The Pilgrim's Way: The Life Of Saint John Paul II

Today is the feast of Saint John Paul II! If you are in the Washington, D.C. area, please consider joining us for our celebrations this evening. Whether you are able to join us or not, we invite you spend a few moments of this joyous day reflecting upon the pilgrimage we’ve been hosting here on Open Wide the Doors.

We’ve walked through each of the nine galleries of our permanent exhibit, A Gift of Love: The Life of Saint John Paul II, so that you can get a taste of the spiritual and informational journey that awaits you here at the Saint John Paul II National Shrine. At the conclusion of the exhibit, a timeline wall of poignant large scale images leads visitors through significant moments in the life and papacy of St. John Paul II, beginning with his birth in 1920 and ending with his death in 2005.

Pilgrims look back on the late Holy Father’s growth in holiness and sanctity throughout his life. They remember the dark world that he grew up in, and how he shone as a light in the world amidst many challenges and much suffering.

5 Ways To Prepare For The Feast Of St. John Paul II

On Thursday, October 22^nd, the Church will celebrate the feast of Saint John Paul II. In order to honor our beloved Holy Father, we’ve come up with some ways to prepare for this special day.

1.   Pray

There is no better way to prepare for St. John Paul II’s feast than by opening ourselves to the Lord in prayer. One idea is to join us in nine days of prayer, seeking the late Holy Father’s intercession for a particular intention. We will begin praying this novena tomorrow. You can also prepare by praying the Rosary, the Divine Mercy Chaplet, or by attending daily Mass. It is through prayer that God is able to draw close to us, and because St. John Paul II is present in heaven with the Father now, prayer is our best chance of drawing closer to our beloved Holy Father. 

2.  Fast

St. John Paul II once said that, “prayer acquires power if it is joined with fasting.” Consider fasting in preparation for the great saint’s feast. Give up sweets, meat, or perhaps different forms of media, like Facebook or TV shows. Making some small sacrifice is a powerful way to prepare our hearts for the festal celebrations.

I Have Searched For You, Now You Come To Me

More than 1,000 pilgrims joined us for the feast of Saint John Paul II last Wednesday! The day’s celebrations included multiple Masses and community prayers, veneration of our first class relic of St. John Paul, and the opening of our new permanent exhibit, A Gift of Love: The Life of Saint John Paul II.

Supreme Chaplain of the Knights of Columbus, Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore, celebrated the second festal Mass. In his homily he said:

This great Holy Father was so close to the family of the Knights of Columbus. How much he loved us; how well he knew us; how constantly he encouraged us! Now in the Providence of God and thanks to the vision of our Worthy Supreme Knight, we are able to transform this building from a center to a shrine, a place of grace and holiness, truth and love, …not only, as it were, to repay St. John Paul II for his kindness to us but much more so, to proclaim the message of his life and pontificate within the Church and before the world.

Pilgrims who visited the Saint John Paul II National Shrine last week heard this message as they walked through our exhibit on the life and legacy of the late Holy Father. They also learned more about John Paul II from Most Rev. Mieczysław Mokrzycki, former personal secretary to the great saint.

The Feast of Saint John Paul II

Today we are celebrating the feast of our beloved Saint John Paul II! On this day in 1978, the late Holy Father officially embarked on his historic 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.

At the beginning of his papacy, St. John Paul II reminded the Church of who man is. Man is made in the image and likeness of God. To realize himself, man must open wide to the Redeemer who knows and loves him. He must give himself in love to both God and fellow man.

St. John Paul II made his life a gift of love, and this is what we are celebrating today as we open our new permanent exhibit. As pilgrims journey through our nine galleries that trace the life and legacy of this great Pope, our hope is that they will see how John Paul II glorified God by his life. We also hope that they walk away with the grace and inspiration to do the same.

Come Celebrate The Feast With Us

Preparing For The Feast

We are nearly a week away from the inaugural opening of our permanent exhibit, A Gift of Love: The Life of Saint John Paul II. The Catholic News Service published a great article about the exhibit and about our mission here at the Saint John Paul II National Shrine. 

We plan to open the exhibit on October 22, because it is the day that the Church celebrates the feast of John Paul II. We encourage you to join us for the special day if you can! The schedule of events is on our website.

Regardless of whether you can make it or not, please consider joining us in our novena to St. John Paul II that begins today and ends on his feast.

Saint John Paul II, Pray for Us!

Saint John XXIII, Pray For Us!

Our thoughts turn to all the lands of this earth. We see all mankind striving for a better future. We see the awakening of a mysterious force, and this permits us to hope that men will be drawn by a right conscience and a sense of duty to advance the real interests of human society. That this goal may be realized in the fullest sense—that is, with the triumph of the kingdom of truth, justice, peace, and charity—We exhort all Our children in Christ to be "of one heart and one soul" and to pour out ardent prayers in October to our Queen in heaven and our loving Mother, reflecting upon the words of the Apostle: "In all things we suffer tribulation, but we are not distressed; we are sore pressed, but we are not destitute; we endure persecution, but we are not forsaken; we are cast down, but we do not perish; always bearing about in our body the dying of Jesus, so that the life also of Jesus may be made manifest in our bodily frame."

-Saint John XXIII, 1959

Oh St. John XXIII, please pray for us on this day of your feast, that we may hope in the triumph of the Kingdom of God.

St. José María de Yermo y Parres, Pray for Us

Today the Church celebrates the feast of St. José María de Yermo y Parres, who was canonized by Saint John Paul II on May 21, 2000. Born into a wealthy family in Mexico, this humble saint pursued the priesthood at a young age, and he devoted his life to caring for the poor.

In 1885, St. José María founded the Congregation of the Servants of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Poor. He and his congregation extended the mercy of Christ’s Sacred Heart to the poor and the sick. He also started the Christian Mercy program in order to help women escape lives of prostitution.

In his homily for the canonization of St. José María, St. John Paul II said that the new saint:

…lived his priestly commitment to Christ by following him with all his might, distinguishing himself at the same time by an essentially prayerful and contemplative attitude. In the Heart of Christ he found guidance for his spirituality and, in reflecting on his infinite love for men, he desired to imitate him by making charity the rule of his life.

St. José María de Yermo y Parres, please pray for us, that we might also imitate Christ by making charity the rule of our lives.

The Feast of St. John Paul II Announced

Pope Francis has officially approved of putting the feast days of St. John XXIII and St. John Paul II on the general Roman calendar of feast days! The feast of St. John XXIII will be celebrated on October 11, and the feast of St. John Paul II will be celebrated on October 22. For more, see the full story here.

St. John XXIII and St. John Paul II, Pray for Us!

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.