By Justin Lam
Totus Tuus! That was the motto of St John Paul II in his coat of arms. It means “I am all yours and all that I have is yours.” It came from the book: True Devotion to Mary by St Louie Marie De Monfort. As you can see, St John Paull II (or Karol Wojtyla) had an intense devotion to the Blessed Mother of Our Lord. He even said that when he first was introduced to this book by a man named, Jan Tyranowski, it was “a ‘decisive turning point in my life.” This great devotion to Our Lady eventually helped him in his papacy when he survived an attempted assassination by the hands of Mehmet Ali Agça. He later said, “One hand shot, and another guided the bullet.” Later, the bullet that injured St John Paul II was inserted into the crown of Our Lady of Fatima.
St John Paul’s life was also struck with immense suffering. When he was only 8 years old, his mother, Emilia, passed away due to kidney failure and heart disease. Soon after, his older brother, Edmund, whom Karol found much refuge in when her mother passed away, also sadly passed away too due to contracting scarlet fever from one of his patients as a doctor. Not too long after Edmund’s death, soon came Karol’s father’s death too.
We can see that the young St John Paul II suffered greatly at just a young age and we would later see that it is precisely through these sufferings that opened up a vastness of spiritual depth in him. We could also say that Karol’s time of loneliness was his means to holiness. It is truly that when suffering enters in our lives, we can easily blame God for causing this on us and we do not see the sufferings as a means to sanctify us. But God is inviting us to trust in him again amidst the suffering; to surrender into his arms and trust in his loving providence. That was what the young Karol Wojtyła did when he lost all his family members.
We can also see that it was his earthly father that also led him to come closer to God. At the death of Karol’s mother, we see Karol’s father finding solitude with God and it made a significant impact on the young Karol Wojtyła:
After my mother’s death, his life became one of constant prayer. Sometimes I would wake up during the night and find my father on his knees, just as I would always see him kneeling in the parish church. We never spoke about a vocation to the priesthood, but his example was in a way my first seminary, a kind of domestic seminary. (Gift and Mystery, 1996)
St John Paul II resonated much with me after reading about his life and the things he treasures. I, personally have a devotion to Our Lady and St John Paul II also have a strong devotion to our Lady. I believe that it was our Lady that guided St John Paul II from when he was young, all the way to his deathbed. It was the total trust and love that he had for Our Lady too that touched me. A recount from Dziwisz, St John Paul II’s assistant, said that when he was rushed to the ambulance right after being shot, he could hear him praying, “O Maria, Madonna! Maria, Madonna! (O Mary, my Mother!)
The Life of St John Paul II has impacted many Catholics and we all can learn from his life. Let us come to grow in our awareness of our own suffering and turn to God in a trustful surrender and also to ask Our Lady for her hand in guiding us to Jesus.
St John Paul II, Pray for Us, Amen.
