Secondary: Rapid Response Assemblies


Death of Pope John Paul II
By Stuart Kerner


Suitable for KS3


Aim
To reflect on and celebrate the life of the late Pope.



Preparation and materials

The death of a pope (from the Greek for father) is hugely significant, and although many students will not be members of the Roman Catholic Church, it is unlikely any of them will be unaware of his existence as a world leader, so this assembly is appropriate in any school, not just Roman Catholic ones.

It is important to remember that most students will not remember the beginning of John Paul’s papacy, and will, consequently only have seen him as an old man.  This is dealt with below.

For more information about the death of the Pope click here:

BBC News website: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/world/pope_john_paul_ii

The Holy See Website: http://www.vatican.va/phome_en.htm

Assembly

Begin by saying that on 16th October 1978, when Cardinal Karol Wojtyla (pronounced Voy-tee-wa) was elected Pope John Paul II, history was made.  It was the first time in 455 years that a non-Italian man had been asked to take on the role of leader of the Roman Catholic Church.  At just 58 years old, he was also one of the youngest Popes for many years.  Now, after his recent death at the age of 84, we know he was also the third longest reigning pontiff, having been Pope for 27 years.

Comment that the Pope is the spiritual leader of the world’s one billion Roman Catholic Christians – that’s a quarter of the entire population of the world.  He is also the ruler of Vatican City – a tiny country in the Italian capital city of Rome.

Say that Popes are elected by and from the chief bishops in the church, called ‘cardinals’.  Roman Catholics believe that the Popes authority comes from St Peter – Jesus’ chief disciple.  According to Catholics, this right to rule the church came about because of the words of Jesus, “You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hell shall not overpower it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 16:13-20). They believe that the power to lead the Church has been handed down by an unbroken chain called ‘apostolic succession’.

Say that before John Paul II, Popes tended to be very elderly Italian men who spent most of their time inside their palace called the Vatican, never travelling abroad – and even being carried around from place to place in a special chair called a sedia gestatoria, a mobile throne carried by twelve footmen in red uniforms.

Turn now to the life of the late Pope.  Relate how Karol Wojtyla was born in Poland in 1920, the son of a factory worker.  As a young man he turned his hand to poetry and the theatre, and was an enthusiastic football goalkeeper and skier.

Mention that during the Second World War, when Poland was occupied by the Nazis, he risked his life by studying after he had decided to become a priest – such activities could have easily landed him in prison.

After the War in 1946, Karol became a priest, but the oppression of freedom and religion did not end.  The tyranny of the Nazis was replaced by the tyranny of the Communists.  Many claim that he was one of the main reasons why Communism was rejected in countries across Eastern Europe in 1989, when he supported his countrymen as Archbishop of Krakow, and later as Pope.

When John Paul II began as Pope he was still quite a young-looking and energetic man, flying all around the world, and giving moving speeches wherever he went.  He was nicknamed "Pope-Pilgrim" thanks to his numerous trips and meetings with believers all over the world.

In 1982 he made an historic visit to the UK, when he travelled all over the country – the only Pope to ever do so.

He was also the first Pope to pray with people of all different faiths, and, after being shot and seriously wounded in St Peter's Square in 1981, he publicly met the gunman Mehmet Ali Agca and offered him his forgiveness. 

In the last few years John Paul has suffered from Parkinson’s Disease.  This is a brain illness that makes sufferers shake, makes them move slowly, stops them from speaking clearly and causes their face to stiffen.  Although his sickness slowed him down physically, it did not really stop his work until the last few weeks.

There is a story that a guest at an audience with John Paul II was shocked by the elderly Pope’s appearance.  He bent down low to shake the Pope’s hand and asked how he was.  A beady eye twinkled out of the reddening Pope’s drooping face and the slurred voice crackled out: "From the neck down, not so good.”  Then it added, fiercely: "But I don't lead the church with my feet!"

Some have criticised the Pope for his firm opposition to what he called the world’s obsession with death: abortion, euthanasia, and sexual immorality, others point to his important support for many Christians victims of oppression and persecution, especially in his home country of Poland.

Whatever different people thought about John Paul II, following his death on Saturday 2nd April tributes have poured in from World political and spiritual leaders, as well as ordinary people.  The Prime Minister, Tony Blair, has said of the late Pope: "Even if you are not a Catholic, even if you are not a Christian, even if you have no religious faith at all, what people could see in Pope John Paul was a man of true and profound spiritual faith, a shining example of what that faith should mean.”

One of the pope's official titles is Pontifex Maximus or Supreme Pontiff – these words are come from the Latin words pontem facere ("to build a bridge").  This title means that the main role of a pope is to build a bridge between humanity and God, and humanity and itself.  This John Paul II did, because he saw the importance and potential of every individual life from birth to death.

Perhaps we should leave the last word to John Paul himself, who from humble beginnings had an enormous affect on the world for over a quarter of a century: “Before God, each human being is always unique and unrepeatable, somebody thought of and chosen from eternity.”



Time for reflection

The End is as invisible as the Beginning.

The universe emerged from the Word, and returns to the Word…

Everything is disclosed and revealed before his eyes…

And so the generations pass - naked they come into the world and naked they return to the earth

from which they were formed.

"From dust you came, and to dust you shall return";

all that had shape into shapelessness.

What was alive is now dead; all that was beautiful is now the ugliness of devastation.

And yet I do not altogether die, what is indestructible in me remains!

- From The Roman Triptych by Pope John Paul II

Heavenly Father,

We give you thanks for the life of Pope John Paul II.

We remember his compassion for the world’s most deprived.

We recall his passion for justice and

We remember his resistance to persecution.

Lord help us to commit our lives to making your world a better place and

Give us the strength and courage to follow John Paul’s example.

Amen