Old Catholics Unite to Remember Pope John Paul II

The Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, Bishop of Rome, fell asleep in the Lord Saturday at 9:37 local time in the Vatican's Apostolic Palace Born in 1920 near Krakow , the young Karol Wojtyla had a love of sport and theatre, and had even considered becoming an actor.

He studied theology in hiding during the Nazi occupation and was ordained a priest in 1946, rising quickly through the ranks to become archbishop in 1964, cardinal in 1967 and on the 16th October 1978 , Karol Wojtyla was elected as Pope. At 58 he was the youngest pope of the 20th Century.

He has circled the globe 27 times, spreading the message of love and compassion to all God's children. As a pilgrim Pope, he has undertaken his final pilgrimage on this earth to be with our Lord, Jesus Christ.

His unconditional love and closeness to all people is demonstrated by his prayer and forgiveness of Mehmet Ali Agca, a Turkish fanatic, who attempted to assassinate him in St Peter's square.

John Paul II has demonstrated endless love, truth and justice and shown the world that power does not need to come from the barrel of the gun, the coffers of corruption, or even from the ballot box. He has shown that it can come from deep faith and moral commitment. He has been a great moral figure, possibly the world's most influential religious and moral teacher, a powerful, if inflexible intellectual.

His endeavour to show the sacredness of all life can be summed up as; 'Life, especially human life, belongs only to God; for this reason whoever attacks human life, in some way attacks God himself'. (Evangelium Vitae, 1995)

One of his defining features and commitment to people, making him truly a people’s pope, is his drive for religious reconciliation. He has made significant moves towards a closer relationship with the Muslim faith, including a speech to 50,000 young Muslims in Morocco in 1985, and visiting the Umayyad mosque in Damascus in 2001. Love is the key. Everything flowed from his belief in giving human beings the deepest value.

He has restored the Roman Catholic Church as a rock on which its believers can depend on, advocating a respect for life by taking a stance against abortion, contraception, death penalty, and euthanasia.

On the day he became Pope he said, 'I was afraid to receive this nomination, but I did in the spirit of obedience to Our Lord and in total confidence in His mother, the most holy Madonna'.

The Most Reverend Archbishop Gary Beaver of the Old Catholic Church who was representing the OSMTH in Italy at the time of the Holy Father's passing, has called for a prayer vigil around the world and will be presiding at the service of Solemn Vespers to honour the Holy Father on Thursday and a Solemn Requiem Mass on the 10 April.