Pope John Paul II was one of the most striking, interesting and influential figures of our times. This was an impression that grew ever stronger in his extraordinary old age. The visible pain and frailty of his final years had given rise to speculation of a possible retirement: and yet, these were the years in which not only the inner strength but also the radicalism of this supposedly conservative figure had become most apparent.
A tireless missionary, he was the first pope to visit all the inhabited continents of the world, drawing the largest crowds in history. He was the first to be fully at ease with the modern media, spreading the Christian message through television interviews, the internet, books and compact discs. He was the first officially to visit a synagogue or mosque, and the first to travel to Britain and Ireland. And he was the only pope to have acknowledged publicly the Church’s failings over two millennia.
