The World Remembers, Reflects and Pays Tribute to Pope John Paul II

"Be Not Afraid . . ." The Vatican's Special Feature on the Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, from 1978 thru 2005.

The Pontificate of Pope John Paul II EWTN Special Feature.

Pope John Paul II: Photo Gallery from the book John Paul II: A Light for the World. From a special feature on the website of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops.

All-Embracing Man of Action for a New Era of Papacy, by Robert McFadden. New York Times April 3, 2005. Also from the New York Times: Papal Transition: The Long Path, by Daniel J. Wakin.

A Man for All Seasons: The very modern papacy of John Paul II Wall Street Journal:

. . . this was a man eminently comfortable with modernity--even while he refused to accept modernity's most shallow assumptions. Just as he offered his first public words as pope in Italian to make himself understood by those below his balcony, he held that ultimate truths about man and his relationship with his Creator are never outdated, however much they require constant expression in new languages and new circumstances.

"A magnificent pope who presided over a controversial pontificate", by John Allen Jr. National Catholic Reporter

The Last Anti-modern Pope, by Sandro Magister; interview with Giovanni Maria Vian. "His was a Church of saints set against the powers of evil: first Soviet communism, then the civilization of money, sex, and the liberty that enslaves."

"A Man Who Believed That Jesus Christ Is the Answer", Zenit interviews George Weigel on the impact of John Paul II's pontificate. April 3, 2005.


President's Statement on the Death of Pope John Paul II President George W. Bush. April 2, 2005.

Theologians, Authors Reflect on Pope John Paul II April 3, 2005. Exclusive from Ignatius Insight, featuring Scott Hahn, Dr. Robert P. George, Thomas Howard and others.

"He Lived the Splendor of Truth", by Thomas Hibbs. National Review April 2, 2005: "John Paul presented to youth an attractive possibility, that maturity need not mean boredom, that fidelity and responsibility might be wedded to adventure and risk, and that heroic suffering need not quench joy or hope."

John Paul II, 1920-2005, by William Kristol. The Weekly Standard April 2, 2005:

What made John Paul II an extraordinary historical figure--one of the giants of the last half of the 20th century -- was his central role in three distinct realms: in politics, religion, and ideas; in the life of the world, the life of his Church, and the life of the mind. To be a major figure in any of these is rare. To be central in all three areas is unique. No political leader did more than John Paul II to bring an end to the Cold War. No religious figure had more impact in the 20th century than John Paul II had on the Roman Catholic Church. And few thinkers confronted the philosophical crisis of modern humanism more directly than Wojtyla.

John Paul II: The Millenial Pope PBS' Frontline "explores the characters and beliefs of Pope John Paul II and his challenge to the modern world." Featuring biographical information, interviews with personal friends, scholars and journalists. Given the source some of the content -- including the roundtable discussion of "The Catholic Church and Sex" -- may be skewed from a liberal perspective, as is much of the ongoing commentary by the MSM (Main Stream Media).

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From 'St. Blog's Parish' and the greater Blogosphere

"Well done, Good and Faithful Servant", by Mark Shea @ Catholic & Enjoying It.

From the diary of St. Faustina, by RC @ Catholic Light.

Prayers for a Deceased Pope, from Lane Core Jr. @ Blog from the Core.

"Numbers cannot do justice to the incredible pontificate of Pope John Paul II. But they provide some helpful context," says Carl Olson of InsightScoop.

Dave Armstrong (Cor ad cor loquitur) offers Tribute and Long List of Links to biographical articles and Papal Documents.

Disputations muses on the "elephantine papacy" of Pope John Paul II, and offers recipe for a drink in his honor.

Remembrance, by Jeff Miller, aka. The Curt Jester, who -- true to form -- manages to inject a bit of humor: "He was both an optimist and a mystic so I guess that made him optomystic."

When Patrick Sweeney ("Extreme Catholic") "got the news I was doing Catholic evangelization in Grand Central Terminal with the Catholic Evidence Guild . . ."

"A Day with Mixed Feelings, by Josh M @ Fiat.

Two Deaths, One Voice, One Message. Benedict Seraphim @ Blogodoxy reflects on the deaths of Terri Schiavo and Pope John Paul II.

Teófilo @ Vivificat: "Pope John Paul II, has been called Home to his reward, by the Lord he served all his life."

"Tonight we are all sedevacantist.", by Peter Vere @ Lidless Eye Inquisition.

Personal Reflections on the Passing of the Holy Father, from Katolik Shinja.

"John Paul II the Law-Giver" Canon lawyer Dr. Ed Peters reflects on the Pope's influence on canon law.

Claud Muncey @ A Pilgrim's Walk: "I cannot feel sad for him -- for our brother Karol Józef Wojtyla, the race is almost run now, the victor's laurels already await him."

Ithilien (April 3, 2003):

We are a culture of death because we are a culture of fear. Far from being irrelevant, John Paul was feared and hated because his message was exactly the message we needed to hear. We said that he did not understand us, because he understood us too well. He did not accept our heroic vision of ourselves, so we said he was blinded by his archaic prejudices. But in fact, like all prophets, he saw through our false images of greatness. He saw our pitiful souls, made for holiness and contented with mediocrity--he saw us and he loved us, as his Master loves us. And we could not stand it.

Personal reflections from TS @ Video meliora, proboque; Deteriora sequor.


Amy Welborn ("Open Book") reflects on the Pope's passing, notices how "time flies" ("What a difference 26 years made, and either we barely noticed, or we simply forgot"), and asks her readers to share their memories of John Paul II.

"Arise, Let Us Go Forth", thoughts from Phil Dillon @ Another Man's Meat:

"He was known to his flock and to the world as the Vicar of Christ, but his most cherished title was "good and faithful servant." He was fluent in eight languages and, by some accounts, could converse in twenty-six. He communicated love and grace in all. He'd known the sting of oppression and tyranny, yet he never surrendered to bitterness and hate. . . ."

Live blogging the Lion's last breath... by The Anchoress. An impressive "round the clock" live-blog of online and television coverage of the passing of Pope John Paul II. Also, another good roundup from liberal blogger Jeff Jarvis.

Arthur Chrenkoff reflects on "My Pope". April 3, 2005.

Chris Burgwald (Veritas) got to see the Pontiff not once, but twice.

Nathan Nelson (Fides, Spes, Caritas) makes a "progressive Catholic" case for Ioannes Paulus Magnus.

Kevin Miller @ Heart, Mind & Strength offers "some summary thoughts on Pope John Paul II's legacy, with reference to his living of this threefold office" of Prophet, Priest and King.

Daniel Darling @ Winds of Change, on seeing the Pope at World Youth Day 2002:

"He was clearly suffering even then, but the purity of his spirit shined through even then, not only for me but for all the thousands who had come from all over the world to see him."

"No man lived more fully", -- speaking "as a Catholic first, as a conservative second," reflections on the Pope by Thomas @ RedState.Org. April 1, 2005.

Dean Esmay ("Dean's World") shares his thoughts, and provides a roundup of posts from political bloggers.

Reflections from Larry Kudlow, former Reagan economic advisor, a syndicated columnist, CNBC television host (oh, yes -- and blogger).

On Pope John Paul II, reflections from Jewish blogger "Out of Step Jew". April 4, 2005.

He Was My Pope, Too, by Uwe Siemon-Netto, a Lutheran from Christianity Today. April 4, 2005.

Protestant Praise for Pope John Paul II, a good roundup by Dave Armstrong. Billy Graham, Chuck Colson, James Dobson, Pat Robertson, Norman Geisler, Os Guiness and other big names in the Christian evangelical world.

A Radical Love: May God Bless the Pope, from the blog "Being! Or Nothingness":

Pope John Paul II wasn't a pansy. He wasn't a man who was heirarchical or distant or cold. He wasn't a man who busied himself with the beauracracy of the Church and ignored the grandeur of life. He wasn't a man who lived in ideas and away from reality. Overall, when I looked at Pope John Paul II I saw virility, I saw devotion, I saw love . . . I saw something radical. In the Pope I saw the radicality of the Christian life, a radicality that was courageous in the face of opposition and adversity, full of vigor in front of life, full of awareness in front of reality and full of love in front of humanity.

"His Supreme Legacy" - From Roger Kimball of Right Reason:

n politics, no one, with the possible exception of Ronald Reagan, did as much to hasten the end of the totalitarian blight of Soviet Communism. "Be not afraid," John Paul proclaimed in St. Peter's Square in October 1978, shortly after becoming Pope. "More than one year after he spoke these words," Lech Walesa, the founder of the Solidarity movement said, "we were able to organize 10 million people for strikes, protests and negotiations. Earlier we tried, I tried, and we couldn't do it. . . Of course, communism would have fallen, but much later and in a bloody way. He was a gift from the heavens to us."

In religion, John Paul helped preserve the Catholic Church from becoming a latitudinarian social club devoted to a minimalist theology and progressive orthodoxy on moral and political matters. The New York Times bemoaned the Pope's "rigid adherence to many basic Church teachings." ("Rigid" is nice: as opposed to what -- flaccid? dilatory? non-commital?) But in fact his robust traditionalism saved the Catholic Church from the ghastly irrelevance and dwindling congregations that most I'm-okay-you're-okay religious denominations have suffered in recent decades.