Saint John Paul II: 12 moments that marked the life of the Polish saint

Saint John Paul II, the Polish pope who accompanied the Church into the third millennium, is known as the “pilgrim pope” due to the 104 apostolic journeys of his pontificate.

His devotion to Our Lady of Fátima is also well known, who saved his life in 1981, when he suffered an attack in St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican.

However, there are details of the life of Karol Wojtyla – his baptismal name – that are not so well known. Today we bring you 12 facts that perhaps you did not know about the beloved Saint John Paul II:

1. Saint John Paul II almost died at age 15

A friend was showing him a gun he thought was unloaded; However, when he jokingly pulled the trigger, it went off. Fortunately (or miraculously), the bullet did not graze young Karol Wojtyla.

2. He was an actor and playwright

The young Wojtyla was a member of a theater company and had considered acting as a career before discovering his calling to the priesthood.

3. Saint John Paul II lost his immediate family when he was young

Her mother died from complications in childbirth when Karol was eight years old. His older brother Edmund died in 1932 and he never met his sister Olga, as she died before he was born. He lost his father when he was 21 years old.

4. He was run over by a Nazi truck

In February 1944, while returning home from work, he was hit by a German truck. The soldiers stopped and, seeing that he was unconscious and badly injured, they stopped a car to use it as an ambulance and take him to the hospital. Karol spent two weeks hospitalized. The terrible experience and his surprising recovery confirmed his call to the priesthood.

5. Saint John Paul II escaped from the Nazis by hiding behind a door

In August 1944, during the Warsaw Uprising, the German army swept through the city of Krakow to arrest all the young men.

To save herself, Karol hid behind one of the doors of her house. The soldiers searched the house, but did not find him and left. Young Wojtyla then hid in his archbishop’s residence, where he remained until the end of the war.

6. He attended the Second Vatican Council as a bishop and helped draft several documents

Collaborated in the drafting of the final text of Human dignitythe decree on religious freedom; and Joy and hopethe pastoral constitution on the Church in today’s world.

7. Saint John Paul II was the first non-Italian Pope since the 16th century

With the election of John Paul II, a tradition of four and a half centuries of Italian pontiffs was broken. After the Polish Pope, a German, Benedict XVI, has been elected; and an Argentine, Francisco.

8. He spoke 9 languages ​​fluently

He knew Polish, Latin, ancient Greek, Italian, French, German, English, Spanish and Portuguese. In his youth he was familiar with about 12 languages.

9. Saint John Paul II visited 129 countries during his pontificate

This made him one of the most traveled world leaders in history and earned him the nickname “Pilgrim Pope.”

10. He beatified and canonized more people than all of his predecessors combined

He beatified 1,340 people and canonized 483 people. This figure exceeds the total number of blessed and saints proclaimed by all previous pontiffs.

11. Saint John Paul II was a Marvel comic book hero in the 1980s

Yes, you read correctly and you can read more about this here. But not only him: Saint Teresa of Calcutta and Saint Francis of Assisi also starred in comic books.

12. He is the fourth Pope to hold the title of “the Great”

Although the granting of the title has no official process and is only by popular use, only three other pontiffs in history have deserved such an honor: Saint Leo the Great (440 to 461), Saint Gregory the Great (590-604) and Saint Nicholas Magnus (858-867).

This article was originally published in English on Churchpop.com