St. John Paul II (1978-1980 A.D.)

Series: On the life of John Paul II

From 1978 - 1980 A.D.

The joyful news echoed around the world

Poland was very happy at the news of Karol Wojtyla's election to the papacy. It was such a great surprise, that for 15 minutes, the church bells pealed in many parts of the country. Joyful processions also made their way to the churches in thanksgiving to the Lord for this momentous event. In the rest of the world, newspapers were preparing biographical notes on the new Pope, Karol Wojtyla. The journalists discovered that, besides speaking in Polish, Pope Wojtyla also spoke fluently many different languages: Latin, Italian, French, German, and English. Also, the reporters and journalists were able to discover that this new Pope had already a host of written works: five books, more than 500 newspaper articles, some good plays written, and also poetry. Someone said to Cardinal Wyszynski, Karol Wojtyla's good cardinal-friend: "Tonight, the whole of Poland must be rejoicing." The good Cardinal Wyszynski knows this to be true; and the world also shares greatly in the joy and happiness of Polish people.

Quickly settling into a prayer and work routine

Before settling into a prayer and work routine, the Holy Father made changes in the papal household so that it now consisted of mainly Polish workers. His secretary from Krakow, Stanislaw Dziwisz, was moved into the papal apartment to learn the secretarial tasks and responsibilities in the papal household. So the papal administrative body in the household consisted of forty Polish priests and nuns, who reported to Stanislaw Dziwisz.

Schedule in the morning

With the papal household now reorganized, the Holy Father made it his routine to rise at 5:30 a.m., and to pray in his chapel until Mass at 7:30 a.m. After Mass and thanksgiving, he greeted the visitors in his library, and several of them would be invited for breakfast with him. By 8:30 a.m., the Pope would be at his desk, where he would work undisturbed until 11:00 a.m. Every Wednesday at midmorning, he would greet the public audience. For private audiences, which were held in the late morning, he met with diplomats, government officials, and Church leaders.

Schedule after lunch

The Pope took lunch at 1:00 p.m. Lunch was then followed by a short 20-minute siesta, and then he would go back to his office to study official papers for an hour or two. Then, he would rise to his roof terrace above to pray the rosary while walking for half an hour. At 6:30 p.m., he would receive top-ranking Vatican officials. Then supper would be at 7:30 p.m., which often would be a light meal with the presence of guests. Before 9:00 p.m., the Pope would go to his office to spend time reading until retiring for a good night's sleep at 11:00 p.m.

Schedule on Sundays

On Sundays, when in Rome, the Pope would greet pilgrims at noon from his window overlooking St. Peter's Square. He would then pray the Angelus and deliver a short homily. This was basically the core of John Paul II's praying and working schedule while he was in the Vatican. We are also to be reminded that he was a missionary Pope, and that he traveled a lot to many countries around the world.

The Holy Father's global ministry

As the first non-Italian pontiff in more than four centuries, John Paul II inspired so many Roman Catholics from Canada to Cameroon to think of him as their own. But it was by leaving Rome for foreign shores - a journey that he made 104 times, more than all previous popes combined - that he came to speak to all of humanity - both Roman Catholics, other Christians, and non-Christians.

Focusing on his global ministry

This series on the Holy Father's life will specially focus on his global ministry, which can be divided as follows:

• 1979-1980
• 1981-1985
• 1986-1990
• 1991-1995
• 1996-2000
• 2001-2004

A special section of this series will also be devoted to the last period of his life, especially when he became severely debilitated with Parkinson's and arthritis.

Missionary trip to Mexico

The Holy Father's first foreign trip was to Mexico, on January 26, 1979 A.D. He participated in the Latin American Bishops Conference (CELAM). His mission in this part of the globe was to set straight the influence of liberation theology - a very socially progressive theology that was influencing many parts of Latin America.

A visit to his home country, Poland

On June 2, 1979 A.D., the Holy Father visited Warsaw, Poland. He made forty public appearances within a period of nine days. Three days he dedicated to Czestochowa, then he visited Gniezno - the birthplace of Polish Catholicism. He also went to Krakow and the shrines of Kalweria. Then he visited Auschwitz. During his visit, he stressed that he was a Slav Pope with a mission not only to Poles but also to Czechs, Slovaks, Slovenes, Serbs, Croats, Bulgarians, Ukrainians, and Russians. As a Slav Pope, he had a special mission to heal the centuries-old division between Christianity of the East and the West.

John Paul II visits the U.S.A.

In October 1979 A.D., the Holy Father was in New York, speaking before the General Assembly of the United Nations. He also visited Philadelphia, Des Moines, and Chicago. He then went to attend a service at Washington, D.C., where 700 nuns were present. Although the religious sisters wanted to promote to the Holy Father their desire to be included in all the ministries of the Church, the Holy Father firmly towed a conservative position by delivering a sermon extolling the religious life of nuns as a spiritual marriage with Jesus Christ.

The mission to Africa

In May 1980 A.D., the Holy Father journeyed to Africa, first to Zaire, then to Brazzaville in Congo, and further on to East Africa and Kenya. He continued on to Upper Volta and the Ivory Coast. What captured the hearts of the Africans was his trip to Uhuru Park, Nairobi, where he donned an ostrich-feather headdress and held a leopard-skin shield in one hand and a spear in the other. Despite this gesture of friendly inculturation, the Holy Father did not forget to remind the African bishops (behind closed doors) not to merge pagan practices with Catholicism.

Trips to France, Brazil, and West Germany

In France

The Holy Father went back to Europe and made a visit to France. In his four-day visit to the "eldest daughter of the Church", he addressed the delegates of UNESCO on June 2, 1980 A.D.

In Brazil

Next, on June 30, 1980 A.D., John Paul II was off to Brazil for a twelve-day visit. What he was concerned with in this country of Latin America was the mass defections to Protestant evangelism and the political activism of priests.

In West Germany

His next visit was to West Germany. What the Holy Father was concerned with in West Germany was the trend at that time of men and women who engaged in "trial marriages".

Edited from the following references

• The Pope Coming from the East, by Teresio Bosco, S.D.B.
• An Intimate Portrait: John Paul II, by Mark Bakermans
• The Pontiff in Winter, by John Cornwell
• Pope John Paul II: Champion of Faith, by TV Guide Magazine Group, Inc.
• Special Report: The 25 Years of Pope John Paul II, Vatican Information Service
• John Paul II: A Great Pope Passes into History, Readers Digest (June 2005)
• John Paul II: 1920-2005, Newsweek Special Double Issue (April 11/April 18, 2005)

St. Bruno and the Carthusians

St. Bruno of Cologne, Founder of the Carthusians

Birth and education

St. Bruno was born at Cologne, Germany, in 1030 A.D. of the prominent Hartenfaust family. He was sent to Rheims at an early age for his education. On his return to Cologne in about 1055 A.D., he was ordained a priest and then became a canon at St. Cunibert's - a collegiate church.

Professorship and chancellorship

In 1056 A.D., while still a young man, St. Bruno was offered a professorship at his school in Rheims. In the following year, he then became head of the school and remained there for eighteen years - until 1074 A.D. After his term as teacher, St. Bruno was appointed chancellor of the diocese by archbishop Manasses. Manasses was however a man deemed not worthy of his high clerical office. St. Bruno and others thus testified against him at a council in 1076 A.D. Manasses refused to appear in this council and had the houses of St. Bruno and his friends sacked and their possessions sold.

The life of a hermit

In 1080 A.D., Manasses was eventually deposed and the people of Rheims wanted to make Bruno archbishop. However, the events that have transpired all the more strengthened a resolve in St. Bruno to give up all his material goods and take up the life of a hermit. He thus became a hermit under Abbot St. Robert Molesmes (who then founded a monastery at Citeaux). St. Bruno then moved on to Grenoble with six companions in 1084 A.D.

The high desert of Chartreuse

Bruno and his friends established themselves in the almost inaccessible high desert of Chartreuse. St. Hugh, bishop of Grenoble, was instrumental in that establishment. In the area of the desert, they were assigned hermitages which were located in a very desolate mountainous Alpine area. And since that area was called Le Grande Chartreuse, they became known as the Carthusians. These Carthusians built an oratory and individual cells. They roughly followed the rule of St. Benedict and embraced a life of poverty, manual labor, prayer and transcribing manuscripts.

The Carthusian life

The life of St. Bruno and his Carthusians centered around prayer and work. Twice a day, the monks gathered for prayer in the church. At other hours, they prayed in their own cells. Except on major feasts in the church's liturgical calendar, they had no more than one meal per day which they ate in their cells. Their principal work was to copy books. The income derived from this work provided the meager subsistence on which they lived.

Fame of Bruno and the Carthusians

Even with his reclusive life, the fame of Bruno and of his companions spread. Other monasteries opened as the order grew. St. Hugh was so impressed by Bruno that he took him as his spiritual director. This bishop of Grenoble often made long and difficult journeys to Chartreuse to visit with Bruno and seek his advice and guidance.

In 1090 A.D., St. Bruno was brought to Rome, against his wishes, by Pope Urban II (who was Bruno's pupil at Rheims). Bruno was to be made papal adviser in the reformation of the clergy. St. Bruno did advise Urban II in this reform but demurred from the pope's offer to name him as archbishop of Reggio in Calabria. As Bruno persuaded the pope to let him return to his solitary state, the pope permitted him.

Death and sainthood

St. Bruno died on October 6, 1101 A.D. This is why the Church celebrates his feast every October 6. Bruno was never formally canonized because of the Carthusians' aversion to public honors. Pope Leo X however granted the Carthusians permission to celebrate his feast day in 1514 A.D., and St. Bruno's name was place in the Roman calendar in 1623 A.D. In the time of Pope Clement X, the observance of St. Bruno's feast day was extended throughout the whole Western Church.

The Carthusian Order is regarded by the Church as the perfect model of contemplative life. It is noted in their history that they never had need of reform.

St. John Paul II (1969-1978 A.D.)

Series: On the life of John Paul II

From 1969 - 1978 A.D.

Still athletic even as a Cardinal
Cardinal Wojtyla was one of the youngest cardinals of the Church. Just in his late forties, his student-friends wanted to give him a present upon his consecration as cardinal, but they were uncertain what to give him. When they spoke with him, Wojtyla suggested to them: "buy me a new sleeping bag; the one I still have is worn out and when I sleep in a tent or in the barracks, it fails to keep me warm". This short anecdote on John Paul proves that even while still a Cardinal, he had no intention of giving up his sports activities, which kept his body fit and strong. When he travelled to Rome to take part in the Synod of Bishops, he spends his free afternoons climbing the Terminillo for a ski descent, or practising a slalom.

The late 1960s unrest in Poland
The late 1960s saw a renewed period of struggle against the communists in Poland, as the epoch of youth culture and affluence in the West began to affect also the aspirations of the younger generations. During this time, it was really the workers who felt the pinch of lower wages and shortages of the Polish staple food - meat. Their children, who were in Polish schools, began to demonstrate on the streets when the government banned the anti-Soviet play "The Forefather's Eve". They were beaten, and Polish schools and universities were closed down. The increase in food prices really began the mass unrest. And this was felt all over the country, and more intensely in the Gdansk shipyards, where there were strikes and demonstrations, culminating in violence and the deaths of hundreds of workers.

A spokesman-pastor for his country
Since the Catholics in Poland have no access to the mass media for the defense and propagation of their faith, Cardinal Wojtyla intensifies his visits to the parishes. He spoke personally to the people, to groups, and to individuals. His words made a great impact, and they impressed an amazing number of people. In 1971 A.D., as a member of the Synod of Bishops, he would speak with some bitterness in the Synod meetings: "In Poland, the entire educational system, as well as the press, radio and television are permeated with atheism, which is considered a new religion of the state. Atheistic propaganda enjoys all privileges."

As unrest heightens in Poland, Wojtyla enters politics The year 1976 A.D. was a fatal year for Poland. Demonstrations against rising food prices resulted in violent clashes with workers in different parts of the country. It was during this time that Cardinal Wojtyla showed his consummate skill as a politician. When union leaders called a general strike, the Soviets intervened. To make peace, Wojtyla persuaded the workers to return to work. But at the same time, he dissuaded the Soviet regime from punishing the dissidents and strike organizers. Through this situation, he re-echoes very well the words of St. Maximillian Kolbe: "Only love is capable of building. Hatred destroys. Hatred cannot build. It can only destroy. It breaks up society; at most it may impress the weakling, but it cannot build."

Attending the Conclave that chose Pope John Paul I
After two years, there was sudden news of the death of Paul VI, who was pope since 1963 A.D. He died on August 6, 1978 A.D. The media spread the news, and the world was shocked by his death. At once, Cardinals from all over the world attended the Conclave to elect a new pope. Two of Poland's cardinals attended this Conclave: Stephen Wyszynski, the "silent but renowned Cardinal"; and Karol Wojtyla, just 58 years old. Three weeks later, after only one day's voting, the Conclave elected Albino Luciani on the fourth ballot. It was the shortest conclave of the century and almost the shortest in history. Albino Luciani was about sixty-six years old, had a winning smile, and was known to have spent much of his life in pastoral work. What was striking about Luciani's pontificate is that it lasted only three weeks. Albino Luciani, a.k.a. Pope John Paul I, died of a pulmonary embolism on the night of September 28, 1978 A.D.

Wojtyla makes a pilgrimage before the second Conclave
After the world was shocked again by the news of the death of Pope John Paul I, Cardinals Wyszynski and Wojtyla would fly again to Rome for another Conclave. As the Conclave was about to open, Wojtyla resolves to have a day off. He makes a pilgrimage to a shrine of the Blessed Mother, the Mentorella, which was run by a small community of Polish monks. Wojtyla climbed 12 kilometers up in the mountains, goes to the shrine, prays at length in front of the statue of Our Lady, then goes back to Rome for the Conclave.

The first non-Italian pope since 1522 A.D. October 15, 1978 A.D. The Conclave chimney continues to emit black smoke - a sign that a Pope has not yet been chosen. On the ninth ballot of the conclave, the votes revealed an impressive 103 out of 109 for Cardinal Karol Wojtyla. It was final. Karol Wojtyla was to be the first non-Italian Pope since 1522 A.D., and at fifty-eight years old, the youngest pope since Pope Pius IX was elected at the age of fifty-four in 1846 A.D. October 16, 1978 A.D. Karol Wojtyla, now Pope John Paul II, appeared at the balcony of St. Peter's Square. He was not yet known to the world. However, through his first contact with the people at St. Peter's Square, even though it lasted only a couple of minutes, an enduring relationship was established between the Pope and the crowd at St. Peter's Square. Pope John Paul II had won the peoples' hearts and obtained their deepest sympathy.

Edited from the following books

• The Pope Coming from the East, by Teresio Bosco, S.D.B.
• An Intimate Portrait: John Paul II, by Mark Bakermans
• The Pontiff in Winter, by John Cornwell
• Pope John Paul II: Champion of Faith, by TV Guide Magazine Group, Inc.