Pope John Paul II Beatified May 1, 2011
It's official. I woke up today to happy news. The Pope John Paul II is now considered on his way to official sainthood with the acknowledgement of a bona fide miracle in his name. A french nun who had Parkinsons is miraculously cured. Benedict the current Pope says its real, making
John Paul II someone who is someplace where he can postumously make miracles happen because this French nun prayed to him. See---another reason we love the French!
http://www.radiovaticana.org/EN1/Articolo.asp?c=454138
In Catholic belief and tradition, one may ask for intercession of Saints to help them here on earth. Their souls live on and are watching over us. Some are close enough to God that they can relay messages to him and get results.
I am particularly happy about this one because I saw JPII twice in person, once so close he was in rosary swinging distance as I was on the aisle at Saint Peter's when in his quite advanced age he made his way down the aisle for a special mass. Little boys had rosaries dangling over the rails so he could bless them. I joined the church not long after being in a crowd of Popemobile watchers in Los Angeles when he visited in the late 1980s.
This Pope did truly historic things on earth- travelled to an amazing number of countries, and worked behind the scenes to unravel communist rule in Poland among his other feats for freedom of spirit. This Pope, my technically protestant (although I wonder) mother once remarked "Is the greatest force for Good on the Earth."
He was a strong advocate of religious reconciliation even forgiving the Muslim who shot him nearly fatally in a very moving act of forgiveness that marveled even the hardest hearted. As a youth during the German invasion of Poland he held a special place in his heart for the Jewish people and a particular horror for the atrocities of that era. He was life long friends with Jewish rabbis and honored Jews at Vad Yashem in Jerusalem.
A giant among men and now orchestrating angels in heaven.
It's official. I woke up today to happy news. The Pope John Paul II is now considered on his way to official sainthood with the acknowledgement of a bona fide miracle in his name. A french nun who had Parkinsons is miraculously cured. Benedict the current Pope says its real, making
John Paul II someone who is someplace where he can postumously make miracles happen because this French nun prayed to him. See---another reason we love the French!
http://www.radiovaticana.org/EN1/Articolo.asp?c=454138
In Catholic belief and tradition, one may ask for intercession of Saints to help them here on earth. Their souls live on and are watching over us. Some are close enough to God that they can relay messages to him and get results.
I am particularly happy about this one because I saw JPII twice in person, once so close he was in rosary swinging distance as I was on the aisle at Saint Peter's when in his quite advanced age he made his way down the aisle for a special mass. Little boys had rosaries dangling over the rails so he could bless them. I joined the church not long after being in a crowd of Popemobile watchers in Los Angeles when he visited in the late 1980s.
This Pope did truly historic things on earth- travelled to an amazing number of countries, and worked behind the scenes to unravel communist rule in Poland among his other feats for freedom of spirit. This Pope, my technically protestant (although I wonder) mother once remarked "Is the greatest force for Good on the Earth."
He was a strong advocate of religious reconciliation even forgiving the Muslim who shot him nearly fatally in a very moving act of forgiveness that marveled even the hardest hearted. As a youth during the German invasion of Poland he held a special place in his heart for the Jewish people and a particular horror for the atrocities of that era. He was life long friends with Jewish rabbis and honored Jews at Vad Yashem in Jerusalem.
A giant among men and now orchestrating angels in heaven.
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