We’ve gotten emails asking about our reaction to the death of Pope John Paul II. This is our personal story and reaction — posted earlier this weekend on Dean’s World.
Pope John Paul II formally began his stint as Pope on October 16, 1978. And I remember full well the day he was named.
I was living in Spain where I was writing for The Christian Science Monitor as their Special Correspondent (which one editor described to me as being their “full time contributor”) with the title “Special Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor” on all stories (versus “Special To”). I lived in an apartment building in Carabanchel, In Madrid.
The death of the first John Paul who reigned for just 33 days had been a big blow to many Spaniards since the bulk of them were devout Catholics. They didn’t know how anyone could match the unfulfilled potential raised by the late “Smiling Pope.”
One evening I was visiting the manager of my apartment. Her husband was a member of Francisco Franco’s feared Guardia Civil but the dictator was now dead and the country was completing its gradual transition towards democracy. The manager walked out for a minute, looked at TV and came back and said:
“The Pope is Polish.”
I smiled at her, waiting for her to finish the joke because in those days there were jokes about the Pope being Polish. It was assumed every Pope selected was and would be Italian.
“Continue…” I said in Spanish.
“No: the Pope is Polish.”
It was a big surprise in those days: the Vatican powers that be had selected a young (for a Pope), dynamic Polish man who was known to be at the forefront of his country’s drive for freedom. Someone who had written plays. Someone who spoke many languages. Someone who the camera loved as it embraced him during his appearances in front of it. Someone who was photographed skiing — not the kind of image people had come to expect from a Pope.
And, yes, as years went on John Paul II came under fire for many of his specific policies. But what no one could take away from him — even the assassination attempt — was the force of his charisma and how that spark within him (the spirit) burned so brightly.
I like others think that when an assassin’s bullet ripped into him he survived, but his energy level was never quite the same. But his will was. When all is said and done, will history remember his courage the past few weeks, insisting on going to the window to try and talk to the people below? Will people forget not just how frail he looked, but how almost tortured he appeared, his face twisted by suffering — and how, even so, his determination to be there for people was undiminished? Will people remember how he gave every single drop of his energy to communicate with people?
There are people such as myself who may be born into one religion but who greatly appreciate truly spiritual people and realize they’re not just restricted to one religion. I’ve met some of them in places such as Bangladesh, India, Spain and in the United States. I know of some wonderful highly spirtual people (from many religions) here in San Diego.
Little did people realize that when John Paul II was named the jokes about “Is the Pope Polish” would not only stop, but the Smiling Pope would be replaced by someone who will be talked about for many many years. Someone whose spirituality and courage could be admired by all, even those who might not agree with his policies or belong to his religion.
Little did people realize when he was named that the feisty man of the cloth from Poland who loved to go atop mountains for his skiing would take the world to new heights, teach them a lesson in physical courage and dedication — and break their hearts when it was finally time for him to leave.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.