On September 21-25, the jubilee celebrations of the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the John Paul II Foundation took place in Rome. This anniversary fell last year, but due to the pandemic, the celebrations were postponed to the year 2022.
The anniversary celebrations began on Wednesday, September 21, 2022 with participation in the General Audience with Pope Francis in front of St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican. In his catechesis, the Holy Father spoke about his visit to Kazakhstan, where he took part in the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions. The Holy Father addressed the Poles present on the St. Peter’s Square and said: “I cordially greet the Poles. I thank you for the gift of prayer that you have accompanied me on my pilgrimage to Kazakhstan. I greet in particular the participants in the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the John Paul II Foundation, established by my Predecessor. Thank you for your presence and I encourage you to propagate his spiritual heritage in the world, imitating the holiness of his life. God bless you.” The audience ended with the apostolic blessing of Pope Francis. As a visible commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the John Paul II Foundation, members of the Foundation presented the Holy Father with a Triptych with images of the Mother of God and St. Francis and St. Joseph. An important event of the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Foundation was the Symposium organized on September 23, 2022 at the Urbaniana University. Its main theme was: “How to pass on the legacy of the pontificate to the next generations? The John Paul II Foundation in the face of new challenges.” The symposium was attended by, among others: the Chairman of the Administrative Council of the Foundation, Monsignor Paweł Ptasznik, the Metropolitan archbishop of Krakow-Marek Jędraszewski, Father Federico Lombardi-Jesuit, the chairman of the Vatican Joseph Ratzinger Foundation. A letter to the participants of the symposium from the President of the Republic of Poland Andrzej Duda was read by Adam Kwiatkowski, ambassador of the Poland to the Holy See. The lectures were delivered by: Monsignor Stefan Wylężek, Monsignor Sławomir Oder, Fr Andrzej Dobrzyński, Director of the Centre for Documentation and Study of the Pontificate of John Paul II in Rome. This was followed by a panel discussion entitled “The Mission of the John Paul II Foundation and New Challenges.” It was attended by: Michał Kłosowski, journalist, Archbishop Józef Staniewski, Metropolitan of the Minsk-Mogilev Diocese of Belarus, Rev. Professor Michał Paluch, Dominican from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas and Wojciech Halarewicz, member of the Administrative Council of the Foundation. The discussion was summed up by Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz, retired Metropolitan of Kraków, personal secretary of the Holy Father. He thanked the organizers for preparing the meeting. He reminded that the Foundation was created thanks to the generosity of people who from the beginning supported the pontificate of John Paul II and made sure that his teaching was an inspiration for future generations, as well as supported the scholarship fund for the education of young people from Central and Eastern Europe. “We want to live this heritage, share it and pass it on to the next generations,” Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz concluded. In all the speakers’ statements there was a concern for preserving, better knowing, deepening and passing on the legacy of St. John Paul II to the next generations, taking into account its universal Christian values. The prospects for the development of this organization and cooperation with other similar religious organizations operating at the Holy See were also indicated.
In the afternoon, in the Basilica of St. John Lateran, a Holy Mass was celebrated for all members of the Foundation. Its main celebrant was Archbishop Marek Jędraszewski. Together with him, the Eucharist was celebrated by Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz, Archbishop Józef Staniewski from Belarus, and Archbishop Petrus Conisius Mandagi from Indonesia together with priests who came to the anniversary celebrations of the Foundation. Archbishop Marek Jędraszewski concluded his homily with the words: “The John Paul II Foundation, in which, by the will of Divine Providence, we were given the opportunity to work, is not only to consolidate our memory of him, but also to deepen: for our good, for shaping our identity, so that our lives and those who will come after us may be filled with hope, time open for eternity”. The anniversary celebrations also included other events. One of them was a concert entitled “Music for the glory of God”, which took place on September 24, in the Basilica of St. Pancratius in Rome. The performers were: the Roman Chamber Orchestra, the St. John Paul II Papal Warsaw Choir from the Warsaw Archcathedral under the direction of Zofia Borkowska and soloists: Ewa Biegas-mezzo-soprano, father Rafał Kobyliński-tenor. Teresa Krasowska was the conductor during this concert. The concert consisted of works of sacred and opera music: G. Caccini, G. F. Handel, G. Bizet, P. Mascagni. Contemporary songs “You Raise Me Up” by J. Groban and “I will Walk With God” by N. Brodszki sounded beautiful. At the end of the concert, the song “Barka” which forever is united with the pontificate of St. John Paul II was sung. The events that served to build bonds and integrate the participants of the ceremony were pilgrimages organized to the Pontifical Shrine of Our Lady of the Rocks (Santuario Ad Rupes) in Castel Sant Elia and another one to the Shrine of St. Rita in Cascia. In the sanctuaries for the participants of the jubilee celebrations, Holy Masses were celebrated by Archbishop Józef Staniewski, ending with joint meetings of members and friends of the Foundation.
At the end of the anniversary celebrations on Sunday, September 25, in the St. Peter’s Basilica, a thanksgiving Mass was celebrated through the intercession of St. John Paul II for the 40 years of the Foundation’s existence and in the intention of all living and deceased benefactors of this organization. The Mass was celebrated by Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz along with Archbishop Marek Jędrzejewski-Metropolitan of Kraków, Cardinal Stanisław Ryłko-long chairman of the Administrative Council of the John Paul II Foundation, Archbishop Petrus Conisius Mandagi from Indonesia, Archbishop Józef Staniewski from Belarus, and priests and chaplains of the Foundation’s chapters and societies who came to the ceremony. The homily was delivered by Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz, he said, among others: “We are aware that in this extraordinarychurch rest the remains of the holy Pope-John Paul II, the Patron of the Foundation bearing his name, who introduced the universal Church into the third millennium of Christian faith. And although 17 years have passed since his departure to the Father’s house, he still speaks to the minds and hearts of millions of the faithful on all continents. He speaks with a word and an example of life and service. It speaks with the holiness to which we are all called.” After the Eucharist, the clergy and members of the Foundation went in a solemn procession to the tomb of St. John Paul II, where we prayed together.
Religious ceremonies were enriched by the Warsaw Papal Choir of St. John Paul II from the Warsaw Archcathedral under the direction of Zofia Borkowska, soloists-Ewa Biegas and Father RafaŁ Kobyliński and young people from the schola “Jedność” from Kasinka Mała under the direction of Honorata Kaleta.
In the afternoon, celebrations took place in the Polish Home at Via Cassia. Under the leadership of Monsignor Paweł Ptasznik, the Chaplet of Divine Mercy was prayed, ending with the blessing of the Blessed Sacrament. The Pro Ecclesia Et Pontiffice medal was awarded to people who have made a special contribution to the development of the Foundation. They were given to: Elżbieta
Drucka-Lubecka de Sejournet from Brussels, Stefan Władysiuk from Montreal, Raymond Głębocki from Washington. The tenth plaque of benefactors of the John Paul II Foundation was blessed and solemnly unveiled. This act was performed by Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz in the presence of the Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to the Holy See Adam Kwiatkowski and the gathered guests. The celebrations ended with a solemn banquet with the participation of priests, members of the Administrative Council of the Foundation, diplomats, artists who graced holy Masses with singing and music, young people from the “Jedność” schola, scholarship recipients studying at the Catholic University of Lublin with their guardian Fr. Jan Strzałka and members and friends from 48 Chapters and Societies of the Foundation from 18 countries.
During the banquet, words of thanks were addressed to the long-time chairman of the Administrative Council of the Foundation, Cardinal Stanisław Ryłko, who as a token a gratitude for his activities received a commemorative Triptych with images of: Our Lady of Częstochowa, St. John Paul II and St. Faustina. Words of gratitude were also addressed to Father Krzysztof Wieliczko, the Administrator of the Foundation and Secretary Anna Kielech.
The best summary of the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Foundation provided cholarship recipients studying at the John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin. Tatsiana Ivashkevich comes from Belarus. Since 2016, she has been a scholarship recipient of the Foundation. Thanks to the scholarship, she completed second-degree studies at the Institute of Musicology and undertook doctoral studies at this university. Here is her statement: “I would like to express my gratitude to all those who contributed to my personal development, especially to the superior authorities of the Foundation, Societies and Chapters, all benefactors of the John Paul II Foundation. I also thank the management of the Foundation Home in Lublin for their concern not only for my scientific development, but also for shaping and deepening my faith andlove for St. John Paul II. I hope that the acquired knowledge and properly formed spiritual and religious attitude will help me, after returning to Belarus, to bring a new quality of life to my compatriots, especially young people who need positive models.” The scholarship recipient Pavel Zeynalov (Pavel Zejnalov) is a second-year student of the Catholic University of Lublin in the field of International Relations. He comes from Uzbekistan, grew up in Tashkent and part of his family roots from his mother’s side has Polish roots, of which he is proud. Here is what he said: “Thank you the Foundation for giving me hope and a sense of God’s plan in my life. For the opportunity to meet many young believing Catholics like me. For the fact that my horizons have expanded significantly, my priorities and views for the future have changed; for the opportunity to travel to other European countries; for the gift of strengthening faith. I ask St. John Paul II for intercession and help on the future path of life, so that the Lord will use me as an instrument so that I can fulfill His will in the service of people and society.” Archbishop Józef Staniewski was also the scholarship recipient in the past and he thanked the Foundation for the scholarship help and asked for further support in educating young people from Central and Eastern Europe. “May St. John Paul II bless the Foundation. You have touched our heart. Thank you for the touch of love and generosity” – he said at the end of the ceremony.
Zofia Twarowska
