End of a Papal Era

Karol Josef Wojtyla (since 1978 known as Pope John Paul II) died this morning. He’s been around a long time. Nearly 27 years as pope. That puts him in the top three popes when it comes to longevity! People younger than thirty would have known only John Paul II as pope.

One of my kids asked this morning, do you remember any popes before John Paul II?

The pope I grew up knowing about was Pope Paul VI, otherwise known as Giovanni Battista Enrica Antonia Maria Montini. He’s remembered for his 1968 statement on human sexuality in which he made it clear that artificial birth control was sinful. Apparently the flack over that got to him. As well as the criticism he copped for actioning the advances of Vatican II (1962-1964) like introduction of the mass in the vernacular languages of the world. In his later years he seemed reluctant to come out with anything controversial or striking.

I was 16 when the next pope, John Paul I, Albino Luciani, died suddenly, 34 days after his election in September 1978. I remember John Paul I as a smiling, humble man, somewhat similar to Peter Sellars in appearance. And I remember the many conspiracy theories that came out after his death. The Vatican at the time seemed to be covering up.

David Yallop came out with a book, In God’s Name, suggesting that this pope was murdered after he threatened to expose and deal with corruption in the Vatican Bank. John Cornwall in his book, A Thief in the Night, suggested that the pope had health problems before taking on the new position and died of a pulmonary embolism.

John Paul II has certainly made a difference in the image of the Catholic Church around the world. First of all he’s Polish not Italian. He’s helped move the Catholic Church beyond the confines of Italian culture. He’s moved around, appeared publicly, been shot and forgiven his would-be assassin. He probably played a part in the fall of the Iron Curtain in Eastern Europe. Yes he has promoted a conservative line on sexuality and theology, attempting to reduce the impact of movements centred on liberation theology and creation spirituality. He’s made sure that priests continue to be male, single and celibate. At the same time he’s engaged with popular media, releasing his work on the internet and on CD. It will be interesting to see what happens next.

Pope Watch

Darren Rowse of Melbourne and the team behind Breaking News Blog collective are hosting a web site dedicated to following news related to the life and death of Pope John Paul II and the Vatican. It will be worth monitoring.