John Paul II Celebrates 25 Years as Pope
V A T I C A N C I T Y, Oct. 14, 2003 -- Over his 25-year reign, Pope John Paul II has likely accomplished more than his billion followers could possibly recall.
The 83-year-old pontiff has canonized more saints than all his predecessors combined. He's traveled to every corner of the globe. He survived four bullet wounds during an attempt on his life. And many say he played a key role in the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe.
Today, even as he battles Parkinson's disease, John Paul insists on personally reaching out to his billions of followers, especially his youngest disciples.
"I must recognize that the response of the young has been truly encouraging," the pope said Sunday in a hushed voice, pausing several times to catch his breath. "Today, I want to thank them for having always been close to me during these years, and I want them to know that I continue to count on them."
The frail pope made his remarks as he gave thanks for his 25-year pontificate from his window overlooking St. Peter's Square. His appearance came one day after the Vatican again denied reports he was undergoing kidney dialysis.
The pope suffers from Parkinson's disease and has hip and knee ailments that make it nearly impossible for him to walk. He has appeared weaker in recent months and often has been unable to complete his speeches.
As he addressed followers who had gathered in the square, John Paul referred to the Mass he would celebrate Thursday to mark the 25th anniversary of his Oct. 16, 1978, election. The pope said he has thought of his first Sunday appearance at St. Peter's more often as the anniversary nears.
Important World Leader
Since the start of his pontificate, the first non-Italian pope in nearly five centuries traveled to more than 100 countries campaigning for human rights and freedom.
As he traveled across the world, John Paul spoke eight different languages to his diverse followers.
Father Thomas J. Reese, a Jesuit scholar and author of Inside the Vatican, says John Paul's reign touched even non-Catholics."His support of the Polish people, the Solidarity movement, I mean this is what began the downfall of the communist empire," Reese said. "He helped bring about the end of the Cold War.
"He's going to go down in history as the most important world leader in the second half of the 20th century," Reese said.
In 1981, the pope caught the attention of the entire world with the strength of his faith when he forgave the man who tried to take his life.
Mehmet Ali Hagca shot John Paul four times as the pontiff blessed the crowds in St Peter's Square in Rome. When John Paul recovered, he publicly forgave Hagca and prayed with him.
The Pope of Sainthood
To date, John Paul has named 477 men and women as saints, and beatified a further 1,318, putting them in the waiting room for elevation to sainthood someday.
Reaching sainthood has historically taken hundreds of years for some, and this pope's high numbers have raised eyebrows among some traditionalists.
Cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins, who heads the Vatican office responsible for saints' causes, says John Paul will be known as the pope of sainthood.
The pope's ranks of the blessed will increase by one more on Oct. 19 with the beatification of Mother Teresa of Calcutta just six years after her death.
The nun spent 50 years of her life assisting the sick, the dying and the destitute in India and other areas of the world.
Last year the pope said he believed an Indian woman's stomach cancer was cured in 1999 by a miracle as a result of her prayers to Mother Teresa. Skeptics, including a doctor who examined the woman, say the cure was due to medicine, not a miracle.
The Beginning
Born in Poland as Karol Jozef Wojtyla, John Paul felt called to the priesthood in 1943 and began courses the seminary of Krakow.When World War II ended, he continued his studies in the major seminary of Krakow and in the faculty of theology of the Jagiellonian University. He was ordained a priest on Nov. 1, 1946.
John Paul later traveled to Rome, where he worked under the guidance of the French Dominican Garrigou-Lagrange. He finished his doctorate in theology in 1948 with a thesis on the topic of faith in the works of St. John of the Cross.
In 1948 he returned to Poland and was a chaplain for the university students until 1951, when he again took up his studies on philosophy and theology.
Later he became a professor of moral theology and of social ethics in the seminary of Krakow.
On July 4, 1958, he was appointed auxiliary bishop of Krakow by Pope Pius XII, and was consecrated Sept. 28, 1958, in Krakow's Wawel Cathedral.
On Jan. 13, 1964, he was named archbishop of Krakow by Pope Paul VI, who made him a cardinal June 26, 1967.
Vatican Looks Forward
Popes usually rule until they die. No clear regulations exist if a pope is alive but incapacitated for a long time and none deal with what to do if a pope can no longer communicate.
As of now, John Paul's ability to speak at public events seems to come and go.
Adding to the uncertainty is the so-called Parkinson's mask — frozen facial muscles that hide any expression — making it hard even to speculate about the pope's condition.
When papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls went on Vatican Radio this past weekend to deny reports that the pope was undergoing dialysis treatment, he only made a quick reference to the the state of John Paul's health.
"It's obvious that the pope has his physical limits," which he doesn't try to hide, Navarro-Valls said. "At the same time, he makes a big effort so that these physical limits aren't an obstacle to his mission."Navarro-Valls told ABCNEWS' Good Morning America that the Vatican has no plan in place for the replacement of John Paul in the event that he is no longer able to communicate due to his health.
"I work very close with him. I see his mind — his capacity for projecting things and new goals — which is absolutely intact," Navarro-Valls he said. "So the problem is not there," he said.
Cardinals from around the world traveled to Rome this week in order to mark the anniversary and attend meetings. Whether or not the cardinals will discuss the eventual election of of John Paul's successor is not known.
Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, archbishop of Washington, D.C., said the sessions will provide an important opportunity for the cardinals to hear one another's views.
"I guess it's natural that as you get to know each other, you get to know each other better and you see who you respect the most, and who seems to have a sense of the church in our times," McCarrick said.
The cardinals begin their closed-door sessions Wednesday.
The 109 Cardinals from around the world are eligible to vote in a papal election. There are already names being tossed around as possible successors.
From Latin America, with half the world's Catholics, there is buzz about Cardinal Claudio Hummes of Brazil, Cardinal Oscar Andrés Rodríguez Maradiaga of Honduras and Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina.
From Africa, another possibility is Nigeria's Cardinal Francis Arinze, who now works in the Vatican.Another candidate from India is Cardinal Ivan Dias.
From Europe, there are several candidates outside Italy, but if the cardinals go back to an Italian pope the favorites now are Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi of Milan, Cardinal Camillo Ruini of Rome and Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, in the Vatican. One place no one is looking is America. "If an American got elected, people in the Third World would immediately conclude that either Wall Street bought the election or the CIA fixed the election," said Tom Reese, who wrote Inside the Vatican. "We don't need that in the Catholic Church."
Meanwhile, John Paul has managed to keep up his schedule so far this week. He even suggested that his days as the most-traveled pontiff in history may not beover.
In a message to a group of Roman Catholics who are meeting in Ukraine this week, he seemed to leave the issue of whether or not he'll continue foreign visits open.
"Providence alone knows whether I shall be able to continue my pastoral pilgrimages in your blessed lands," the pope said.
John Paul has received invitations from Austria, Switzerland, France and his native Poland for visits next year, but he has made no commitments yet.
Navarro-Valls told Vatican Radio that the pope will experience the anniversary with "a sense of thanks." Navarro-Valls said the pope will be thanking God for all that he has been able to accomplish in his 25 years as pope.
"Because God wanted the results of this pontificate — a pontificate that still continues to be enormous. I think the pope will naturally thank God for all this," he said.
ABCNEWS' Bill Blakemore and Brian O'Keefe contributed to this report.