Most-Traveled Pope in History Spoke of the Persecuted Church
''The path of the Church has also become difficult and tense, a characteristic trial of these times - both for the Faithful and for Pastors.''
The times in which we live are unutterably difficult and disturbed, Pope John Paul II stated in a spiritual testament released Thursday by the Vatican.
In one of several several entries written over the course of 22 years, the late pontiff wrote, “The path of the Church has also become difficult and tense, a characteristic trial of these times - both for the Faithful and for Pastors.”
“In some Countries (as, for example, in those about which I read during the spiritual exercises), the Church is undergoing a period of such persecution as to be in no way lesser than that of early centuries,” John Paul II continued in the entry added between Feb. 24 and Mar. 1, 1980. “Indeed it surpasses them in its degree of cruelty and hatred. 'Sanguis martyrum - semen christianorum.' And apart from this, many people die innocently even in this Country in which we are living.”
Get Our Latest News for FREE
According to Open Doors, a ministry to the persecuted Church, an estimated 200 million Christians worldwide today suffer interrogation, arrest and even death for their faith in Christ, with another 200 to 400 million facing discrimination and alienation.
John Paul II, who served as the spiritual leader for the world’s 1 billion Roman Catholics for 26 years before his death last Saturday, was one of the longest-serving and most traveled popes in history. During his pontificate—the third longest in 2,000 years—John Paul II made visits to 129 countries. He was also the first to visit the White House, a synagogue and communist Cuba.
Only two of his 263 predecessors served longer than he did—St. Peter, the first pope, and Pius IX in the 19th century.
And although Paul VI was the first pope in modern times to travel abroad, John Paul II made jet travel “a hallmark of his papacy,” according to the Associated Press. A missionary on the move, John Paul made 104 overseas trips during his 26 years of his papacy and 130 others inside Italy.
AP reports that by Vatican statistics, John Paul traveled nearly three times the distance between the Earth and the moon and spent about 10 percent of his time outside of the Vatican.
“He kept on the move even as his health deteriorated, no longer able to kneel and kiss the ground upon arriving,” AP reported. “As his walking became more difficult, lifts were used to get him on and off the planes.”
Over the advice of aides, John Paul traveled to Canada, Guatemala and Mexico in 2002. His schedule was lightened, however, and his meetings were kept to a minimum.
By the time he visited Slovakia in September 2003, John Paul could no longer complete his speeches, walk or even stand, AP reported. He made only two short trips in 2004, to nearby Switzerland and France.
Before John Paul, no pope had ever before visited Poland, Cuba, South Africa and a long list of other countries in Africa, Latin America and Europe.
Paul VI made nine overseas pilgrimages between 1964 and 1970 starting with a visit to the Holy Land. However, he later gave up foreign travel for the remaining eight years of his papacy.
Before Paul VI, the last pope to leave the Italian peninsula was Pius VII, but not voluntarily. He was forced into exile in France by Napoleon in 1812.
