CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- Saint John Paul II\u2019s deep love for the world and for God continues to inspire people today to draw near to Christ, teaching them not only about sanctity, but about humanity, say those who were close to the late Pope.<\/p>\n\t\u201cHe was just a human being and he taught me how to be a person, how to be a man,\u201d said Archbishop Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki of Lviv, Ukraine, who served as papal secretary under Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cWe lost our beloved pope when he died, but this sense of sorrow has been transformed in the joy of him being a saint.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tSaint John Paul II\u2019s first universal feast day after his canonization earlier this year was celebrated on Oct. 22, the anniversary of his papal inauguration.<\/p>\n
\tSpeaking to CNA on the feast day, Archbishop Mokrzycki relayed some of his favorite stories of John Paul II, highlighting the saint\u2019s love for the world.<\/p>\n
\tOnce, when traveling to Mexico, the archbishop said, faithful in the country flooded outside, using mirrors to try to reflect light at the plane, hoping to catch the Pope\u2019s attention.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cJohn Paul was very impressed by the creativity of the Mexican faithful,\u201d Archbishop Mokrzycki remembered. \u201cHe was smiling.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tThe late Pope expressed his love for the world in private moments, his secretary continued, explaining that John Paul II \u201cnot only blessed us during the Angelus or every Sunday at Urbi et Orbi, but he would bless us every day.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\u201cBy the end of each day, around 10:30 p.m., he would go to the chapel, he would pray for a short period of time, he would go back to his bedroom and come up to the window,\u201d the archbishop said. \u201cHe would dim the lights or turn them off, he would open up the interior window, and then he would bless the world.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cHe would bless the pilgrims walking by St. Peter\u2019s square, the Eternal City of Rome, and the whole world.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tArchbishop Mokrzycki explained that this private ritual of blessing the world each night was known only to a few: \u201cBenedict XVI didn\u2019t even know about this\u201d until after the late Pope\u2019s death, he explained.<\/p>\n
\tThe newly-canonized Pope will always be remembered for his love of youth, as well as his example of prayer and trust in God, the archbishop said. But he will also be remembered for showing what it means to be fully human.<\/p>\n
\tEven in death, Archbishop Mokrzycki said, \u201cHe\u2019s still present among us. I feel that he still intercedes for us, he\u2019s among us and prays for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tFather Francis Florczyk, a priest who grew up in Krakow under then-Cardinal Karol Wojtyla, also shared his memories of the prelate who inspired him to join the seminary.<\/p>\n
\tThe priest explained that Cardinal Wojtyla had an impact on the local Catholic youth.<\/p>\n
\tHe recalled one camping trip in which some of the students and their pastor climbed a nearby mountain. Those who did not wish to participate in the morning hike remained behind in a small village.<\/p>\n
\tWhen they returned from the hike, the students who stayed behind described how they had been confronted by the Soviet secret police, who took their personal documents and collected information.<\/p>\n
\tThe police, Fr. Florczyk recalled, told the students that if they continued to be active in the youth group, they could \u201cforget about\u201d continuing school and graduating.<\/p>\n
\tThe next day, \u201cthe cardinal came from Krakow, about 50 miles, to us before morning Mass.\u201d The future Pope then celebrated Mass \u201cto encourage us and to say to us \u2018be not afraid. Be thankful and trust Jesus.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
\tAfter celebrating Mass, the head of police came to the students\u2019 parish to apologize to Cardinal Wojtyla for causing trouble.<\/p>\n
\tIn addition to his deep love and serious thought, Pope John Paul II was a comic man, Fr. Florczyk added, describing how the then-cardinal \u201cloved to sing together\u201d with the seminarians, and would often come to the seminary for comedy nights and sketches.<\/p>\n
\tDescribing the Pope as a \u201cman of hope and really holy,\u201d the priest explained that Cardinal Wojtyla made a great impact on the young men enrolled in the seminary in Krakow.\u00a0 \u201cHe touched us very deeply with his very open heart to Jesus.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tFrom his relationship with the saint both in Krakow and after John Paul II\u2019s election to the papacy, \u201cI received strong spiritual power to continue my ministry as a priest, to be closer to Jesus,\u201d Fr. Florczyk said.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cToday I am calling to his intercession in heaven to be like him, to continue my ministry on earth according to our Jesus who is risen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Washington D.C., Oct 28, 2014 \/ 04:48 am (CNA\/EWTN News).- Saint John Paul II’s deep love for the world and for God continues to inspire people today to draw near to Christ, teaching them not only about sanctity, but about humanity, say those who…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1031,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8551","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-us"],"yoast_head":"\n
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