The next phase was Auschwitz. The altar was built in the Brzezinka sub camp, on a ramp next to which convoys with sealed wagons were stopped and which brought Jews from all over Europe. “I had to come here as Pope,” said John Paul II, “I come and kneel on this Golgotha of our time.” Referring to the plaques which were commemorating the victims of Nazi madness, he added something unexpected. He mentioned the Russian plague to highlight the suffering of the Russian people in the struggle for “freedom of peoples”. These were the right words of appreciation. And besides, if there was an opportunity, why not contribute to easing the atmosphere of tension?
Finally, Karol Wojtyła reached his Krakow and a great feast began. On the last day of the visit, almost two million people gathered in Kraków. The Holy Mass at the end of the celebration of the jubilee of St. Stanislaus was the liturgy of the celebration of the Holy Trinity: both themes alluded to the fundamental elements of Christian life – maturity, responsibility and, at the same time, the sacrament of Confirmation.
It was here, between the baptism in Warsaw and the confirmation in Krakow, that there was a deep sense of this pilgrimage, which was to affirmation of Poland in the Christian faith. In this faith, the nation has shaped its history, its culture, its heritage. It was a reference to the roots, to the reality that this heritage has symbolized over the centuries. At the same time, it was an invitation to be faithful to this legacy, to strengthen it and to express it by continually defending the dignity of the human person.
An unforgettable experience! I got the impression that something was happening that we were not able to embrace with our reason. From that moment on, people, alongside the Pope, felt free, internally free. They were no longer overwhelmed by fear. Not only in Poland, but also in other countries of the East, especially neighboring countries, as well as in third world countries, it was understood that the Pope himself, by his very presence, gave a sense of freedom.
It was the strength, the novelty of John Paul II’s pontificate: to liberate people from the pressures of fear!
With the consent of Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz – “Testimony”.
TBA marketing communication Publishing House. Warsaw 2007
