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Bishop Braxton

Reflections on 'John Paul the Great'

As we mark the first anniversary of the death of our beloved Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, and pray that God has received him into the mystery of Christ’s resurrection, we must continue to give thanks to Providence for giving us such a remarkable man with such extraordinary gifts at an hour when we needed him most. The death of His Holiness brought to a close the life of a man who was a towering presence in the world during the last quarter of the twentieth century and the early years of the twenty-first century. History may well call him John Paul the Great. I, like many priests and bishops, felt a special bond of affection with him. From my first brief encounter in Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago in 1979 to my last private audience during my Ad limina visit in December 2004 that bond grew stronger than ever.

John Paul was an extremely complex man with singular talents rarely found in one person. He was a dedicated priest fully committed to Jesus Christ and his church. Like St. Thomas More, he seemed to be “a man for all seasons.” He gave us courage, “Be not afraid. Open wide the doors for Christ!”

Some commentators had, incorrectly in my judgment, portrayed the pontiff as a person of dichotomies and contradictions. They had suggested that he brought a “liberal” vision to the secular world and a “conservative” vision to the church. From his earliest years of study in Poland through his theological studies in Rome and his years as a professor of philosophy in Krakow and his active participation in the Second Vatican Council, he had developed a unique integration of philosophy and theology, a kind of “Christian humanism” if you will, that drew from the Incarnation of Jesus Christ an unswerving belief in the dignity of every human person, from the moment of conception to the moment of natural death.

This was the root of his opposition to totalitarian governments, war as a solution to international conflicts, abortion, euthanasia and the death penalty. This same conviction formed his genuine ecumenical outreach to other Christians, his heartfelt expressions of sorrow for the suffering of Jewish people at the hands of Christians, his absolute rejection of racism, ethnic bias or prejudice of any kind, his rapprochement with science, the arts and culture and his invitation to leaders of world religions to gather with him in Assisi to pray.

The Holy Father’s fidelity to Scripture, tradition and the magisterium on issues of sexual morality, Catholic doctrine and discipline were not a matter of being a “traditionalist” but of being truly faithful to his petrine ministry of strengthening his brothers and sisters in their faith. Because of his profound integration of faith and reason he was able to bestride the world as a moral giant proclaiming the Gospel of Life in the face of a culture of death.

A poet and a lover of art and beauty Pope John Paul II might well be remembered as an artist; an artist of faith; an artist of hope; an artist of love; and an artist of service. In his 1999 Easter Sunday Letter to Artists he wrote, “May the beauty which you pass on to generations still to come be such that it will stir them to wonder! Faced with the sacredness of life and of the human person, and before the marvels of the universe, wonder is the only appropriate attitude. Artists of the world may your many different paths all lead to that infinite ocean of beauty where wonder becomes awe, exhilaration, and unspeakable joy. May you be guided and inspired by the mystery of the Risen Christ, whom the church in these days contemplates with joy.”

I join with all of the priests, deacons, religious, and Christian faithful of southern Illinois in commending anew this extraordinary Servant of the Servants of God to the God he loved so much and served so well.
— Bishop Edward K. Braxton