Saint Who?
Saints Who Were Close to Nature
Saint John Paul II
Pope († 2005)Feast: October 22
He survived the Nazi occupation of Poland and two near brushes with death. He was a polyglot, a poet, a theologian, a world traveler, and the third-longest-serving pope in Church history. But in his younger days, he worked in a quarry, hoped to become an actor, and loved to play soccer. Catholics all over the world, awed by his accomplishments, strong personality, and palpable love for Christ, spontaneously proclaimed him John Paul the Great after his death.
Karol Józef Wojtyła was elected pope at the relatively young age of fifty-eight, long before Parkinson’s disease slowed him down. Soon after becoming pope, he ordered a swimming pool to be installed. When cardinals complained about the expense, he joked that it was “cheaper than another conclave.”
His love for nature was most obvious when he was a young parish priest. As a university professor, he gathered students and invited them to pray together, discuss philosophy, and serve the needy. In time, their activities expanded to include skiing, hiking, and kayaking. The great outdoors had the advantage of being far away from pervasive Communist surveillance, but there was more to it than that. In the beauty of God’s creation, the priest drew closer to God as well as his friends, and he taught those friends to do the same.
God of heaven and earth, speak to us in creation,
your free communication of love.
