In The Places Where God Pitched His Tent

We are less than two weeks away from the canonization of Blessed John Paul II, and only a few months away from opening the exhibit of his life and legacy at the Blessed John Paul II Shrine. As we prepare here, especially during this Holy Week, we thought it would be appropriate to reflect upon one of the most important moments in the late Holy Father’s papacy: his pilgrimage to the Holy Land.

Blessed John Paul II’s pilgrimage to the Holy Land was a key part of the Jubilee Year celebrations in 2000. It was also part of a bigger desire of his to visit the “‘places’ in which God has chosen to ‘pitch his tent’ among us”:

I have a strong desire to go personally to pray in the most important places which, from the Old to the New Testament, have seen God's interventions, which culminate in the mysteries of the Incarnation and of the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Christ.

This desire was fulfilled in March of that year, when John Paul II made this pilgrimage for the entire Church.

His pilgrimage began symbolically with honoring Abraham in Rome, and it continued on to Mount Sinai where the Holy Father meditated upon those moments in the Old Testament linking the Church with the ancient people of the Covenant. There he spoke of “the Law of life and freedom,” and how, through “revealing himself on the Mountain and giving his Law, God revealed man to man himself.”

Preparing For The Canonizations

This past week, the Vatican released details on its digital platform for the canonizations of Blessed John XXIII and Blessed John Paul II. See this article for more information on how they plan to communicate with the faithful as they prepare for the canonizations. This information includes logistical details about the ceremonies, how people can access news regarding the celebrations, and even spiritual reflections on the legacies and saintliness of these two Popes.

Those of you who haven’t made plans for the canonizations yet are welcome to join us at the Blessed John Paul II Shrine for the celebration. We have a number of events planned, including Mass, Adoration, multiple opportunities for the veneration of our Blood Relic of Blessed John Paul II, musical entertainment, and a canonization viewing party. Check out our Schedule of Events for more details.

Blessed John Paul II, as we prepare for your canonization, pray for us! 

It's Official!

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has officially designated the Blessed John Paul II Shrine as a national shrine! Beginning on April 27^th, the day of John Paul II’s canonization, the shrine will officially be known as the “Saint John Paul II National Shrine.”

For details, see the news release on our website.

Blessed John Paul II, Pray for Us!

Celebrating The Canonizations

Catholic News Agency recently reported that millions are expected to travel to Rome for the canonizations of Blessed John XXIII and Blessed John Paul II on April 27.

Those who cannot make the trip are welcome to join us at the Blessed John Paul II Shrine for the weekend of the canonization. We have a number of events planned, including Mass, Adoration, multiple opportunities for the veneration of our Blood Relic of Blessed John Paul II, musical entertainment, and a canonization viewing party. Check out our Schedule of Events for more details.

Blessed John Paul II, as we prepare for your canonization, pray for us! 

A Journey Of Gift

Today the Church embarks on the liturgical season of Lent.  In his last Lenten message, Blessed John Paul II wrote that during Lent, “a spiritual journey is outlined for us that prepares us to relive the Great Mystery of the Death and Resurrection of Christ.”

During his last Lent here on earth, the late Holy Father experienced this journey in a unique way. As his health failed, he suffered much like Christ did in preparation for death. The debilitating effects of Parkinson’s disease, the wounds from the assassination attempt, multiple surgeries, and the loss of his voice humbled him before the world and before God.

Even as he aged and became more vulnerable due to sickness, Blessed John Paul II never hid himself from the world. As he wrote in his final message for Lent, “reaching old age is a sign of the Most High’s gracious benevolence.” Longevity is a “special divine gift.”

He continued:

If growing old, with its inevitable conditions, is accepted serenely in the light of faith, it can become an invaluable opportunity for better comprehending the Mystery of the Cross, which gives full sense to human existence.

The Patron Saint of World Youth Days

Pope Francis made an exciting announcement in his 2014 World Youth Day message:

We have seen, then, that the Beatitude of the poor in spirit shapes our relationship with God, with material goods and with the poor. With the example and words of Jesus before us, we realize how much we need to be converted, so that the logic of being more will prevail over that of having more! The saints can best help us to understand the profound meaning of the Beatitudes. So the canonization of John Paul II, to be celebrated on the Second Sunday of Easter, will be an event marked by immense joy. He will be the great patron of the World Youth Days which he inaugurated and always supported. In the communion of saints he will continue to be a father and friend to all of you.

Our beloved Blessed John Paul II will be the patron saint of World Youth Days! This is just one more reason to look forward to his canonization on Divine Mercy Sunday. If you haven’t already, check out the Blessed John Paul II Shrine’s schedule for the canonization weekend.

Blessed John Paul II, Pray for Us!

I Must Visit My People

Last month, Pope Francis announced his plans to visit the Holy Land in late May. The purpose of his trip is to be both spiritual and ecumenical, much like Blessed John Paul II’s was during his pilgrimage in 2000.

With great missionary spirit, Blessed John Paul II made visits like these a priority during his pontificate. He began in the West, Mexico, and the U.S. during his early papacy, traveling “to the uttermost parts of the earth” for the sake of the Gospel (Acts 13:47). Later he made it to places like Papua New Guinea and Madagascar.

In total, he made 104 apostolic journeys to 129 different countries. On average, he made four trips a year, logging over 700,000 miles and spending about 6 percent of his papacy outside of Italy.

Blessed John Paul II’s travels shed light on the youthful enthusiasm of the Church in places like Africa, where people greeted him with dance and song.  They also brought publicity to places in the world where people were suffering, so that God’s people might properly embrace their poor brothers and sisters in solidarity.

Honoring A Temple Of The Holy Spirit

In light of last week’s news that a relic of Blessed John Paul II was stolen (and thankfully, found), we thought we would reflect on the importance of relics in the Church and explain why we keep and venerate a relic of the late Holy Father here at the Blessed John Paul II Shrine.

The Catholic Encyclopedia tells us that,

The word relics comes from the Latin reliquiae (the counterpart of the Greek leipsana) which already before the propagation of Christianity was used in its modern sense, viz., of some object, notably part of the body or clothes, remaining as a memorial of a departed saint. The veneration of relics, in fact, is to some extent a primitive instinct, and it is associated with many other religious systems besides that of Christianity.

It is quite natural for a person to keep precious articles that belonged to a deceased person they loved or admired. This instinct is what began the tradition of keeping and venerating relics in the Church, especially ones that belonged to saintly figures.

The bodies of the saints were once temples of the Holy Spirit and are one day to be eternally glorified. So to venerate their bones is to venerate the bones that will one day be conformed to the body of Christ.

The Inestimable Value of Human Life

Man is called to a fullness of life which far exceeds the dimensions of his earthly existence, because it consists in sharing the very life of God. The loftiness of this supernatural vocation reveals the greatness and the inestimable value of human life even in its temporal phase. Life in time, in fact, is the fundamental condition, the initial stage and an integral part of the entire unified process of human existence. It is a process which, unexpectedly and undeservedly, is enlightened by the promise and renewed by the gift of divine life, which will reach its full realization in eternity (cf. 1 Jn 3:1-2). At the same time, it is precisely this supernatural calling which highlights the relative character of each individual's earthly life. After all, life on earth is not an "ultimate" but a "penultimate" reality; even so, it remains a sacred reality entrusted to us, to be preserved with a sense of responsibility and brought to perfection in love and in the gift of ourselves to God and to our brothers and sisters.

-Blessed John Paul II, Evangelium Vitae

Our hearts and prayers are with all of those at the March for Life today. May Blessed John Paul II pray for them, and that the “sacred reality” of life may be upheld and respected in our world today.

For pilgrims visiting Washington, D.C., see our special liturgical schedule for the week. 

The Gift Of Vocation

As a part of our countdown to the canonization of Blessed John Paul II, the Blessed John Paul II Shrine is spending the month reflecting on the young adult life and priesthood of the late Holy Father. This is the fruitful time in which Karol Wojtyła discerned a vocation to the priesthood and accepted the path that God was calling him to.

According to the Holy Father himself, a vocation is “an interior call of grace, which falls into the soul like a seed, to mature within it” (Angelus, December 14, 1980). It takes the form of a dialogue in the human heart, a “dialogue between Christ and an individual, in which a personal invitation is given” (Homily, February 10, 1986).

This dialogue was very much a part of Wojtyła’s young adult life, and he would say it was partially the fruit of his experiences. Everything from his passion for the theatre, to the hardships he experienced during Nazi occupation, to the conversations he had with co-workers, to the loss of his own father had an affect on his path to the priesthood. This dialogue was not only external, but it was also internal. Silence and prayer allowed Wojtyła to hear Christ’s call: “Come follow me.”

All are called to live out a vocation, and all are called in complete freedom to accept or reject God’s given task. According to Blessed John Paul II, freedom “is essential to vocation—a freedom which, when it gives a positive response, appears as a deep personal adherence, as a loving gift—or rather as a gift given back to the giver who is God who calls, an oblation…” (Pastores Dabo Vobis, n. 16).

Chaplain Celebrates Mass at John Paul II’s Tomb

On December 6, 2013, Blessed John Paul II Shrine Chaplain Father Gregory Gresko concelebrated Mass at the tomb of Blessed John Paul II in Saint Peter’s Basilica. He reflected upon his experience here:

To be at the tomb of Blessed John Paul II is to be reminded of the beauty of dwelling in the house of the Lord, gazing on the loveliness of the Lord and contemplating His temple, as the Psalmist says in Ps 27. To celebrate the Eucharist on the altar containing the holy remains of the man whom the Church soon will recognize as Saint John Paul II is in itself a confirmation in faith as the Church has just concluded the 2012-13 Year of Faith -- confirmation of the greatness of the Communion of Saints to which each one of us as Christian faithful is called, but also of the spiritual presence of the saints among us, most strongly whenever we celebrate the Holy Eucharist. The tomb of Blessed John Paul II is a reminder of God’s call to holiness that is written on the hearts of all people who call themselves Christian, who are consecrated into the Lord in the Sacrament of Holy Baptism. It is a firm reminder that every one of us is called by God to become a saint in whatever state of life we find ourselves – to embrace a life of genuine holiness by following in the footsteps of Jesus Christ in the daily path of this earthly journey, until we realize the promise of everlasting life in the beatific vision of God’s heavenly Kingdom. As the Gospel of the two blind men reminds us (Mt 9.27-31), Jesus is ready to enlighten our darkness in this Advent season through the gift of His healing touch, if we only would have faith and hope-filled trust in Him. May this Advent be a time when we ask the Holy Spirit to open our hearts with the gift of a stronger faith, so that inspired by ever stronger hope, we might believe more fervently with open hearts to God’s perfect Love incarnate in the Infant Jesus this Christmas.

For more about his experience and for photos from the Mass, check out the Blessed John Paul II Shrine website.

Virtual Tours Of The Shrine

For those who haven’t been able to make a pilgrimage to the Shrine yet, or are perhaps thinking of planning one in the near future, we loaded two Virtual Tours onto the Blessed John Paul II Shrine website earlier this week.

The first is of our chapel, where we hold daily Liturgies and prayers, and where visitors can venerate the relic of Blessed John Paul II.

The second is of our “Be Not Afraid” exhibit, which gives an exclusive look at our past exhibit on the life and legacy of Blessed John Paul II. Some of these artifacts will be displayed in the permanent exhibit, slated to open mid-2014.

We hope you enjoy these sneak peaks!

Little Lolek

Karol Józef Wojtyła was born on May 18, 1920, in Wadowice, Poland. The youngest of three children, young Karol was part of a loving and God-fearing family.

He knew much about suffering at an early age -- his mother died of kidney failure when he was in third grade and his brother died when he was twelve –but he also held a profound trust in God and the goodness of His will. Much of this came from the spiritual care of his father, who Blessed John Paul II referred to as a “man of constant prayer” (Gift and Mystery, 20).

Known to his friends as Lolek, Karol was a tall, chubby and vibrant youth, who was gifted with strong athletic skills, intellectual abilities and theatrical talents. His boyhood friend, Jerzy Kluger recalls their great love for swimming in or skating on the Skawa river, depending on the season. They also hiked and played soccer, with little Lolek often in the goalie position.

There are a number of stories from Blessed John Paul II’s early life and childhood that we will recount during the next month. This is all a part of the Blessed John Paul II Shrine’s preparation for the canonization, which is now under six months away. Keep following us here and on our Facebook page.

Happy Feast Day!

Today the Shrine is bustling with activity as we celebrate the feast day of our beloved patron. Thirty-five years ago today, Blessed John Paul II embarked on his pontificate with these words:

Brothers and sisters, do not be afraid to welcome Christ and accept his power. Help the Pope and all those who wish to serve Christ and with Christ's power to serve the human person and the whole of mankind. Do not be afraid. Open wide the doors for Christ. To his saving power open the boundaries of States, economic and political systems, the vast fields of culture, civilization and development. Do not be afraid. Christ knows "what is in man." He alone knows it. 

Let us pray for Blessed John Paul II's intercession today, that we may be like him in opening wide the doors for Christ.

With The Help Of God And With The Help Of Men

Today we at the Shrine are celebrating the anniversary of Blessed John Paul II’s election to the papacy. On this day in 1978, he accepted over 26 years of courageous and loving service to Christ’s flock here on Earth.

In his address immediately after the election, the late Holy Father, after mentioning the grievous occasion of the death of John Paul I and after admitting that he may need some help with his Italian, humbly said:

           

…And so I present myself to you all, to confess our common faith, our hope, our trust in the Mother of Christ and of the Church, and also to start anew on this road of history and the Church, with the help of God and with the help of men (as quoted in George Weigel’s Witness to Hope, 256).

And start anew we did. As we continue to build our permanent exhibit on the life and legacy of Blessed John Paul II, slated to open mid-2014, we hope to capture this pivotal moment and others throughout his papacy.

Blessed John Paul II, Pray for Us!

Plans For The Canonization

The Blessed John Paul II Shrine made headlines again, this time with our plans for Blessed John Paul II’s joint canonization with Blessed John XXIII, April 27. See the story for details on our celebrations, our plans to open the 16,000 square foot permanent exhibit summer 2014, and a great interview with Patrick Kelly, executive director of the Shrine, who speaks about Blessed John Paul II’s “legacy of love.”

Blessed John Paul II To Be Canonized Divine Mercy Sunday

Well the news is out! Yesterday Pope Francis announced that the canonization of both Blessed John XXIII and Blessed John Paul II is to take place on April 27, 2014, the day the Church celebrates the Second Sunday of Easter, or Divine Mercy Sunday. 

This is a special day for Blessed John Paul II, for he instituted Divine Mercy Sunday in 2000, he died on the vigil of the feast in 2005, and he was beatified on Divine Mercy Sunday by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI in 2011.

Of course, we here at the Shrine couldn’t be more excited. Yesterday was full of visitors, celebrations, and prayers. In his homily for Mass celebrating the canonization announcement, our Chaplain Fr. Gregory Gresko introduced the congregation to the first-class relic of the soon to be canonized Blessed John Paul II, hosted on the altar for veneration: 

In the relic we have before us today, we encounter evidence from Blessed John Paul II’s own life of the extent to which he would go in order to show God’s Love. This first-class relic -- containing a piece of the white papal cassock he was wearing that became soaked with his blood when his would-be assassin attempted to take his life by shooting him in Saint Peter’s Square on May 13, 1981 – is a sign of John Paul II’s gift of himself to the Church, to you and to me, his personal testimony that shows us what it means to be a witness to God’s Love…

Fr. Gresko’s full homily is worth the read! For more on happenings at the Shrine yesterday, check out this report from the Catholic News Service. It includes some sneak peaks of our re-modeled Be Not Afraid exhibit.

Blessed John Paul II, Pray for Us!