The 42nd Anniversary of the Election of Cardinal Karol Wojtyła as Pope.
Habemus Papam
October 16, 1978 at 6:18 p.m. once again a trail of smoke appears over the Sistine Chapel. However, it is not easy to distinguish its color in the falling dusk. A crowd of thousands of people turn their heads with interest and hope towards the chimney lit by powerful headlights - this time the smoke is white!
The election of popes has a twentieth-century tradition and during this time the procedure has undergone many transformations. Initially, the Vicar of Christ was chosen in front of the people who gave a testimony about the life and qualities of the candidate. The bishops' task was only to certify the election and consecrate the elect. The eighth century brought a significant change in the procedure. In 769, Pope Stephen IV reserves the election of the successor of St. Peter to the Roman clergy. Four centuries later, the Third Lateran Council (1179) gives the right to elect the Roman Pontiff only to cardinals.
From then on, only clarifications are introduced into the procedure. The matter of the election of the pope is regulated by the Apostolic Constitution “Romano Pontifici Eligendo”, according to which all cardinals who have not reached the age of eighty have the right to choose the Shepherd of the universal Church. The meeting of cardinals, which elects the Holy Father (called conclave from Latin cum clave, “with a key) is called by the Dean of the College of Cardinals 15 to 18 days after the Pope's death. After taking the prescribed oath and celebrating Holy Mass, to the Holy Spirit in St. Peter Basilica, cardinals go to a place closed from the inside (usually it is the Sistine Chapel), which prevents any contact with the outside world. All participants of the conclave are obliged to be enclosed and confidential. The only sign of what is happening inside the Sistine Chapel is smoke coming from the chimney: black when voting is futile; white when the selection is made.
The death of John Paul I - "smiling Pope" - announced by the Vatican Radio on September 29, 1978 at 7:45 A.M., surprised everyone. In 33 days of his pontificate, this Pope gained the sympathy of the faithful and the respect of non-believers around the world. Funeral ceremonies are scheduled for October 4, the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, and the beginning of the conclave on the 14th of the same month.
In the days that passed since the funeral of John Paul I, the interest of the faithful and the public turned towards the upcoming conclave. Members of the Holy College came to Rome every day. Every day more cardinals participated in the general congregations. On October 9 there were already 93 of them. The press speculatedabout the future pope. Among the "papabili" there are cardinals: Ursi from Naples, Siri from Genoa, Pappalardo from Palermo and Poletti - the vicar of Rome.
Two Roman daily journals: II Messagero and Paese Sera put on the list of candidates the name of Cardinal Wojtyła next to two other non-Italians: an Argentinian - Card. Pironi and the Dutch - Card. Willebrands. More interesting than press speculations were the statements of the Cardinals themselves, who are directly besieged by journalists.
Cardinal Bonelli of Florence says: “The future Pope will be first and foremost a shepherd. It can be said that John Paul I painted the portrait of his successor himself." Mentioned as one of the potential candidates for Pope, Cardinal Ursi from Naples very succinctly expresses who the Vicar of Christ is to be: “It doesn't take much effort to draw a portrait of the future pope. The people have already done so. God Himself has spoken through the people." American cardinal Cooke from New York says: “We all want a pope - a pastor. But that doesn't mean he can't be a good administrator.
Cardinal Koenig from Vienna concludes: “It will be difficult to find a successor to Pope Luciani. He should be the Pope of hope, joy and trust." The electors also comment on the nationality of the future Vicar of Christ, and these are sometimes extreme statements. Card. Tarancon from Spain says: "A future pope cannot be butItalian." The Italian Cardinals are more moderate and leave this matter to be decided during the deliberations. Should the future pope be Italian? It is not an absolute,” says Cardinal Benelli from Florence.
On October 12, the official period of mourning after the death of John Paul I ends. The flags, lowered to the middle, disappear from the Vatican walls, L´Osservatore Romano ceased to appear in the black border, the Bronze Gate is opened. The time before the conclave and its first day are marked by great tension.
Poland has two representatives in the venerable group of Cardinals: The Primate - Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński and the Metropolitan of Krakow - Cardinal Karol Wojtyla. As at the previous conclave, Cardinal Bolesław Filipiak, who died on October 12 after a serious illness is missing. On the news of this, the Dean of the Holy College sent a condolence telegram to Primate Wyszyński.
On October 14 in the morning there is a solemn Mass concelebrated by all cardinals. for the election of the pope. The liturgy is presided over by Cardinal Camerlengo Villot, and he also gave the homily. The composition of electors is almost the same as a month and a half earlier. 112 cardinals are eligible to participate in the election.
October 16, 1978 at 6:18 P.M. white smoke comes out of the 33-meter chimney. The choice has been made! A wave of applause hits the walls of the ancient basilica.
At. At 6:44 P.M. in the loggia above the main entrance, Cardinal Protodeacon Pericle Felici appears with a solemn assistant. He delivers the old promulgation formula, which is interrupted time and time again by applause: Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum - habemus Papam: Eminentissimum ac Reverendissimum Dominum, Dominum Carolum Sanctae Romanae Eccelsiae Cardinal Wojtyła, qui sibi nomen imposuitJoannem Paulum Secundum, I announce great joy to you - we have a Pope! The most Eminent and Most Reverend Lord, the Lord Karol, Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church Wojtyla, Who takes to himself the name of John Paul II. A new man stood at the helm of Peter’sboat. Papa Polacco. Polish Pope.
The great Russian writer, expelled from his homeland by the Soviet authorities, the author of the famous " The Gulag Archipelago", Alexander Solzhenitsyn, commented on the conclave decision of October 16, 1978: "The election of Pope Wojtyła is the only good thing that happened to humanity in the twentieth century."
Vietnamese Archbishop François-Xavier Nguyen van Thuan was imprisoned for the fourth year by the communist authorities of his country (he spent a total of 13 years in house arrest and prisons). A few years earlier, he met Cardinal Wojtyla in Rome. Someone had secretly informed him of the outcome of the conclave. "I was very happy because in my opinion it was a great grace for the Church." Currently, the beatification process of Archbishop van Thuan is open.
The election of the Pope from Poland was an extraordinary event in the history of the world, but, as it turned out, it was foretold in the poetic prophecy of another Pole. Juliusz Słowacki wrote in 1848: " In the midst of all the disagreements, Lord God rings / A huge bell, / For the Slavic, here is the pope / He opened the throne. / His face, is beaming in a word, A lamp to the servants, / The rising tribes will follow him / Into the light, where God is. / For his sake and order / Not only the people / If he commands, the sun will come to a stop, / Because power is a miracle!
According to the so-called Prophecy of Saint Malachi, the nickname of Pope Wojtyla is "De labore Solis" - "of the work of the sun or from the labour of the sun”. Another translation of the motto: « Of the eclipse of the sun». Karol Wojtyla was born on May 18, 1920 during a solar eclipse. He also comes from behind the former Iron Curtain (the East, where the Sun rises). He might also be seen to be the fruit of the intercession of the Woman Clothed with the Sun labouring in Revelation 12 (because of his devotion to the Virgin Mary). His Funeral occurred on April 8, 2005 when there was a solar eclipse visible in the Americas. As the sun bringing every day the light to the world, this tireless traveler brought the spirit light to the humanity. Thus, he was a working sun. The text of the prophecy of St. Malachi (the primate of Ireland) is from the 12th century.
The Words of Saint John Paul II
“It was to Christ the Redeemer that my feelings and my thoughts were directed on October 16 of last year, when, after the canonical election, I was asked: "Do you accept?" I then replied: "With obedience in faith to Christ, my Lord, and with trust in the Mother of Christ and of the Church, in spite of the great difficulties, I accept". Today I wish to make that reply known publicly to all without exception, thus showing that there is a link between the first fundamental truth of the Incarnation, already mentioned, and the ministry that, with my acceptance of my election as Bishop of Rome and Successor of the Apostle Peter, has become my specific duty in his See.
I chose the same names that were chosen by my beloved Predecessor John Paul I. Indeed, as soon as he announced to the Sacred College on August 26, 1978 that he wished to be called John Paul-such a double name being unprecedented in the history of the Papacy-I saw in it a clear presage of grace for the new pontificate. Since that pontificate lasted barely 33 days, it falls to me not only to continue it but in a certain sense to take it up again at the same starting point. This is confirmed by my choice of these two names. By following the example of my venerable Predecessor in choosing them, I wish like him to express my love for the unique inheritance left to the Church by Popes John XXIII and Paul VI and my personal readiness to develop that inheritance with God's help.
Through these two names and two pontificates I am linked with the whole tradition of the Apostolic See and with all my Predecessors in the expanse of the twentieth century and of the preceding centuries. I am connected, through one after another of the various ages back to the most remote, with the line of the mission and ministry that confers on Peter's See an altogether special place in the Church. John XXIII and Paul VI are a stage to which I wish to refer directly as a threshold from which I intend to continue, in a certain sense together with John Paul I, into the future, letting myself be guided by unlimited trust in and obedience to the Spirit that Christ promised and sent to his Church. On the night before he suffered he said to his apostles: "It is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Counsellor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you" (cf. Jn. 16:7). "When the Counsellor comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness to me; and you also are witnesses, because you have been with me from the beginning" (cf. Jn.15:26-27). "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come" (Jn. 16:13). (Saint John Paul II, Redemptor Hominis, nr.2)
Until Tomorrow
fr. george