St John Paul II
Celebrated on October 22nd
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‘Do not be afraid’ was the most often-used Biblical quote of Pope John Paul II. Karol Józef Wojtyła was born in the Polish town of Wadowice, a small town 50 kilometres from Krakow, on 18 May, 1920. He was the youngest of three children born to Karol Wojtyła and Emilia Kaczorowska. His mother died in 1929. A sister, Olga, had died before he was born. His eldest brother Edmund, a doctor, died in 1932 and his father, a non-commissioned army officer died in 1941. Karol was baptized on 20 June, 1920 in the parish church of Wadowice by Fr Franciszek Zak, made his First Holy Communion at age nine and was confirmed at 18. Upon graduation from Marcin Wadowita high school in Wadowice, he enrolled in Krakow’s Jagiellonian University in 1938 and in a school for drama.
The Nazi occupation forces closed the university in 1939 and young Karol had to work in a quarry (1940-1944) and then in the Solvay chemical factory to earn his living and to avoid being deported to Germany. In 1942, aware of his call to the priesthood, he began courses in the clandestine seminary of Krakow, run by Cardinal Adam Stefan Sapieha, archbishop of Krakow. At the same time, Karol Wojtyła was one of the pioneers of the underground ‘Rhapsodic Theatre’.
After the war he continued his studies in the major seminary of Krakow, once it had re-opened, and in the faculty of theology of the Jagiellonian University. He was ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop Sapieha in Krakow on 1 November, 1946. Shortly afterwards, Cardinal Sapieha sent him 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 subject of faith in the works of St John of the Cross. At that time, during his vacations, he exercised his pastoral ministry among the Polish immigrants in France, Belgium and Holland.
Celebrated on October 22nd
(Please Note: This uploaded content is no longer available.)
‘Do not be afraid’ was the most often-used Biblical quote of Pope John Paul II. Karol Józef Wojtyła was born in the Polish town of Wadowice, a small town 50 kilometres from Krakow, on 18 May, 1920. He was the youngest of three children born to Karol Wojtyła and Emilia Kaczorowska. His mother died in 1929. A sister, Olga, had died before he was born. His eldest brother Edmund, a doctor, died in 1932 and his father, a non-commissioned army officer died in 1941. Karol was baptized on 20 June, 1920 in the parish church of Wadowice by Fr Franciszek Zak, made his First Holy Communion at age nine and was confirmed at 18. Upon graduation from Marcin Wadowita high school in Wadowice, he enrolled in Krakow’s Jagiellonian University in 1938 and in a school for drama.
The Nazi occupation forces closed the university in 1939 and young Karol had to work in a quarry (1940-1944) and then in the Solvay chemical factory to earn his living and to avoid being deported to Germany. In 1942, aware of his call to the priesthood, he began courses in the clandestine seminary of Krakow, run by Cardinal Adam Stefan Sapieha, archbishop of Krakow. At the same time, Karol Wojtyła was one of the pioneers of the underground ‘Rhapsodic Theatre’.
After the war he continued his studies in the major seminary of Krakow, once it had re-opened, and in the faculty of theology of the Jagiellonian University. He was ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop Sapieha in Krakow on 1 November, 1946. Shortly afterwards, Cardinal Sapieha sent him 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 subject of faith in the works of St John of the Cross. At that time, during his vacations, he exercised his pastoral ministry among the Polish immigrants in France, Belgium and Holland.