The President of the Republic of Poland, Karol Nawrocki, laid a wreath at the Papal Cross in Marshal Józef Piłsudski Square in Warsaw on the 21st anniversary of the death of Pope John Paul II – the Chancellery of the President reported.
President Karol Nawrocki Commemorated Saint John Paul II
Today marks the 21st anniversary of the death of Pope John Paul II. President Karol Nawrocki honored his memory by laying a wreath at the Papal Cross in Marshal Józef Piłsudski Square.
The cross commemorates the Holy Father’s first pilgrimage to his homeland and the Mass celebrated at this site on June 2, 1979. The monument was unveiled on June 6, 2009, in the presence of then-President Lech Kaczyński and his wife Maria Kaczyńska.
The ceremony took place with the participation of an honor guard of the Polish Armed Forces. The report to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces was delivered by the Commander of the Warsaw Garrison, Major General Tomasz Dominikowski. The event was also attended by Minister Rafał Leśkiewicz, spokesperson for the President, and Rev. Prof. Jarosław Wąsowicz, chaplain to the Head of State.
21st Anniversary of the Death of Saint John Paul II
Pope John Paul II died 21 years ago, on the eve of Divine Mercy Sunday, on April 2, 2005, at 9:37 p.m. in Vatican City. He was 84 years old. His pontificate lasted 26 years.
This year, April 2 falls on Holy Thursday, which opens the Paschal Triduum – a time of reflection on the Passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Twenty-one years ago, the Holy Thursday ceremonies in the Vatican were held without the participation of Pope John Paul II for the first time due to his illness.
During his 26-year pontificate, Pope John Paul II left behind an immense body of scholarly work that remains, for many, still undiscovered. He promulgated 14 encyclicals, 14 apostolic exhortations, 11 apostolic constitutions, and wrote 43 apostolic letters. The foundation of most of them is the teaching of the Second Vatican Council.
Delegations from over 150 countries took part in the funeral ceremony on April 8, 2005. In Poland, a six-day national mourning period was declared. Already on the day of the funeral, the faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square chanted “Santo subito” (“Saint immediately”). The beatification of the Polish pope was carried out on May 1, 2011, by Pope Benedict XVI, and the canonization – on April 27, 2014 – by Pope Francis.