Pope John Paul II in My Own Words

The book isn't just about Pope John Paul II. It is his words and thoughts. He poured his personality and goodness onto the pages. When I was reading the book I felt like I was having a talk with my grandpa. My grandpa would tell me stories of his life. Each story was filled with lessons and wisdom. That's what each page felt to me. Pope John Paul II had a great connection with God. When I was reading it I wished I could have been as close to God as he was. In the book he teaches us that everyone can be close to God. They just have to reach out and take his hand. Pope John Paul II was a great man, great pope and most importantly a great Christian. John, we salute you!

The man was a saint and this book only proves the sanctity, beauty, and spiritual strength of this Christian leader. He will be greatly missed, not only by Catholics, but by those of us Protestants who dearly loved and admired Pope John Paul II. His was a legacy, not just a life. An extraordinary book!

I just purchased this book. I am only in the first few chapters and it is absolutely insprational. It also has significant meaning for me now that he has passed. I truly believe he was a saint of his day and a light to me and my friends. This might be surprising, seeing as we're fifteen, but I hear that he had a way with youth and I truly believe this. Please pray for him.

This book is a sort of `quotable quotes' from Pope John Paul II, the third-longest-serving pope in history. It is compiled as a labour of love by Anthony F. Chiffolo, drawn from many different sources, as diverse as daily audience statements to encyclicals, prayers to formal speeches. In these words, the Pope addresses matters internal and external to the church, ranging as broadly as did his 26-year papacy. Many of the statements are theological in nature, but this is not a systematic theology. However, it is no mere `collected sayings' either, for by being compiled in a topically-arranged format, one can get a greater sense of the mind and heart of the pope on individual topics. Some of the topics are more spiritual and theological: God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit (individually reflected upon as well as in their Trinitarian unity); Soteriology (salvation); Ecclesiology (Sacrament, Church, Priesthood, etc.); as well as a section on the Blessed Virgin Mary, to whom the Pope gives special adoration. Some of the topics are very practical: Marriage and the Family; Progress and the Modern World; the Christian Life. `Christ offers you his friendship. He gave his life so that those who wish to answer his call can indeed become his friends.' The Pope tried his best to be a spiritual leader for all people, and had a special affection and affinity for the young people. The above quotation comes from a message to the young people of Cuba in 1998; there was a certain rock-star quality about the pope that has been widely commented upon, and it is this work with the youth of the world that will insure his name and influence being felt for generations to come. This is a wonderful collection of pieces that show only the vaguest shadow of why Pope John Paul II will be remembered, but it is an accessible and user-friendly volume in which to remind oneself of his words and presence, which continue in different ways.

I enjoyed reading this book (as much as I do other writings--not all yet, or ever--by this wonderful Pope of ours, a first-rate thinker with a deeply charitable heart). For good measure, I do quarrel a bit with the title. You see, this isn't a book that the Pope wrote and published as such; rather, it is a compilation of his words from other sources. Therefore, in fairness to the reader as well as to the pontiff, I think the title should be "...In His (not My) Own Words", indicating that this is a compiled work, done by the goodwill of someone else (who is Anthony F. Chiffolo). An excellent book, nonetheless.