Saint John Paul II

Karol Józef Wojtyła was born on May 18, 1920, in Wadowice, Poland. By twenty-one he had lost his mother, his only brother and his father. During the Nazi occupation he worked in a quarry and a chemical plant, acted in an underground theater and studied for the priesthood in a clandestine seminary. Ordained in 1946, he became a professor, a beloved chaplain to students, auxiliary bishop of Kraków in 1958, archbishop in 1964 and a cardinal in 1967.

Elected pope on October 16, 1978, the first non-Italian in 455 years, he began his ministry on October 22, the date of his feast. In over 26 years he made 104 international trips, founded World Youth Day, promulgated the Catechism of the Catholic Church and supported the peaceful fall of communism in Eastern Europe. He survived an assassination attempt on May 13, 1981. He died on April 2, 2005, and was canonized on April 27, 2014.

Latin America remembers his many visits, especially to Mexico, where he went five times and was called a pilgrim of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Communities celebrate with Masses, youth gatherings and the singing of songs from his visits.

He also canonized Saint Faustina, established Divine Mercy Sunday and gave the Church the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary.