The war for John Paul II was not a theoretical or virtual concept. The young Karol Wojtyła, whose father was a soldier, learned the horrors of World War II from the first Nazi bombings in Kraków in 1939 until the liberation of Auschwitz by the Red Army in 1945. Barely installed on the St. Peter’s Seat in 1978, he undertook effective mediation in the armed conflict between Argentina and Chile.
Excerpts from JP2 speeches: Auschwitz – June 1979; UN – September 1979; Centissimus annus – May 1991; Vilnius – September 1993; Diplomatic Corps in the Vatican – January 2003
“I am the son of a nation that has suffered the most since the first day of World War II … War left deep wounds in the lives of people, families, nations and countries (…) From the soldiers battle it became a “total war” that spared no one.
(…) War involves a disproportionate increase in hatred, destruction, cruelty (…) Those responsible for the wars are not only those who directly cause them, but also those who do not do everything to prevent them (…) The Catholic Church proclaims the message of peace in all places on earth; prays for peace, shapes the man of peace.
(…) Peace is not signed in letters of blood, but with intelligence and heart! (…) True peace is never the result of a military victory, but it involves eliminating the causes of war and authentic reconciliation between nations.
(…) May no more people or nations arise against each other! Every time a conflict breaks out, the whole world suffers and is distorted! (…) Let us solemnly vow never again to allow war to be a way of resolving conflicts.”
With permission of Bernard Lecomte – “The world according to John Paul II”; Tallandier 2018
