– At what time did the priest was getting up…?
– Between 5.30 and 6.00 a.m.
– And, then was the priest going to wake up the Pope?
– No, the Holy Father was already awake. Usually, he was sleeping for six and a half hours. He was getting up earlier; between 5.00 and 5.30 a.m. He was waking up by himself. He had an alarm clock in his bedroom, but I don’t remember that ever was using it.
– And, when he was sick? In the last years of the pontificate?
– It is the secret of the Papal house. All I can say is that he could always count on our help. Sometimes, I am referring to working in the Apostolic Palace. But, it is an inappropriate, imprecise phrase. It doesn’t capture what each of us felt. Fr. Stanisław, nuns… It was not a job in the colloquial sense. We wanted to devote all the strength and skills to him. It was a service to the saint; with full dedication, with joy. When the Pope needed us, someone was always with him. That was to the end of it.
– The Pope woke up and…
– He prayed. Then, he took a shower, always cold. As he said: for health. And, he was preparing to go out to the chapel for meditations and holy Mass.
– In the chapel the priest was waiting for the Pope?
– Sometimes, the Holy Father was already there. He was taking out a list of Vatican employees. Two cards with the names of people from the Secretariat of State, congregations, papal councils and other institutions. Slowly, calmly, he read their names and prayed. And, at the end, he made the sign of the cross over the piece of paper, blessing each of the employed persons. Before 7:00 a.m. Fr. Dziwisz was welcoming the invited guests who came to attend the Holy Mass. He was leading them to the chapel. The Holy Father was immersed in prayers. He was not getting distracted; he was not looking who was coming in. At 7:00 a.m., the holy Mass began.
Secretary of two Popes – conversation with Archbishop Mieczysław Mokrzycki.
Wydawnictwo Literackie Publishing House
