: Borough remembers Pope John Paul II

Holy Cross Connection
Polish pride in the Krakow native was felt at the Polish-based Holy Cross rectory in Maspeth in 1969, nearly 10 years before he became pontiff. Karol Wojtyla “was on a visit with a few other members of the Polish hierarchy,” according to the Holy Cross pastor, the Rev. Peter Zendzian. The Cardinal, who would later become Pope, spent the night in the church’s rectory and slept in the same bed that Zendzian now sleeps in every night.

“Who knew that nine years later, he would become the Pope and here I am so unworthy,” Zendzian said. As many have done in the reign of this church leader, Zendzian questioned his “ordinary” status and added that the Pope had been “so head and shoulders above everybody.”

Zendzian said it is hard to imagine what priesthood will be like without John Paul II, as the pastor was ordained during the Pope’s 26-year tenure. Zendzian added, “As a deacon, I saw three Popes, but so many people have gotten so used to him. Kids have no clue that there’s going to be another Pope.”

The faithful streamed into Holy Cross Tuesday night, and every other night this week, to pay their respects to the late pontiff in Polish services. Some brought flowers, others sat quietly. One woman spent 15 minutes kneeling before a wall covered in images of John Paul II - from his time as a young man through to a picture of him lying in state at the Vatican.

The woman, who identified herself as Maria, said she had seen the Pope as he came down Queens Boulevard on his way to Shea Stadium in 1979.

Although Zendzian was not the pastor during Pope John Paul II’s stay at Holy Cross, he was at Aqueduct, as one of the celebrating priests. Zendzian said, “There was so much mud at Aqueduct, there was like a foot of it, but it was such a beautiful day and a wonderful experience.”

When Zendzian visited Rome in 2003, it was the last time he had the chance to squeeze the Pope’s hand. “It was so nice to see him and what a great smile he had, even with the Parkinson’s Disease, his smile just came right through.” During that visit, Zendzian was able to get the Pope’s signature in a guest book that will be kept in a glass frame at Holy Cross.

The Personal Touch
Clutching a rosary given to St. John’s University graduate student, Jimmy Walters, 22, when his Ozone Park youth group visited Pope John Paul II in January 2004, the student recalled a vivid memory.

“As I kissed his ring, he handed this to me. We had the chance to approach him and we just felt something and I remember getting up and looking at my friends and they all had this look on their face. It was very spiritual,” said Walters.

Rev. Donald Harrington, President of St. John’s University, who was on a business trip in Rome at the time of the Holy Father’s passing, celebrated daily mass at the University’s chapel two days after the pontiff’s passing.
“I’ve been to Rome many times, but on this trip, I experienced Rome in a very different way,” he told the crowd gathered at a special mass held Monday. He said there was a very different aura in St. Peter’s Square this past weekend, adding, “The soul of Rome shined through. You could feel it in the people and you could feel the subdued atmosphere.”

Harrington had numerous brief encounters with John Paul II, and described him as, “A man who focused on the person he was speaking to and didn’t look beyond that person, as to who was coming up next. I believe it is that simple and that is why I think he manifested such a great concern for everyone.”

A Fighting Pope
Harrington said what he will take with him from the number of short meetings he had with the Holy Father is that “a simple person can have such a great impact.” Harrington noted the outpouring of love for the Pope was equal to the love he had for all people.

As a Pope who fought against communism and one who was noted for visiting other religious sects, Harrington said, “I definitely believe he was a great uniter, but he did not compromise who he was or what he stood for. His love for people was the base for the unity. That doesn’t mean that he couldn’t disagree with people, but that didn’t make him not love someone,” said Harrington.

The legacy that Pope John Paul II has left for the world is something that Harrington said needs to pondered. “We have not even begun to glimpse the impact of this man. Years later, we will understand it better,” Harrington noted.

Looking At The Future
What the future holds for the next Pope is something that Harrington said might come as a surprise to many Catholics. He said, “Many times we try to be prophets and try to predict who is going to be the next Pope, or the politics of it, but our God is a God of surprises. He surprised us with John Paul II and He may very well surprise us again in the direction that the Church takes on who is going to replace the Holy Father.

The College of Cardinals announced Wednesday that it will convene April 18 to begin the process of selecting the next Pope.

Father John Pierre Ruiz, a theology professor at St. John’s, had the opportunity to study in Rome and was present during Pope John Paul’s funeral, the election of John Paul II, and during Pope John Paul II’s assassination attempt in 1981.

He said the election could come as a surprise and added, “While Pope John Paul II was very careful to prescribe the procedures that will be followed for his successor, and because he was responsible for the vast majority of Cardinals, I think it will be hard to call who his successor will be. It will be a man who realizes the heavy burden that will be on his shoulders, even in the 26 years since it happened last.”