April 2nd marks the seventh anniversary of the death of Pope John Paul II and here at Vatican Radio we have been talking to many who have first hand memories of the former pontiff.
Amongst them is well-known Vatican expert, author and journalist Marco Politi, who published a book in 2008 entitled “Pope Wojtyla. The adieu”, in which he tells of the incredible wave of emotion that swept up millions of men and women between February and April of the year 2005. Linda Bordoni spoke to Marco Politi, who is currently an editorialist for the Italian daily newspaper “Il Fatto Quotidiano”, about the book and about his memories of Blessed John Paul II. Listen to the mp3 clip on www.news.va
SHAPED BY SUFFERING
In these days leading up to Easter, we look back seven years to the suffering and death of the former Pope John Paul II on April 2nd 2005. A leader who, during his long pontificate, moved from being the energetic, globe-trotting man the media dubbed ‘God’s Athlete’ to a frail, sick figure symbolising the redemptive power of suffering and death. Listen as Veronica Scarisbrick takes a closer look at those closing days of John Paul’s pontificate and the way that suffering had providentially shaped the Polish Pope’s life…listen to the mp3 clip on www.news.va