John Paul II - Pope Number 264... the 263rd Successor of Peter:

Karol Józef Wojtyła, known as John Paul II since his October 1978 election to the papacy, was born in Wadowice (Poland).

John Paul II has been credited with helping to bring down communism in eastern Europe by sparking what amounted to a peaceful revolution in his Polish homeland; seeking to heal divisions between Christians and Jews and Muslims and all religions; and working tirelessly for peace in the world, most recently in Iraq.

The 83-year-old pope suffers from Parkinson’s disease since January 2001. His 25th anniversary as Pope, in 2003, highlighted John Paul’s role as one of the most influential religious figures of the last century as he reached a milestone matched by only three of his predecessors.

John Paul is the most-traveled Pope ever, visiting 129 different countries in 102 foreign trips...plus 143 trips within Italy... and as Bishop of Rome he has visited 301 of the 334 parishes, some of them several times.

He made more Saints than any of his predecessors over the past 500 years combined — a total of 476 so far in 2003 — plus 1,315 Blesseds proclaimed, among them, Maximillian Kolbe, Sister Faustina, Father Escriva, Padre Pio, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Juan Diego of Guadalupe, Jacinta and Francisco of Fatima...

He had 700 audiences and meetings held with Heads of State, 231 audiences and meetings with Prime Ministers... plus the hundreds he met in his trips.

Theologian, writer and poet, He published the typically edition of the New-Vulgate Bible... His principal documents include 14 encyclicals , 15 apostolic exhortations , 11 apostolic constitutions and 42 apostolic letters. The Pope has also published three books : "Crossing the Threshold of Hope" (October 1994); "Gift and Mystery: On the 50th Anniversary of My Priestly Ordination" (November 1996) and "Roman Tryptych - Meditations", a book of poems (March 2003).

He elected new 201 Cardinals and coiled the Bishops' Synods.

John Paul II also ushered the Vatican into the media age, becoming something of a superstar and drawing cheering crowds wherever he went, particularly among the young. Over the course of his pontificate, more than 16.7 million people by Vatican statistics attended his weekly Wednesday general.

"He is truly the global pope," said Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn, the archbishop of Vienna, Austria and a man mentioned as a possible successor to John Paul II.

He has tried to create bridges with Orthodox and with all Christian Denominations, starting with the meeting with the Orthodox Patriarch Demetrius I in Constantinople (1979).

On church doctrine, John Paul has toed a conservative line: abortion, contraception and euthanasia are all banned in the church under John Paul II. He ruled out letting priests marry or allowing women to be ordained, and recently endorsed a worldwide campaign to keep same-sex unions from receiving legal recognition.
In the 1995 encyclical Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life) he reasserted the church's condemnation of abortion, euthanasia, and capital punishment, calling them all part of the "Culture of Death" that pervades the modern world. His stands on capital punishment, world debt forgiveness, and poverty issues are considered liberal, showing that 'conservative' and 'liberal' labels do not ride easily on religious leaders.

- Elected Pope October 16, 1978. He's the first polish Pontiff, and after 445 Years he's not an Italian Pope (since Adriano VI).
- He met the Orthodox Patriarch Demetrius I in Constantinople (1979).
- He has been Invited to speak to the UN (2/10/79).
- During the audience in St. Peter Square in Rome he was seriously wounded in a fire attempt (13/5/81).
- He summoned the second extraordinary Jubilee Year of Redemption (25/3/83 22/4/84).
- The 18/2/84 he signed the Review of Convention (11 February 29) between the Holy See and Italy.
- In the Roman Synagogue he hugged the Rabbi of the Jewish Community of Rome in a reconciliation sign (13/4/1986).
- He prayed for Peace with the world religious representatives in Assisi (27/I0/86).
- He was present at the EuropeanParliament (I 1/10/88).