John Paul the Great

Today is the first anniversary of the death of Pope John Paul II. Wish I had known him better, as I had only been active in the faith for less than a year when he died. Consequently, I will remember him best for his final days, which just might have been the most important and fruitful days of his life. Throughout his pontificate, he had shown the world how to live. He finished by showing us how to die.

His redemptive suffering bore much fruit. So many that had never known much about him were inundated by mainstream news coverage, most of which was quite fair and accurate. The world learned about the Church and what it is offering to the world. And, by Divine Providence, the world heard about Divine Mercy. John Paul died on the vigil of the Feast of Divine Mercy, which he instituted in the year 2000, by the request of Jesus himself.

A Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI in memory of John Paul II will be broadcast live tomorrow on EWTN at 11:30AM (ET) with an encore at 9PM (ET).


(The above quote is in reference to the tens of thousands of young people who held vigil in St. Peter's Square.)