My Sketch of John Paul II: Pastor of Souls and Herald of Faith

          

          One of the primary concerns of the Second Vatican Council was “the life of the Catholic Church itself.”¹ Several documents that the Council produced helped hone in on and clarify the roles of the Church itself, the hierarchy, and the laity. One such document is a decree, Christus Dominus, issued by Pope Paul VI specifically concerns the office of the bishop in the Church. In this definitive decree, Paul VI makes the role of the bishop clear stating, “The bishops themselves, however, having been appointed by the Holy Spirit, are successors of the Apostles as pastors of souls.”² Furthermore, this is made clear by the Catechism of the Catholic Church regarding the bishops’ role as teacher: “Bishops, with priests as co-workers, have as their first task ‘to preach the Gospel of God to all men,’ in keeping with the Lord's command. They are ‘heralds of faith, who draw new disciples to Christ; they are authentic teachers’ of the apostolic faith ‘endowed with the authority of Christ.’”³ What does it mean to be a pastor of a soul? We know that there is both soul and body in man. However, there is the more theologically vague discussion of the person. One man who stood out of all the bishops of the Church of the modern, in my opinion, was Pope John Paul II. As bishop and pope, John Paul II took very seriously his role as “pastor of souls” and “herald of faith.”

          The image of the late pope and saint that I sketched is based off of one of my favorite pictures of him. John Paul II was a man of deep prayer and immense faith. He continuously called upon the youth and people of his age to open wide their “hearts to the Christ of the Gospels—to his love and his truth and his joy.”⁴ This was a direct response to the call of the Second Vatican Council which, in Lumen Gentium, called for the active role of the laity in their Faith and the Church, especially to the youth.⁵ John Paul II effectuated this call with collected mind and much prayer. His writings, such as Love and Responsibility, have pulled me closer to my faith, not only intellectually, but also in love for God and my fellow man. As such, I champion his legacy as a pope for the human person and the new evangelization. By firmly establishing the human person and the role of each of us in evangelization, we are all able to attain holiness and become coworkers in the ministry of those who are pastors of souls and bearers of the light of faith.

          In one of the most unique writings by Pope John Paul II, Crossing the Threshold of Hope, the late pope addresses many questions and concerns regarding the Church and her position in the modern world. One quote, in his chapter regarding the New Evangelization, he states, “Against the spirit of the world, the Church takes up anew each day a struggle that is none other than the struggle for the world’s soul.”⁶ Does this sole point not a very profound image of the spiritual reality of the world surrounding us? In fact, this has been the very nature of the mission of the Catholic Church since her very beginning in history. The call to evangelization has never faded from the Church.⁷ So, how does one accompany man on his way in life, feeding his soul, and walking along side him? John Paul II answered this question in many ways. One crucial aspect of his approach to the New Evangelization was his theology of the human person.

          One of Pope John Paul II’s themes regarding the human person is that of the self-gift of man.⁸ This idea is an expansion upon the idea that man is made in the likeness and image of God and the Holy Trinity. For, “it is precisely on account of being made to the image of the Trinity that man is capable both of receiving the gift of God Himself and of entrusting himself in love to God in return and making a gift of himself in love to others.”⁹ This is the foundation upon which John Paul II built his theology of the human person, the human family, and established his own take on the New Evangelization. A group of human persons, the family, is a topic in which John Paul II was especially concerned. In his apostolic exhortation Familiaris Consortio, the late pope outlined four functions of the mission of the family: forming a community of persons, serving life, contributing to society, and sharing in the work of the Church.¹⁰ Each of these functions directly contribute to the New Evangelization in a unique way. It is through the love of the family, the (pro)creation of children, and their subsequent upbringing that society can become positively affected in the manner of justice and fraternity.

          The Church continues on in her mission through the Catholic family and the upbringing of young people. This is precisely the reason why Pope John Paul II chose to, on many occasions, focus his ministry on the family and the youth. Bishops are called by the Holy Spirit to minister to the people and their souls. Furthermore, they are to be a source of teaching of the faith to the world. Pope John Paul II remains a primary example of how a bishop and pope ought to minister in the modern world. It is no wonder that many priests and bishops of our more recent age have discerned their vocations and founded their ministry through the intercession and role model of John Paul II. May we all, like him, have a zeal for souls and the faith. And, in society, may we be bearers of light in a world of darkness so that the rights and dignities of each human person be not forgotten, so that their self-gift may not be lost to the world.¹² 

Saint John Paul II, Patron of Families and Young Catholics, pray for us!

Footnotes

¹ Alan Schreck, The Compact History of the Catholic Church (Cincinnati, OH: Servant, 2009), 134.

² Pope Paul VI, Decree Concerning the Pastoral Office of Bishops in the Church Christus Dominus (28 October 1965), §2. 

³ Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd ed. (Washington, DC: United States Catholic Conference, 2000), 888. 

⁴ Pope John Paul II, Homily at the Holy Mass on Boston Common (1 October 1979), §6. 

⁵ Schreck, The Compact History, 135. 

⁶ Pope John Paul II, Crossing the Threshold of Hope , ed. Vittorio Messori, trans. Jenny McPhee and Martha McPhee (Toronto, ON: Alfred A. Knopf, 1994), 112. 

⁷ John Paul II, Crossing, 105. 

⁸ Carole M. Brown and Kevin E. O’Reilly, “John Paul II and the New Evangelization,” The Heythrop Journal LVIII (2017), 923.

⁹ Brown and O’Reilly, “John Paul II,” 923. 

¹⁰ Pope John Paul II, On the Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World Familaris consortio (22 November 1981).

        ¹⁰ John Paul II, Familaris consortio.

Bibliography

Brown, Carole M. and Kevin E. O’Reilly. “John Paul II and the New Evangelization.” The Heythrop Journal LVIII (2017): 917-930.

Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd ed. Washington, DC: United States Catholic      Conference, 2000.

Pope John Paul II. Homily at the Holy Mass on Boston Common (1 October 1979).

Pope John Paul II. Crossing the Threshold of Hope. Ed. Vittorio Messori. Trans. Jenny McPhee and Martha McPhee. Toronto, ON: Alfred A. Knopf, 1994. 

Pope John Paul II. On the Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World Familaris consortio (22 November 1981).

Pope Paul VI, Decree Concerning the Pastoral Office of Bishops in the Church Christus Dominus (28 October 1965).