Inspirational Saints: St. John XXIII & St. John Paul II

1. Meet the Saints Saint John XXIII Saint John Paul II

2. Saint John XXIII

3. Saint John XXIII • Born in Sotto il Monte, outside Bergamo • In northern Italy • On Nov 25, 1881 • His family shared the home with cousins and others – a total of nearly 30 for supper each evening

4. Sotto il Monte • It was a beautiful small town • Centered around the parish church • They raised crops and livestock • The animals lived on the first floor • of their house

5. Saint John XXIII • He was baptized on the day of his birth in the parish church • Named Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli • One of 13 children (but several died in infancy) • His parents were sharecroppers (meaning that they gave half their produce to a landlord for the right to live and farm there)

6. Saint John XXIII • He went to the seminary and was ordained a priest in 1904 • He served his local bishop and taught history in the seminary • Then he accepted roles as a representative of the Vatican (the Pope) to various places in the world

7. Saint John XXIII • He served Turkey • Greece & Bulgaria • France • The city of Venice in Italy • And then became Pope

8. Saint John XXIII • He called Vatican II in 1959 • He worked hard to lead the Council • He was a friend to many people • And he was loved by the whole world • He died in 1963 on June 3 • The whole world mourned his death

9. Vatican II

10. Vatican II • All the bishops of the world • From 1962-1965 (Oct thru Dec each year) • Renewed the Church • Restored many elements of the Church from the early centuries • Including the Mass, Baptism, the RCIA • Also the Call to Holiness

11. St John XXIII: What he said • What did John XXIII expect from the Council? • The Council? he said as he moved toward the window and made a gesture as if to open it. I expect a little fresh air from it…We must shake off the imperial dust that has accumulated on the throne of St. Peter since Constantine.

12. St John XXIII: What he said • Let us look at each other without mistrust, meet each other without fear, talk with each other without surrendering principles. • Unity in necessary things, freedom in doubtful things, charity in all things. • Listen to everything, forget much, correct a little.

13. St John XXIII: What he said • The sense of my smallness and of my nothingness has always been my good companion, • keeping me humble and content • and granting me the joy of consecrating myself as best I can to the uninterrupted exercise of obedience and charity….

14. St John XXIII: What he said • …I come from humble beginnings, • and I was raised in a restraining, blessed poverty whose needs are few and which assures the growth of the highest and noblest virtues, • and prepares one for the great ascents of life…

15. St John XXIII: What he said • We were poor but happy with our lot and confident in the help of Providence…. • When a beggar appeared at the door of our kitchen, there was always room for him, • and my mother would hasten to seat this stranger alongside us.

16. Who was St John XXIII? • A friend to everyone • Unafraid of allowing the Spirit to shine in the Church • He desired the unity of all Christians • He wanted us to focus on what unites us • Rather than on what divides us • He believed that charity must be first, even above church rules

17. To make the world glad • After reading one of the proposed documents for Vatican Council II, Pope John XXIII approached a Cardinal and said, “My dear son, look at this document here! • It uses up 30 inches condemning the world! We’ve been down that path for a very long time, and it hasn’t worked.”

18. To make the world glad • John XXIII then said, “Let’s try something new.” • When asked why he called the Second Vatican Council the humble Pope John XXIII said: “To make the human journey less sad!”

19. Saint John Paul II

20. Saint John Paul II • Born in Wadowice, Poland • On May 18, 1920 • Youngest of 3 children • His mother died when he was young and his father not long afterward

21. Wadowice, Poland • Small town • Centered on the Church • Ancient town • Long history • Very little change

22. St John Paul II • Attended college at the University in Krakow • Learned to speak 9 languages well • And used them all as Pope • Was in the seminary during World War II • Helped many Jews escape the Nazis • Ordained a priest in 1946

23. St John Paul II • Served as a parish priest at Assumption parish in Krakow • Also served at St Florian’s • Taught at the University • Very active in social, sporting, and theater groups • Earned a doctorate in theology

24. St John Paul II • Named bishop in 1958 • Attended Vatican II • Worked on the Constitution on the Church in the Modern World • Made cardinal in 1967 • Elected Pope in 1978 • Died on April 2, 2005

25. St John Paul II as Pope • Traveled extensively throughout the world • Visited 129 nations • Often kissed the ground when he arrived

26. St John Paul II as Pope • Supported Vatican II • But did not push for more changes in the Church • Worked for justice around the world • Opposed apartheid in South Africa • Opposed the wars in the Middle East • Canonized 483 Saints

27. St John Paul as Pope • Apologized for past Church behavior • Galileo who was excommunicated for teaching that the sun is the center of the solar system • Catholic involvement in the slave trade • The Church’s role in burning people at the stake • Injustice against women • Church silence during the Holocaust

28. St John Paul II: What he said • The future is in your hearts and in your hands. • God is entrusting to you the task, at once difficult and uplifting, of working with him • in the building of the civilization of love. (Downsview Address, 4)

29. St John Paul II: What he said • Do not be afraid to go out on the streets and into public places like the first apostles who preached Christ and the Good News of salvation in the squares of cities, towns, and villages. • This is no time to be ashamed of the Gospel. It is time to preach it from the rooftops. (World Youth Day 1993)

30. St John Paul II: What he said • Man cannot live without love. • He remains a being that is incomprehensible for himself, • his life is senseless, if love is not revealed to him, if he does not encounter love, • if he does not experience it and make it his own, if he does not participate intimately in it. (Redemptor Hominis #10)