[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 37 (Tuesday, April 5, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3166-S3171]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HONORING JOHN PAUL II
Mr. SALAZAR. Mr. President, I rise this morning, just having returned
to Washington from Colorado, to share a few comments about the Holy
Father, Pope John Paul II.
My family's faith tradition--like yours, Mr. President--since time
immemorial has been Roman Catholic. In Pope John Paul II, we witnessed
a great spiritual leader, a conscience and a statesman.
Pope John Paul II exemplified the values and teachings of Jesus
Christ in his humility, service to others, and in his struggle to have
the world recognize the dignity of every human being. John Paul II
lived the creed of Jesus Christ as set forth in the Book of Matthew,
Chapter 23, Verses 11-12, where Jesus, speaking to the crowds and his
disciples, said:
The more lowly your service to others, the greater you are.
To be the greatest, be a servant. But those who think
themselves great shall be disappointed and humbled; and those
who humble themselves shall be exalted.
More than 26 years ago, in the eighth round of voting, Karol Wojtyla
was elected to head the Roman Catholic Church. His predecessor, Pope
John Paul I, had died after only 32 days as Pope. The selection of the
charismatic Polish cardinal--the first non-Italian pope in 455 years--
surprised many people both inside and outside the Catholic Church.
In the quarter-century since then, Pope John Paul II continued to
surprise--and challenge--not only members of my church but, indeed, the
entire world to recognize and celebrate the dignity of each and every
person.
But that was not all ``the Pilgrim Pope'' revolutionized. Where
previous pontiffs had often seemed distant from their flocks, Pope John
Paul II traveled to more nations and spoke to more people--often times
in their language--than any other pontiff in the history of the Roman
Catholic Church.
His first trip abroad as pontiff was to a region in crisis. Latin
America, home of half the world's Roman Catholics, was ravaged not just
by poverty and hunger but by violence and civil war that claimed tens
of thousands of innocent lives.
His next trip was to his homeland, Poland, a land that been
subjugated for decades, first by Nazism, then by communism. One
journalist wrote that the pope's visit to Poland ``helped bring about
such profound, irreversible
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changes that Poland then became a country which was clearly ceasing to
be a communist country.''
John Paul also visited America during the first year of his Papacy,
attracting huge crowds wherever he went. In my home State of Colorado,
1993, he came to Denver, bringing a message of substance and hope to
the young people of the world. I remember that visit fondly--and recall
my father's excitement after he reached over a fence to touch the Pope.
This pope is recognized--and rightly so--as a sort of patron saint
for the Solidarity movement in Poland and a catalyst for the demise of
communism in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe.
But that was only part of this pope's message. He has also warned
repeatedly about the shortcomings of capitalism. He reminded us all
that we have an obligation to help the poor and the oppressed.
In 1998, he traveled to Cuba, strengthening a Church that is doing
more and more to help that country's forgotten, and breathing life into
an opposition movement that surprised the world--and that country's
backward regime--with a grassroots call for reform.
In 1999, he again visited the US, reminding us of our duty to not
forget the poor and oppressed and continuing his special outreach to
America's young people and challenging them to fight for a better
America and a better world.
And in 2000, a visibly frail Pope visited the Holy Land to mark the
Millennium and in an attempt to bring Jews, Christians and Muslims
together. Both Jews and Muslims and Christians welcomed him--and
recognized and celebrated his visit--and applauded of optimism his
words and hope.
His efforts to heal the rift between the Vatican and Jews had to be
colored by his own experience with the brutality of anti-Semitism that
he had witnessed. In September 1939, he saw his university in Krakow
shut down and eventually saw several of his friends and classmates sent
to Auschwitz after the Nazis invaded Poland.
His efforts at healing historical rifts continued, evidenced by
meetings with the Archbishop of Canterbury, the highest ranking
official in the Episcopal Church. Many wished he could have done more
on these hurtful rifts, but no one doubted that he began to confront
these challenges like no Pope has ever done in the history of our
Church.
For these nearly 27 years, the Pilgrim Pope John Paul II--an
accomplished poet, an intellectual and a mystic in that fine Catholic
tradition--was hailed as a visionary and attacked as a relic. Within
the Church itself--as in the scores of countries he visited--he was
criticized by critics on both the left and the right. That is because
in the Church and on each of his many trips, he brought not only
comfort and hope--hope for peace in Latin America, freedom in Eastern
Europe, reconciliation in the Middle East, and improvement in America--
but he also brought discomfort and challenges for all of us to do
better.
In 2003, the Vatican had this to say about the role of the Church in
public life,
The Church does not wish to exercise political power or to
eliminate the freedom of opinion of Catholics regarding
contingent questions.
Instead, it intends--as is its proper function--to instruct
and illuminate the consciences of the faithful, particularly
those involved in political life, so that their actions may
always serve the integral promotion of the human person and
the common good.
None of us lived up to the challenges and prescriptions the Pope
mapped out in 27 years in a perfect way. We could not because Pope John
Paul II challenged all of us to do more, to be better.
Physically, the frail, stooped Pope we saw in the last weeks bore
little resemblance to the athletic 58-year-old who ascended the throne
of Peter nearly 27 years ago. But inwardly, he remained deeply
consistent--challenging us to uphold the dignity of each and every
person--and illuminated and instructed, as well as challenged and
surprised the entire world.
We will miss Pope John Paul II, but his vibrant legacy lives on in
each of us and in the lessons and challenges he placed before us.
I thank the President and yield the floor.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, Zbibniew Brzezinski, the Polish-born
national security advisor to President Jimmy Carter, tells a story
about how the news of Cardinal Karol Wojtyla's election as Pope was
received by the communist rulers of Poland.
On that day in October 1978, Mr. Brzezinski said, a group of
communist writers and party leaders were meeting in Krakow. A police
colonel was speaking, complaining about the opposition of the church,
when a woman ran into the room and said, ``Wojtyla has been elected
Pope!''
The second secretary of the party, not realizing his microphone was
still on, turned to the first secretary and said, ``My God, my God, now
we will have to kiss his''--and he did not say ``ring.''
The first party secretary, understanding the enormity of the moment,
replied, ``Only if he lets us.''
In neighboring Czechoslovakia, a dissident playwright was with
friends when news of the new Polish Pope came. Vaclav Havel, who would
go on to become the first elected president of the Czech Republic, said
he and his friends literally danced with joy when they heard the news.
``We felt,'' he said, ``that he was a great and charismatic man who
will open the door to an unprecedented renaissance in Christianity and
through it, to human spirituality in general, and who will
fundamentally influence the future destiny and political order of the
world.''
More than 26 years later, those stories seem prophetic. Karol
Wojtyla, Pope John Paul II, did indeed change the world.
Today, he is being mourned not only in his beloved Poland, and not
only by Catholics, but by people throughout the world: Christians,
Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, people from every faith tradition,
and many with no religious connections.
Last Friday, when it was clear the Pope was dying, a man in Havana, a
self-described communist, told an Associated Press reporter, ``I don't
believe in God. But if there is a God, let him send us a Pope as good
as this one.''
In Istanbul, Turkey, the brother of the man who nearly killed the
Pope said his brother is grieving. ``He loved the Pope,'' his brother
said.
Among the places in this country where this Pope's death has left
many with an aching sadness is the Five Holy Martyrs Church on the
southwest side of Chicago, the historic heart of Chicago's large Polish
community. More Poles live in Chicago, IL, than any other city in the
world, other than Warsaw.
In October 1979, when Pope John Paul II made his first visit to
America as Pope, he said Mass at the Five Holy Martyrs Church, where
the Eucharist is still celebrated in Polish, on an altar in the church
parking lot, surrounded by more than 17,000 people.
Today, the altar still stands in the parking lot; it is used once a
year for a special commemorative Mass. A portion of 43rd Street near
the Five Holy Martyrs Church has been renamed in the Pope's honor. And
many who saw him still recall it as one of the greatest days of their
lives.
Think of this: half the people in the world today were not even born
when Karol Wojtyla became Pope John Paul II. Most people under 40 have
no memory of any other Pope, and remember John Paul only as an elderly
and frail man.
Those of us who are a little older, though, remember just as clearly
what a strong, athletic man he was before age and Parkinson's disease
began to take their toll. ``God's athlete,'' some called him, and he
showed in his life how much strength he had.
He was a traditionalist and a revolutionary, a son of Poland, and a
citizen of the world. He was a mystic and a man of prayer, but he was
also a man of action and seemingly inexhaustible energy. Reporters
decades younger who accompanied him on his travels even in recent
years, said they returned home exhausted. But John Paul never stopped.
He was more than a spiritual leader; he was a major player on the
world diplomatic stage.
He visited more than 100 nations and every continent except
Antarctica. All told, he traveled more than three times
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the distance from the Earth to the Moon.
He spoke more languages than many people can name. In 1993, he
visited Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia--his first trip as Pope to the
former Soviet Union. For that trip, he learned his 14th language,
Lithuanian, which I am sure my Lithuanian-born mother was very happy to
hear.
Everywhere, his message was the same. It is what he told his fellow
Poles on his first visit home as Pope in 1979: ``Be not afraid.'' There
is more to this life than what you can see here and now. ``The moral
arc of the universe is long,'' as another great moral leader told us,
``but it bends toward justice.''
He sided always with the oppressed, the marginalized, the voiceless,
the victims of war and injustice.
He was fearless and unflinching in the face of leaders of governments
that suppressed human rights and crushed human hopes. He defied the
Nazis who occupied Poland when he was a young man, and the communists
who followed them. He showed real strength that all of us admire.
His role in ending communism in Poland and bringing about the end of
the Soviet empire is well documented and rightly praised. He also
helped to bring an end to apartheid by refusing to visit South Africa
until that repugnant form of government was abolished.
Peace, non-violence, the sanctity of life, the dignity of work, the
realization that we are all part of one human family and that every
person on earth shares ``a common dignity and a common destiny,'' the
belief that those who have much owe those who have less true justice,
not mere charity, these are the lessons John Paul preached.
He taught us about reconciliation. He apologized for the Church for
the Crusades, the Inquisition and the persecution of the Jews.
He showed us how to ask for forgiveness on his first trip home to
Poland, when he visited the Nazi death camp at Auschwitz and knelt in
prayer before a memorial to Holocaust victims. He showed us again on
his first visit to Israel, in 2000, when he reached out his shaking
hand to touch the Western Wall and leave a written prayer, a plea for
forgiveness.
He showed us how to grant forgiveness when he visited the prison cell
of the man who tried to kill him, and prayed with him.
He was the first Pope ever to visit a synagogue, or visit a mosque in
an Islamic nation.
In his final days, he taught us another lesson: how to die with
dignity.
John Paul II lived his life to try to heal the wounds that divide
humanity. It is a measure of this extraordinary man's success that he
has been praised in death by both Israeli Vice Premier Shimon Peres and
Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas.
Karol Wojtyla had tears in his eyes when he became Pope. Many of us
have tears in our eyes as he leaves the papacy and this world.
Those of us who are Catholic feel a special connection to this Pope.
Many of us did not always agree with him on matters of Church teaching
and practice. That is not unusual. In every family, there are disputes.
But there is also great love. Even when we differed with him, we
believe the Pope tried to do what he believed was right, and that is
all we can ask of anyone.
During his visit to Chicago more than 25 years ago, the Pope said
mass in Chicago's Grant Park. Many business closed that day to let
their workers attend the mass. People stood shoulder-to-shoulder in the
park.
Later that night, thousands of Chicagoans gathered at the Cardinal's
mansion to sing ``good night'' to the Pope. It was late, but they
weren't ready to let him go. He smiled as the crowd sang--and sang some
more. Finally, with that huge smile and that big, booming voice, the
Pope told them, ``Now you must go sleep.'' When no one moved, he smiled
again and repeated, like a stern but loving father, ``You must go
sleep.''
All these years later, many of us still wish he could have stayed
with us just a little longer. But it was time for him to sleep.
So let us treasure the memory of this good man. And if we are moved
to pay tribute to him, let us do our best to try to live the lessons he
taught us with his own extraordinary life.
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I rise to pay tribute to the Holy Father.
Pope John Paul II was an extraordinary ambassador for the betterment
of humankind in every corner of the globe. His humanity shone through
every day for two and a half decades of his papacy and his impact on
the world will be everlasting.
He was a moral leader in so many of the great battles of our time. He
fought Communism without violence, and he was dogged in his battles
against war, injustice, and intolerance wherever he found them. He
viewed the world in clear terms of good and evil, but he never once
descended to demagoguery. He was a man who at once understood both the
frailty and potential of the human spirit.
What other kind of man could have forgiven his would be assassin in
person and prayed with him in his jail cell?
His capacity for belief in the betterment of man moved the world.
What other kind of man could overcome centuries of mistrust and
conflict to establish diplomatic ties between the Vatican and the State
of Israel. That was truly a bold and historic move.
As a New Yorker, I also must offer to say a special thanks to the
Pope from the residents of our State and city. New York is an
international city that attracts immigrants from all over the world who
come with the dream of finding a better life.
While the Pope might be the most famous Pole of his time, every one
of our citizens admired and often shared his pluck, his expansiveness
and his optimism, qualities that make New York the greatest city on
Earth. That is one of the reasons he was revered as such a hero by all
New Yorkers, because the qualities that he exhibited of optimism and
pluck and expansiveness are characteristics of our city as well. So
every time he came here, there was a beautiful union. Like the Statue
of Liberty that he quoted in his visit to Giants Stadium in 1995, his
life and work was a symbol to millions on these shores and beyond that
they, too, if they worked hard and stuck to their principles and moral
values, could enjoy a better life.
And when terrible tragedy struck our city that awful day 4 years ago,
the Pope's poignant statements reassured all New Yorkers and all
Americans. He said at that time:
May the Blessed Virgin, bring comfort and hope to all who
are suffering because of the tragic terrorist attack that
profoundly wounded the beloved American people in recent
days. To all the sons and daughters of that great nation I
now address my heartfelt thoughts and participation. May Mary
receive the dead, console the survivors, sustain the families
which have been especially tried and help everyone not to
give in to the temptation to hatred and violence, but to
commit themselves to serving justice and peace.
And he didn't stop there. After the attacks he convened an inter
faith pilgrimage for peace to Assisi, the birthplace of St. Francis. He
only led such a pilgrimage twice before--once during the Cold War, once
during the Balkans conflict. He led leaders of Orthodox, Anglican,
Protestant, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Zoroastrian,
Tenrikyo, Shinto and traditional African faiths in prayer and
meditation. It was only a delegation he could have led.
Personally, I will never forget the Pope's visit to New York City in
1979. One glance at him and you saw that his nobility and his common
touch combined so well in one human being was unforgettable for the
millions of New Yorkers who lined the streets to greet him. People of
all faiths and background mourn his passing. I join the billions of
citizens around the world in a solemn prayer and remembrance of this
great, wonderful, and holy man, Pope John Paul II.
I yield the floor.
Mr. GRAHAM. Mr. President, I add my voice to the millions of people
throughout the world as we try to put in perspective the passing of
Pope John Paul II.
As has been said many times in many ways, probably more than anything
what struck me the most about the Holy Father was his ability to
understand what could be when other people only saw what couldn't be.
He understood that communism was an oppressive system. He lived under
Nazi rule, and as he had the power to bring about change, he used that
power for the
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good. He went back to his home country of Poland and challenged his
people to expect better and to demand better. That is what he did for
the world.
He tried to challenge his church, to stick to the principles of the
church as he saw those principles to be. He challenged the world to do
better when it came to the less fortunate. He was consistent. He saw
war as a bad thing. He understood that life was sacred and that the
state should not take life. He was in opposition to the death penalty.
There I may disagree, an honest disagreement.
But he had a consistency about him. When we try to put his beliefs in
secular terms of being liberal or conservative, we totally miss the
mark of understanding the Pope. He understood the past, he changed the
present, and the future will be better because of his time on Earth.
His passing has left a void in a great religion. The Catholic faith
has lost a great leader. The world has lost a great voice for humanity,
for decency, for love, for caring, and that voice will echo throughout
the ages. As the Catholic Church embarks on picking a new Pope, I can
understand the legacy that will have to be fulfilled.
The great religion called the Catholic faith is in mourning for the
loss of a great leader, but all of us are in mourning for the loss of a
great leader. Anyone who loves freedom, anyone who believes that there
is a right and wrong when it comes to certain issues, has lost a great
guidepost. I believe his legacy will be in challenging the status quo
for the common good, seeing pain and hearing the cries of the oppressed
when other people only heard faint noises, and having the courage of
his convictions. He said, Be not afraid, and that is a lesson for us
all.
He has gone to his eternal home. He deserves all the accolades he has
been given. The world is better for his time on Earth.
I yield the floor.
Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, also part of the greatest generation is
someone whom I rise to pay tribute to today and that is to Pope John
Paul II. I was saddened at the passing of Pope John Paul II. The Holy
Father was an inspiration to me as well as to millions around the
world. His faith, his compassion, his eloquence, transcended religion
or nationality. We so admired His Holiness because he stood for those
who suffered, those who were oppressed, those who could not give voice
through their own advocacy for human rights. He offered faith and hope
and courage with his famous phrase ``be not afraid,'' as he reached out
to young people to give them a moral compass that they needed--that we
all need to guide our lives.
Pope John Paul was the true people's Pope. Gosh, he traveled to over
100 countries. He didn't just speak from the pulpit; he reached out and
touched people. He moved into the crowds, and he spoke the language of
the people, often literally because he spoke so many languages. The
Pope was the father of the church, but he was also a son of Poland, my
own cultural heritage. I remember when I heard the news about the new
Polish Pope, the first non-Italian in over 400 years. I live down the
street from the Polish parish, St. Stanislaw's in Fells Point. We felt
such pride and joy. The bells rang, the tugboats tooted. We closed the
streets and had a fantastic party. We were so excited.
In Baltimore we even knew him before he became Pope. He came to visit
us as the cardinal from Krakow. He visited Holy Rosary Church, again
one of the Catholic churches serving large numbers in the Polish
community. I was so pleased to be there that day for this young,
vigorous, athletic man who came from Poland to speak to us, wanting to
know about our own country, speaking to us in English also about our
own hopes and aspirations. But because he had grown up under Nazi
fascism and lived under the boot of communism, he spoke to us about
what it was like to live behind the Iron Curtain.
As you so well know, he came from the captive nations. I was so proud
then to be part of the American delegation when he was Invested over 2
years later. And even then we could see the hint of things to come.
There was a mass for hundreds of thousands of people in St. Peter's
Square, where His Holiness gave his first blessing and spoke the Word
to the people in many tongues. Before he came over to greet the
diplomatic corps, he went over to a special section of children, and
not just ordinary children but extraordinary children--the mentally
retarded, those with birth defects, cerebral palsy. And the first touch
of the Pope was to those children. I think it touched us all.
One of my best memories was taking my parents to meet the Pope at the
White House when Jimmy Carter was President and Brzezinski was his
National Security Adviser. I took my mother and father through the
receiving line, and they had a chance to talk with him in both Polish
and English. He turned and smiled with his wonderful humorous way and
said: Don't forget to listen to your mother and father and to the Holy
Father.
Twenty-five years later, I joined my colleagues in the Senate to
present the Pope with our Congressional Medal, the highest honor we can
bestow. The Pope doesn't usually accept awards, but he made an
exception because we wanted to thank him for his stand for human rights
and for peace and justice around the world. After the presentation and
the blessing, he said to us: God bless you and God bless America.
The Pope visited this country seven different times, both as a bishop
and as Pope. And during those times, he always spoke to us about the
need for freedom. He knew what it was like to live under the
occupation. During the dark days of communism, he led the church's
support of the Solidarity movement. In 1979, after he became Pope, he
made his very first visit to his own native land. In 9 days, he was
seen by 13 million people, from Warsaw to Krakow to Czestochova. He
touched every part of Polish society, and he encouraged them once again
to be not afraid. One year later an obscure electrician working in a
shipyard, named Lech Walesa, jumped over that wall. And when he jumped
over the wall of the Gdansk shipyard, he took the whole world with him.
That was the beginning of the end of Communism.
The Pope forged a special relationship with President Ronald Reagan,
and I believe helped bring about the end of the Cold War and pulled
down that Iron Curtain.
Pope John did more than any other leader of the church to reach out
to different faiths. He was the first Pope to visit a synagogue. He was
the first Pope to visit a mosque. He reached out to Anglicans and to
Eastern Orthodoxy. But he didn't just reach out to different faiths; he
reached also to the human heart. He reached back to the darker side of
history. He was the first to acknowledge the Holocaust and to say that
antisemitism was a sin and to officially visit Israel. He wanted the
improvement of relationships.
If we want to honor the Pope, we should do it not with words but with
deeds: To be not afraid, to speak up for truth, to speak truth to
power, speak about justice, speak about human rights, to speak about
the marginalized and the oppressed. Today we grieve the death of the
Pope. We express our gratitude for his remarkable life and his
remarkable leadership and legacy of faith and freedom and the enduring
promise of the Gospels calling us to feed the hungry, care for the
sick, and turn our spears into plowshares.
Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, when Pope John Paul II died over the
weekend, the Catholic Church lost its spiritual shepherd. The world
lost a giant of a man. As successor of St. Peter, he began his papacy
by reminding the world to ``Be not afraid.'' The captive people of
Eastern Europe and Latin America heard that message loud and clear. And
as he prepared for his own death, he met his suffering with a
fearlessness and hopefulness that was heard by us all.
For millions of American Catholics, including many Utahns, and many
of my colleagues in this body, Pope John Paul II's passing represents
the loss of a profound spiritual leader. My prayers are with all of you
and with the Pope.
For non-Catholics like myself the Pope's death is a cause for
mourning as well. His was an example of strength, commitment, and moral
courage that we will all miss and that we will never forget. The
Communist tyranny that the Pope ultimately triumphed over once mocked
the power of the Catholic Church, asking how many divisions the Pope
had. While it is true that the Pope possessed no military might, his
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witness to hope, his faith that life would triumph over death, that the
light would prevail over the darkness, was more powerful than any army.
As a result of his simple faith, this humble man from Krakow, Poland
emerged from behind the Iron Curtain, became the first non-Italian Pope
in nearly 500 years, and concluded his life as one of the towering
figures of the Twentieth Century. I have no doubt that his example will
guide us in the Twenty-first Century as well, and I understand why it
is that so many Catholics are already referring to him as John Paul the
Great.
My career as a public servant began shortly before John Paul II
became Pope. I am fortunate to have spent time with him on two
occasions over the years, and so it was no surprise to me to watch the
world's and this country's admiration and love for him grow. I was
struck by his joyful and his charitable spirit. Yet behind that
peaceful demeanor was a determination to challenge the totalitarian
assaults on human dignity that stained much of the last century.
As a young man he was witness to the Nazi terror in his native
Poland, and later as Pope he went to Poland and encouraged the
Solidarity movement. He understood that all persons are created in the
image and likeness of God and that no matter how small, old or weak, no
person is without significance. I have no doubt that his powerful
witness to the dignity of all people contributed as much to the
downfall of the horror of communism as anything we accomplished in
Washington. A year after he assumed the papacy, John Paul II went to
Poland and awakened a sleeping giant. Today, I hear that over a million
thankful Poles are en route to Rome to pay their respects to their
native son.
As the Pope grew older and he lost his youthful vigor, his own
suffering served as a powerful reminder of the need to nurture a
culture of life. Catholics and non-Catholics alike have heard this
call. As President Bush put it the other day, it remains the duty of
the strong to protect the weak.
It only took about twenty-four hours before some commentators came
out to declare the Pope's legacy a mixed one. The Pope was too strident
on certain issues, they say. He left certain groups unsatisfied.
Perhaps. But I think that these criticisms really miss what this man
was about. John Paul II reminded us of the meaning that our human lives
can have. This truth is not something that you can focus group. The
truth about the universe, about our duty to God and to our fellow man,
is not something that you can triangulate.
Still, some fault the Pope for not being more like a politician. He
was not accommodating enough. He should have compromised and found a
middle ground. As elected officials, that is our charge. But as the
spiritual head of the Catholic Church, the Pope's duty was greater than
what we work to accomplish. He was a witness to truth. His message was
not always one that people on either side of the aisle wanted to hear,
but the call to the faithful is not often an easy one to swallow. The
Pope reminded us of the splendor of truth. I think what is revealed in
these criticisms of the Pope is the knee-jerk aversion by some to the
very idea that there are eternal truths. The Pope should be commended,
not criticized, for reminding us of them.
The talking heads have this exactly backward. They think that it was
the Pope who was inconsistent because he was not easily labeled as
politically liberal or conservative. It never occurs to them that it is
we who are conflicted; that our divisions are something to be overcome.
The Pope spoke to what Abraham Lincoln called the better angels of our
nature. He was not someone seeking political advantage or gain. He
sought peace and unity, and nowhere was this more clear than in his
historic outreach to non-Catholic Christians, to the Jewish people, and
to moderate Muslims.
Our commentators might not get this, but the world's people certainly
do. As is clear from the different languages one hears in Rome as
people wait to file past the Pope, this was a man who belonged to the
world. And the Pope's trips to this country will never be forgotten.
People in this country stood in the rain to attend papal masses in
Boston and Miami, New Orleans and New York. Youth from around the world
came to celebrate with him in Denver. Though this was a man with a
universal message, I think that he had a certain American spirit as
well. He was a kindred spirit. His faith in the future, and in the
inherent dignity of man, made him at home with the American people, and
it is appropriate that this nation, which was blessed with his visits
on numerous occasions, will be flying its flags at half staff until his
interment on Friday.
This weekend the Catholic Church lost its shepherd. For over a
quarter of a century, Pope John Paul II watched over his flock. With
his death this weekend, I am sure that there are some who feel lost,
but they should not forget the Pope's reminder: ``Be not afraid.'' When
he reminded his native Poles of this, they changed the course of
history. In his passing we should take heed as well. We will miss him,
and we will mourn, but we have faith that he is now at peace and at one
with his Lord.
Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, on Saturday evening the world lost a
voice for peace, justice, and human dignity.
Born in Poland in 1920, Pope John Paul II grew up in the aftermath of
World War I. As a young man, he witnessed the injustice of the Nazi
occupation of his country, lived amid the horrendous crimes of the
Holocaust, and survived decades of repression behind the Iron Curtain.
Out of those experiences, he developed a hopeful view of the world
that defined his 26 years as the leader of the Roman Catholic Church,
and he shared that vision with Catholics and non-Catholics worldwide.
As the first non-Italian Pope since 1523, Pope John Paul II was a
truly groundbreaking figure. He redefined the papacy, coming out from
behind the walls of the Vatican to travel to 129 countries and
literally reach out to people wherever he went.
Through his travel--more than any other Pope--he helped rejuvenate
and expand Catholicism to areas far beyond its roots.
During his 26 years as Pope, the Catholic Church grew from 750
million people to over 1 billion, with most of that growth coming from
the third world.
For those in developing countries who struggled merely to survive,
the Pope was a strong advocate for economic justice. And for those who
lived under repression, he was a powerful voice for freedom.
His 1979 visit to his native Poland is viewed as the spark that
ignited the labor movement which toppled communism in Poland and led to
its demise throughout Eastern Europe a decade later.
It was his powerful yet simple belief in the value of human life that
brought him to challenge violence wherever he saw it.
He chastised the brutal Communist governments of Eastern Europe. He
criticized the military junta that governed Brazil in the early 1980s.
He condemned nuclear war while meeting with survivors of the Hiroshima
bombing. He called for an end to the violence in Northern Ireland. And
he appealed for human rights in Cuba.
The Pope consistently urged leaders and citizens alike to seek peace
and respect human life.
The Pope also sought to heal wounds. He apologized for the errors of
Catholics over the last 2,000 years and for injustices against Jews,
women, indigenous peoples, immigrants, and the poor. He acknowledged
the failure of many Catholics to help Jews during the Holocaust. And
more recently, he condemned the sexual abuse of children by priests in
the United States.
The Pope reached out to members of other faiths at a time of growing
sectarian violence and religious strife.
He was the first Pope to pray in a synagogue, the first to visit
Auschwitz, and the first to make an official papal visit to the Holy
Land--John Paul II made great strides in improving relations between
Catholics and Jews.
And just as he acknowledged the mistakes made by his Church and its
members, he also demonstrated a willingness to forgive those who had
done harm to him.
In December 1983, he met with the man who had attempted to
assassinate him 2\1/2\ half years earlier. During that meeting, the
Pope forgave the man who had shot him three times.
The Pope regularly visited the United States and met with five
Presidents. He believed that the U.S. had a
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special responsibility to the world calling on our Nation to be ``for
the world, an example of a genuinely free, democratic, just and humane
society.''
In recent years, even as his health deteriorated, he refused to give
up. And in this, he served as a model to millions of people throughout
the world about how faith and willpower can overcome adversity.
Indeed, I cannot remember a Pope who has been more warmly received
and loved. I had the great honor to meet him at the Vatican in 1982
where I presented him with a cross sculpted from handguns melted down
after being turned into police when they were banned in San Francisco.
He received my gift warmly, giving me a rosary in return.
The world has lost a strong voice for peace, justice, and human
dignity. Pope John Paul II will be dearly missed.
Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, I watched with great sadness this weekend
as the world lost a remarkable leader and faithful servant. Pope John
Paul II, born Karol Wojtyla, was the leader of the world's largest
church and shepherd to more than a billion Catholics throughout the
world. In my home State of North Dakota, more than 130,000 Catholics
are mourning the Pope's death this week and praying for the repose of
his soul. I join these faithful and millions of others in grieving for
the Holy Father who spread a message of peace and charity during his
26-year-long pontificate.
Reflecting on the Pope's legacy, I will forever admire his bravery,
both in answering God's call and in challenging corrupt governments for
the sake of humanity. In his first mass at St. Peter's Basilica in
1978, Pope John Paul II called on Catholics throughout the world to
``be not afraid.''
The Pope spent his entire life living that call. Born on the eve of
World War II, Pope John Paul knew the horrors of war; the Nazis forced
him into labor when they invaded Poland in 1939. During this period, he
found comfort in his Catholic faith and challenged the Nazis by
attending illegal prayer meetings. These experiences hardened his
conviction that war is ``always a defeat for humanity.''
He again answered the call to ``be not afraid'' when he challenged
the Soviet Union and the tyranny of communism in his homeland, Poland.
Both as Archbishop of Krakow and then as Pope, John Paul II provided
religious strength to those fighting these regimes. He is credited with
helping to topple communism in Poland, and his steadfastness against
oppression in all forms will forever be honored.
There may be no event more telling of his commitment to bravery and
mercy than the attempt on his life in 1981. After being shot twice,
nearly resulting in his death, the Pope recovered and continued his
public works. Two years after the shooting, he visited his attacker in
jail and offered his forgiveness. Responding to this act of evil with
compassion and grace, John Paul served as a witness to what humanity
should strive to become.
The world has lost a great leader and the father of a religious
family. John Paul II will be remembered as a teacher and defender of
the faith he was called to serve. He will be honored as a diplomat and
as a revolutionary in the fight against injustice and oppression. And
he will provide us ongoing inspiration to respect human dignity and the
worth of all humankind.
I am saddened by the loss of this just and holy man; however, I am
joyful that he surely has passed to a more perfect place and is in
communion with the God he served so faithfully. My thoughts and prayers
are with the Catholic community and all those who mourn the death of
Pope John Paul II.
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