St. John Paul II

The pope of "Be not afraid," who helped topple communism, launched World Youth Day, and gave the Church the Theology of the Body.

The story

Karol Wojtyła lost his whole family by twenty-one, studied for the priesthood in secret under the Nazis, and became a bishop under the communists. Elected pope in 1978, he made 104 foreign trips, survived an assassin's bullet, published the Catechism of the Catholic Church, canonized 482 saints, and taught the world how to suffer and die in public.

What John teaches

Man cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of himself (Gaudium et Spes 24). John Paul lived that line.

Patronage

World Youth Day, families, Poland.

Prayer

St. John Paul II, pray for families, for the young, and for the courage to open wide the doors of our lives to Christ. Amen.