Roman Catholics.
In this time of darkness, when the faithful are without their shepherd, it is Karol Wojtyla's spirit that will keep Catholics focused on continuing to spread the message of human dignity that was so important to the pontiff.
Even as he lay on the brink of death, Pope John Paul II continued showing Catholics the way. True to his character, Wojtyla, whose papacy was marked by extensive traveling and outreach to all religions and races, refused to stay in a hospital during his final hours.
Instead, he sat near the windows of his Vatican apartment, overlooking the crowd that had gathered in St. Peter's Square to offer the Holy Father their prayers and well wishes. With the cold breeze in his face, he waved to the throngs as best he could. Three stories below, he saw people from all walks of life - but most importantly, he saw the youth. He directed a message to them. "You have come to me, and for this I thank you," his aides heard him whisper.
It is a fitting message from a man who spent his life carrying the message of the Lord to the youth of the church. He acknowledged young adults everywhere as the future - not just of the faith, but of the world. He engaged them in prayer and dialogue at World Youth Day, a celebration that brought Catholicism's young believers from all parts of the globe together to take part in vigils, acts of community service, and concerts. He was a true father.
John Paul II is the only pope that many at Boston College know. His papacy - which lasted a remarkable 26 years - began in 1978 and touched much of contemporary history. The pope, a major champion of freedom from oppression, played a part in the fall of communism. He made overtures to Jewish leaders, forging a stronger relationship and a better understanding between the two faiths.
It is the people - the followers, the believers, the faithful - that comprise the church, and Pope John Paul II understood that. The effect he had on them was immeasurable. He didn't preach at them, he preached to them. The pope's travels brought him to 104 countries all over the globe - including lands that no other pontiff before him had visited. He decided early on to be an active leader; instead of managing the church from the Vatican, he engaged Catholics in the Lord's message of compassion in their homelands.
Moreover, he spread the teachings of the church through his writings - the pope penned 14 encyclicals and more than 60 other papal documents.
He showed his humanity in other ways, too. As he grew weak later in life and battled from what appeared to be Parkinson's disease, Pope John Paul II still refused to seclude himself behind the immense walls of the Vatican. He continued to address young adults, taking part in World Youth Day events and regularly celebrating Mass in St. Peter's Square. When he was too frail to say Mass, he still would wave and speak to the crowds gathered before him.
Pope John Paul II didn't fear death. He didn't stop his work. The pontiff - a firm believer in the dignity of every individual - showed the world that even in his time of sickness, he had not forgotten about those less fortunate. The faithful were always on his mind.
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