John Paul II

The Tablet is the most influential English language journal and voice of intelligent Catholic opinion. Here its most distinguished correspondents present their appreciation of the Papacy of Pope John Paul II and point to the way forward for a new papacy. The Papacy of John Paul II lasted twenty seven years. The third longest in the history of the Roman. Catholic Church. Rowan Williams has said 'He never wavered in the struggle for what was right', but this in itself was a matter of controversy. Here a group of highly intelligent Roman Catholic writers provide their own assessment of the Papacy of John Paul II. The Pope, who understood the media and how to make use of it, devoted his life to propounding the Christian Gospel tirelessly as he saw it. At the time of his death, he was the leader of a Church with membership of a billion people. He changed the course of history by his part in toppling the Communist powers of Eastern Europe, but faced with the crisis of sexual scandal in the Roman Catholic Church and the ruthless advance of Aids in the African continent, some may feel his response was less appropriate. Already called Pope John Paul the Great, his influence will continue to be felt for centuries.