Interview with Mgr Slawomir Oder, Postulator of the Cause of Beatification of John Paul II

Mgr Oder meets the students and faculty of the School of Communication of the Holy Cross

"The secret of the holiness of John Paul II:
he was a true man and a man of God


ROME, 10.03.2011 - "The secret of the holiness of John Paul II is that he was a true man and a man of God", has said Slawomir Oder, postulator of the cause of beatification of John Paul II, in a meeting with students and faculty of the School of Communication at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross.

Mgr. Oder has justified the need of the process affirming that, "we must leave to future generations the reasons that, at the time, led us to cry 'blessed immediately!!'" For the postulate of one of the most popular causes for beatification, and perhaps the most popular in the history of the Church, the process wasn't useless, as many had previously thought, but necessary.

The massive verification of documents and testimonies that are added to the renown of holiness did not reveal anything new. They did not reveal unknown aspects of the person, thanks to the transparency of the life of the Servant of God. "In a certain sense, everyone knew him: there is no John Paul II in the media, Pope John Paul II in private ... no, there have been no discoveries. The real discovery was the proof that John Paul II was an authentic man. The process made comprehensible the reason for his coherence and unity of life: his close relationship with Jesus Christ."

There are three reasons that explain the speed of the process: the fame of holiness, which in this case was visible before the start, the initiative of the Cardinals who formally requested the initiation of the case before beginning the conclave that would elect his successor, and the personal conviction of Benedict XVI, "that having been his closest collaborator, would have been the main witness in the process."

Oder, who has devoted six years to directing the work of investigation documenting the reputation of sanctity, the heroic virtues of the Venerable and the miracle needed to complete the cause, summarized in a nutshell the figure of John Paul II with these words: "He was a true man and he was a man of God."

Responding to a question on the defects of Karol Wojtyla, he recalled some anecdotes that illustrate his good humor, recalling how holiness does not consist in having no flaws or mistakes, as one must heroically fight against them until the end. For this reason, usually the last ten years of a person's life are the most important in any process. He added with a certain irony: "Only two people were born and grew up without blemish, Jesus and Mary."

The meeting with Father Slawomir Oder is one of the initiatives in preparation for the beatification of John Paul II that the University of the Holy Cross has organized in order to render homage to the first Polish pope. Next April 1st there will be a Workshop with the participation of Cardinal Angelo Amato, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Dr. Joaquín Navarro-Valls, former Vatican spokesman, and some Vatican expert journalists and scholars of communication. The title of the workshop is revealing: "The beatification of John Paul II: public opinion and sensus fidei."

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