How to Live? Let us Listen to John Paul II
"The task of every man is to be the creator of his own life: a man is to make it a masterpiece of art" - wrote St. Pope John Paul II.
But how to do it? Karol Wojtyła himself comes to the rescue, having left us not only an example of his holy life, but also a lot of wise texts, from which we can try to create a recipe for a fruitful life. It boils down to some of the most important pieces of advice.
1. "Starting afresh with Christ" (Novo millennio ineunte, 2001)
Building the edifice of a beautiful life must begin with setting it on a solid foundation. John Paul II pointed to faith in God. Although the Pope respected non-believers and, after the Second Vatican Council, he repeated that ifthey sincerely seek the Truth, they can be saved, nevertheless their lives are marked by an acute shortage. The Holy Father warned those Catholics who seem to be forgetting what a great gift they had been given before easily agreeing to such a void. He said: “Do not be seduced by the temptation that man can find himself, express himself, rejecting God, removing prayer from his life, remaining only with work in the illusory hope that its products alone will completely satisfy all the needs of the human heart. For man does not live on bread alone (cf. Mt 4,4)" (Częstochowa, 1979).
How does this advice translate into our everyday lives? Building life on the rock, which is Christ, means constant care for deepening the relationship with God, first of all through participation in the Eucharist and regular prayer.
In 1997, the Pope encouraged people to read and meditate on the word of God, to receive the sacrament of penance, and to explore the problems of internal life and apostolate in church communities. For over 2,000 years, the task of Christians has always been to "know, love and follow" Christ (Novo millennio ineunte, 29).
2. “Man has the right to “be” more,not only have more” (Paris, 1980)
Based on God does not mean to deny the world. Man is to carry out God's command to "subdue the earth" (Genesis 1:28) through study and work. However, John Paul II warned against too much concentration on earthly reality, especially through disordered attachment to material goods. He recalled: “The human person, created in the image and likeness of God, cannot become a slave to things, economic systems, technical civilization, consumerism, easy success. Man cannot become a slave to his various inclinations and passions, sometimes deliberately fueled. You have to defend yourself against this danger” (Poznań, 1997).
Especially today, it is worth recalling the advice of John Paul II, which he gave at the beginning of his pontificate - about maintaining the proper hierarchy in social life. It is expressed in the priority of ethics over technology, person over thing and spirit over matter (Redemptor hominis, 16). The point is - the Pope explained - that "man should become more and more human - that he should “be" more and not only "have" more, that through everything that "has", what "has" he can know more and be more fully human - that is, to be more able to "be" not only "with others", but also "for others" Paris, 1980).
3. "Let yourself be molded by love" (Brother of our God, 1950)
Being "for others" consists primarily in being guided in life by love. It means the daily effort to abandon the path of selfishness in the name of giving oneself to others. The most complete realization of love is self-giving in conjugal and parental love or in the priestly and consecrated life. John Paul II devoted much attention to conjugal love, recalling that it consists in "mutual, full devotion of persons" (Love and Responsibility, 1960).
He advised young people not to build love solely on the basis of affection and passion, but to prepare for it on the path of purity. He taught that the effort undertaken for the sake of chastity shows that those in love respect each other and do not reduce the other person to the object of satisfying the sexual desire. He argued: “Only a pure heart can fully love God! Only a pure heart can fully accomplish the great work of love which is marriage! Only a pure heart can fully serve others! " (Sandomierz, 1999). The Pope was aware that a clean life is a "narrow path", but he encouraged to enter it because he knew that it served beautiful love.
“Today, the civilization of death offers you, among other things, the so-called "free love". In this distortion of love comes to the profanation of one of the most precious and sacred values, because licentiousness is neither love nor freedom. […] Do not be afraid to live contrary to popular beliefs and propositions contrary to God's law. The courage of faith costs a lot, but you cannot lose love! " (Ibid).
4. If you want to find the source, you have to go up, against the tide" (Roman Triptych, 2002)
The courage of faith is connected with fidelity to God, sometimes against external circumstances. In life, after all, you can come across situations in which it is more convenient not to demand from yourself, live sloppy, go with the flow. However, you cannot take shortcuts to your eternal homeland in heaven, you have to undertake the pilgrimage over and over again. The words of John Paul II from the Roman Triptych say about it: "If you want to find the source, you must go upstream," as well as those said many years earlier in Poland: "You must demand of yourself, even if others do not require you" (Częstochowa, 1983; Westerplatte, 1987 .).
The invitation to demand of oneself is reminiscent of the truth that all that is noble, good and great involves effort. This effort, the Pope taught, is also expressed in "the greatest human activity", which is work on oneself (Częstochowa, 1979). It consists in developing and strengthening talents, noble desires and ideals, while overcoming, combating weaknesses, defects, bad tendencies, selfishness, pride and sensuality (cf. ibid.).
Working on oneself is nothing but self-education, and it "aims at this, to be more human", to be a Christian, to discover and develop in oneself the talents received from the Creator and to fulfill the call to holiness proper to everyone" (Poznań, 1997 r.).
5. "I am trying to be a man of conscience" (Częstochowa, 1983)
If we are to make life a masterpiece of art, it must be good and beautiful, and therefore made of good deeds. The man who does evil instead of flourishing becomes stunted. During the pilgrimage to his homeland in 1991, St. John Paul II indicated the Decalogue as a program of life. He then said: “Here is the Decalogue: ten words. The future of man and societies depends on these ten simple words. The future of the nation, state, Europe and the world” (Koszalin, 1991).
In a specific situation, whether a given act is in accordance with the commandments is informed by conscience; called by the Second Vatican Council the sanctuary in which God speaks to the human soul.
The task of man is to follow the good recognized in conscience and to reject evil. Here is how John Paul II encouraged such an attitude: “It means that I am trying to be a man of conscience. That I do not jam this conscience and do not distort it. I call by the name good and bad, and I do not blur. I work out good in myself and try to improve overcoming badness in myself. It is such a very basic issue that can never be diminished or pushed to the background. No. No! It is everywhere and always in the foreground. The confessional is the place where you can tune your conscience. Moreover, in the sacrament of reconciliation, man not only receives the forgiveness of sins, but also gets the strength to choose good and resist evil. Experience shows that the longer the time left from the previous confession, the more difficult it is to mobilize to do good.”
6. "This is the mission hour!" (Message to young people on the occasion of the 17th World Youth Day, 2001)
John Paul II was convinced that every person has a mission to accomplish in life. It can be a lifetime mission, such as a marriage vocation, or a priestly or religious vocation. Likewise, every Christian is called to be faithful to Christ and to witness to the faith.
But it may be another task that God calls for at any given time in life. Man is free, he can reject God's invitation, but then he decides that his life will not reach the fullness to which God has destined him for ages. John Paul II reminded that the tasks to which God calls are tailored to the specific capabilities of man and to the stage of the path on which he is. God never demands a work of man that he would not be able to do. If it does, it also gives strength and power to carry it out.
7. " Cast out into the deep " (Novo millennio ineunte, 2001)
The last piece of advice is also a summary of all the previous ones. It is an invitation to try to implement the words of St. John Paul II. They can guarantee a difficult, but certainly beautiful life. Christ's sentence to St. Peter: "Duc in altum [Cast out into the deep]" (cf. Lk 5:8), Pope John Paul II left as a task for the Church of the third millennium: “Duc in altum”. Today I address these Christlike words to each and every one of you: Cast out into the deep! Trust in Christ overcome weakness and discouragement and put out into the deep again! Discover the depths of your own spirit. Explore the depths of the world. Accept Christ's word, trust in Him and take up your life mission. The people of the new age are waiting for your testimony. Do not be afraid! Cast out into the deep - Christ is with you.”
Until Tomorrow
fr. george