The Feast of the Fearless and Friendly Warrior
October 21, 2021
2
min
read
The feast of St. John Paul II is upon us (October 22nd). Who was St. John Paul II, and why does he serve as such a powerful witness to the Faith in our time?
He embodied the rugged resilience of the personal loss of his mother at a young age, the loss of his friends and the crushing of his dreams at the hands of the Nazis and Communists, the persistent misunderstanding of his work by secular progressives, and the immense struggle of his battle with the degradation of Parkinson's disease—yet he was never shaken from incarnating the radiant joy of being an image of God, a member of His beloved Son.
He was a fearless and friendly warrior who never yielded to partisan wars and never capitulated to global bullies.
He never ceased to articulate the Gospel in fresh ways for the rapidly changing world across a new millennium, nor did he abandon the richness of the great Tradition.
He was and remains a model for a confident and charismatic Catholicism in a wild and chaotic world.
As we know with certainty of faith, this spiritual titan of the twentieth century is a beloved child beholding his Father face to face, and we entrust our weary world to his powerful intercession.
The assassination of a British Catholic member of parliament raises questions about Last Rites and emergency situations.
A Christian call to return to the life of the improperly named "dark ages."
A Jewish chaplain baptizes a baby Catholic.
Through Christ, we hear a clear but puzzling call: "God loves you! Now change!"
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