Pope John Paul II - Stockbridge, MA
Posted by: 
neoc1
N 42° 17.330 W 073° 18.678
18T E 639221 N 4683226
A statue of Pope John Paul II is located in Pope John Paul II Plaza at the Marian Shrine of the Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, MA
Waymark Code: WMJ0EE
Location: Massachusetts, United States
Date Posted: 09/05/2013
Views: 3
The Marian Shrine of the Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, MA has a special plaza set aside to honor Pope John Paul II. A life-sized bronze statue sculpted by WL Dudek in 1993. The statue depicts the Pope in his papal garb, bare headed, and wearing a large crucifix around his neck. The Pope is standing on a 3' high granite base with his arms outstretched. The front of the base has a bronze copy of his coat of arms.
On the back of the base there is a small plaque with the inscription:
RZEZB. WL DUDEK
ODL. S. KOWALOWKA
KRAKOW 1993.
Pope John Paul II was born Karol Józef Wojtyla on May 18. 1920 in Wadowice, Poland. He was secretely educated in a seminary in Kraków during World War II and was ordained as a priest on November 1, 1946. He then studied in Rome obtained a doctorate in theology in 1948. He was appointed Bishop of Ombi, by Pope Pius XII, in 1958, archbishop of Krakow in 1964, and was made a cardinal, by Pope Paul VI, in 1967.
He was secretly educated in a seminary in Kraków during World War II and was ordained as a priest on November 1, 1946. He then studied in Rome obtained a doctorate in theology in 1948. He was appointed Bishop of Ombi, by Pope Pius XII, in 1958, archbishop of Krakow in 1964, and was made a cardinal, by Pope Paul VI, in 1967.
After the sudden death of Pope John Paul I, on September 28, 1978 after only 33 days in office, Cardinal Karol Józef Wojtyla was elected Pope by the conclave of Cardinals , as a compromise candidate, on the eighth ballot. He took the name of two of his predecessor John Paul II. He was the 264th pope according to reckoning of the Catholic Church and the first non-Italian in 455 years to be elected Pope.
As Pope, John Paul II was politically active and a strong advocate for human rights. Being highly regarded in Poland, he used his influence to hasten the fall of communism in Poland. He opposed the apartheid policy of south Africa and the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.
John Paul II died in Vatican City on April 2, 2005. On July 5, 2013, the Roman Catholic Church announced that John Paul II would, within 16 months, be canonized as a saint.