25th Anniversary as Bishop of Rome

This week Pope John Paul II celebrates his Twenty-Fifth Anniversary as Our Holy Father. Articles in this week's newspapers have described him as a "man of deep prayer... who obviously exults in practicing the heroic self-sacrificing Christianity he preaches." "He has been exemplary in building bridges between faiths." He has been a tribune of the poor, a champion of human rights and a defender of local cultures." "Defending the dignity of life from the moment of conception to the moment of death, he has fought abortion, euthanasia and the scientific refashioning of human nature."

"Few world leaders have so excelled in communicating through image and gesture: kissing the tarmac in each new country he visits, embracing a child with AIDS, bringing a message of forgiveness to the imprisoned man who tried to kill him, returning the cheers of teenagers...." "He has struggled tirelessly though not always successfully against war." "And when history looks back on our era, Pope John Paul II will be recognized as the giant of the age, as the one individual who did the most to place democracy and freedom at the service of the highest human goals." And, with all this in mind, we must agree with the12 year-old who wrote in a letter to the pope: "I really admire how you take care of all your responsibilities. I can barely finish my homework."