Concern at the health of Pope John Paul in Poland
Pope John Paul II has been celebrating mass in Rome this week, looking well and alert - in contrast to reports last week that he was near to death. The service was part of a month of events marking his 25th year as head of the Roman Catholic Church. But in the Pope's staunchly catholic homeland of Poland, speculation that he may not have long to live still dominates the media.
The election of the Polish Pope 25 years ago stunned the world. Poland's communist leaders put a brave face on what happened. Seven months later, a wooden cross as tall as a house towered over Victory Square in Warsaw and the Pope told a crowd of some half a million people -
"Let the Holy Spirit descend and transform the face of the earth - the face of this land".
Less then two years after the election of the Polish Pope, Solidarity was born and nine years later communism fell in Poland. According to journalist Marek Matraszek the Pope's role in the collapse of communism cannot be overestimated...
"His visit to Poland in 1979, many feel, was the spark which commenced the Solidarity revolution in 1980 and without which, as we know, communism would not have collapsed as quickly as it did. So the Pope has had tremendous political impact in Poland and central Europe."
In the Warsaw city centre I asked a few passers by what the Pope means to them...
PERSON 1: "I, of course, appreciate what he does and I wonder how he finds all the energy to travel so much and I'm really worried about his health".
PERSON 2: "I think that he's very strong inside, Maybe he looks weak outside, but he has a very beautiful mind and his thoughts keep him working."
There's indeed much concern about the state of the Pope's health. While wondering if he can still take the strain of travel, audiences and ceremonies, for most people it is clear that the Pope has incorporated his physical ailments into his mission.
David Sullivan is an Irish missionary living in Poland:
"As when we see the Pope we see a man of great fidelity to duty, to the church, to Jesus Christ and, yet on the one hand, we pray for the Pope, we pray for good health, but also we have to accept the fact that sooner or later the Pope is going to move on."
During his 25 years a Pope, John Paul the Second has visited more than 130 countries on 102 foreign trips, giving the idea of pilgrimage a new dimension. He has forged diplomatic relations with more than 80 countries. He paid a visit to a Rome synagogue and in Jerusalem pleaded for forgiveness for Christian mistreatment of Jews. His pontificate is the fourth longest in the history of the Roman Catholic church.
