2008 Woodie Awards
Close Encounters of the Papal Kind
Live Vicariously through Fr. Maher and experience John Paul II firsthand
Fr. Maher
Issue date: 4/11/05 Section: In Memorarium
EXCEPT FOR THE HUNDRED-SOME cardinals who elected John Paul II, everyone's first glimpse of the man as pope was at the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica in October of 1978 after the now famous words were proclaimed: Habemus Papam: We have a pope! And then in Italian the cardinal stated that he was a Papa Polacco: a Polish pope. At that moment everyone felt something. Some were amazed at the fact that the cardinals would choose a nonItalian. Poles and those of Polish ancestry felt an exuberance, a joy, and an immense pride in their country that had for centuries been subjugated and divided by foreign powers. And in Moscow the Communist party felt something as well. . . When the pope came to Chicago in 1979, I drove up from St. Louis Missouri with a group of other young Jesuits to attend the Papal Mass. Running out of the Jesuit house where we were staying, we forgot to bring food, but some of us grabbed oranges from the kitchen table. It was a cold morning; we got there early, and already thousands of faithful filled the expanse of Grant Park. We gave our oranges to a few children who were waiting like us to see the pope. By the end of the hour everyone shared what they had and we ate our fill.
When the pope finally arrived, the reaction of the crowd was impressive, but my memory always returns to one Polish woman who was somewhat short. She could not see the pope so several of us formed a pyramid and she climbed up and got a glimpse of a man that meant so much to her friends, her family, and her faith. After we untangled the pile of five Jesuits and one large polish immigrant that resulted from her not so graceful descent, she gave us all a hug and told us that we had made this the most important day of her life. This is but one example of how the Jesuits have in the past and continue in the present to promote the papacy!
The energy of John Paul and the energy of the faithful left me with an exuberance and joy for my faith. This energy created a reservoir of hope and joy which I tap into now and then when the temporary drought of despair or anger clouds the vibrant light of Christ in my life.
When the pope finally arrived, the reaction of the crowd was impressive, but my memory always returns to one Polish woman who was somewhat short. She could not see the pope so several of us formed a pyramid and she climbed up and got a glimpse of a man that meant so much to her friends, her family, and her faith. After we untangled the pile of five Jesuits and one large polish immigrant that resulted from her not so graceful descent, she gave us all a hug and told us that we had made this the most important day of her life. This is but one example of how the Jesuits have in the past and continue in the present to promote the papacy!
The energy of John Paul and the energy of the faithful left me with an exuberance and joy for my faith. This energy created a reservoir of hope and joy which I tap into now and then when the temporary drought of despair or anger clouds the vibrant light of Christ in my life.