Mr. Speaker, Sunday was Pope John Paul II Day in Ontario. As a young man, Karol Wojtyla entered an underground seminary during the Nazi occupation of Poland, and at lethal personal risk, saved Polish Jews. Following the Soviet takeover of deeply Catholic Poland, Stalin scoffed, “How many divisions does the Pope of Rome have?”
It was at this time that Father Wojtyla was ordained, focusing on youth and organizing secret prayers and theological discussions.
Elected pontiff in 1978, Pope John Paul II's experiences as a bishop and cardinal in Communist atheist Poland provided him with the inner strength and experience to catalyze Poles in opposition to the regime. The peaceful Solidarity revolution led to the downfall of Poland's Communist rulers, peaceful revolutions in the Warsaw Pact countries, and the collapse of the Soviet evil empire. Saint John Paul II visited Canada three times, touching the lives of hundreds of thousands of Canadians.
Bóg Zaplac.