The life of the remarkable man who passed away after an extraordinary 26 year reign, and whose papal odyssey encompassed more than 120 countries and earned him the reputation of an international fighter for freedom.
12/4/2005
On September 1, 1939, the Germans invade Poland. At that time, many years after the death of his mother and several years after the death of his elder brother, a young Karol Wojtyla makes his home in Krakow with his ailing father. Karol had been studying at the university and, though it is dangerous and forbidden under Nazi occupation, he continues with actor friends to put on plays as a means of preserving and saluting their Polish culture.
12/7/2005
Karol Wojtyla becomes Pope John Paul II on October 16, 1978. As is the custom, the new pope speaks to the crowd in St. Peter's Square and is met by overwhelming enthusiasm. But not all are happy with the selection, especially members of the Communist Party in Poland and the Soviet Union who blame Jimmy Carter's Polish advisor for the selection.
