Obituaries — Pope John Paul II

I move, That this House express its deep sadness on the recent death of His Holiness Pope John Paul II, and express its sincere condolences to the Holy See and to Roman Catholics in New Zealand and around the world, who are feeling a profound sense of loss and sorrow at this time.

On Sunday when the death of Pope John Paul II was announced, people around the world stopped what they were doing to reflect on his passing and the meaning of his life—and what a remarkable life it was, from his birth in Poland in 1920 to enduring the Nazi occupation of his country and the war as a young man, and then seeing a communist regime rule his country for the next four and a half decades. Pope John Paul II became not only Poland’s first pope but also the world’s best-known and most travelled pope, reaching out to every continent and across the faiths to communicate. His visit to New Zealand as Pope is recalled with great affection. The great causes of our time—peace and disarmament, human rights and democracy, and equality for all—were all causes for which he was a strong advocate. The world is a better place for his life; he made a difference.

Last year I was privileged to meet the Pope personally at the Vatican. I found his body to be frail but his mind very sharp. He spoke of his hope for peace in the Middle East, and he spoke about his respect for our country as a force for peace. That was a proud day for me.

In recent weeks as we have watched the Pope’s worsening illness we have also admired his great courage during considerable suffering—even appearing at his window in the Vatican last Wednesday, and in his final hours addressing a message to the world’s young people.

Messages have been sent by the Governor-General and by me to the Holy See and to the Catholic Church in New Zealand to express the condolences of this country. A condolence book is available in Parliament’s first floor reception area for members of Parliament, parliamentary staff, and members of the public to sign. Flags flew at half mast on public buildings on Sunday and Monday, and will be at half mast again on the day of the funeral. I have announced today that the Governor-General, Dame Silvia Cartwright, will be representing the people of New Zealand at the Pope’s funeral in Rome on Friday.

Once again, I express the sincere condolences of the Government to the Holy See and to New Zealand’s Roman Catholic community. May Pope John Paul II rest in peace.

The National Party strongly supports the motion moved by the Prime Minister. Pope John Paul II was one of the most remarkable men in the second half of the 20th century. He was a man of enormous personal courage. He was born into a Catholic family in Poland, and, at a time when many Polish Catholics were anti-Semitic, he stood out as not being anti-Semitic. Indeed, he volunteered to play for the Jewish side in the Catholic-Jewish soccer games of the time. He began classes in a seminary in 1942 at the age of 22, when the Nazis occupied Poland and were actively killing Catholic priests who opposed them.

He was a man who had a profound effect on world history. He became the 264th Pope in 1978, the first non-Italian in almost five centuries, and he was the Pope for 26½ years—the third longest-serving Pontificate in the history of the papacy. He travelled the world very extensively, and met with a large number of political leaders. He influenced the international debate on a whole range of issues, but he will probably be best remembered, certainly by non-Catholics, as the man who, perhaps more than any other, contributed to the fall of the Iron Curtain. Certainly, Mikhail Gorbachev once said that the collapse of the Iron Curtain would have been impossible without Pope John Paul II.

On behalf of the National Party, I extend my condolences to New Zealand Catholics and to Catholics around the world.

It is impossible to experience the passing of a person of the stature of Pope John Paul II without a feeling of great sadness and great loss. We particularly wish to extend our condolences to the Catholic community in New Zealand and abroad, as well as to all New Zealanders and world citizens who feel this loss.

The longevity of his papacy and the fact that he was the first non-Italian in the role for many centuries make the papal term of Karol Jozef Wojtyla special. But it was the nature of the man that raised him to the highest echelons. During a period when hedonism and materialism held sway, he was guided by ethical and moral principles alone. Whilst we may not all have agreed with all his beliefs, no one could doubt the steeliness and fortitude with which he held his beliefs and the profound effect he had upon the century in which he lived.

Pope John Paul II internationalised the papacy though his many travels, and it was very much a special moment for New Zealanders when he came to this country. However, internationally the image of his meeting of forgiveness with his attempted assassin Ali Agca will probably have the greatest permanence in people’s minds. We therefore grieve the passage of a great spiritual leader.

On behalf of the ACT party I rise to support the motion. We have witnessed the passing of a truly great man. His Holiness John Paul II reached out right around the world, to Catholics and to non-Catholics alike. He was the best-known pope and the most travelled pope. He was a man who knew hardship, and the brutality that tyrannical regimes can inflict. He suffered as a forced labourer under the brutal Nazi occupation of Poland, and then for 45 years under the tyranny of communist rule in Poland. On becoming Pope, his moral leadership for Catholics and non-Catholics alike saw him stand firm against the tyrannical communist regimes. As Dr Don Brash pointed out, Mikhail Gorbachev said that it was John Paul II who saw the Iron Curtain come down. He was a man, too, who worked hard and ceaselessly for the reconciliation of Christian people with the Jewish people. We have lost a great man, and we should be sad about that loss, but we should live and rejoice for a life truly well lived, and for his huge contribution to the world.

On behalf of the Greens I join with other parties in expressing our condolences to all members of the Catholic Church on the death of their spiritual leader. Our thoughts are with the many, many people who are grieving his untimely passing. It must, however, be noted that although much has been said about the many, many achievements of Pope John Paul II, he also took controversial positions on a number of issues that have caused concern both within his Church and within the wider community. We wish Cardinal Tom Williams well in his task of helping to choose the next pope, and we hope whoever is selected will embrace the liberation theology that was the hallmark of previous popes.

I am honoured to pay tribute today on behalf of United Future to Pope John Paul II, whom I was privileged to meet here in Wellington in 1986.

It is reported that the communist tyrant Joseph Stalin once asked in scorn how many divisions the Pope had, yet in 1978 Karol Wojtyla, the first pope from the so-called workers’ paradise of Communist Poland, began to wield weapons that Stalin would not have comprehended. After the Pope’s first visit to Poland in 1979, the workers of the Gdansk shipyards, buoyed by his example, began to rise up against the Government—and Solidarity was born.

So began a tide of change that captured the hearts and minds of millions, until in 1989 the “evil empire” that had long dominated Eastern Europe was gone in a bloodless revolution. Love conquered hate, peace conquered war, and freedom and democracy banished oppression and dictatorship. Pope John Paul II ignited those flames, not by the might of arms but through the power of his message, which was based on the truth about humankind and its deepest yearnings.

There was, however, more—much more—to his life. The cross, the central symbol of Christianity, has both a vertical and a horizontal axis. For Pope John Paul II, the vertical was his love and total abandonment to God, and the horizontal was his love and total service to the whole of humanity. He loved everyone—men and women—regardless of their race or religion, but he especially loved the poor, the sick, and the disadvantaged.

The media have said that at the hour of his death a bright light was extinguished, but I hope, rather, that it has been diffused and will continue to shine in the lives of the hundreds of millions who heard his messages, especially the young people who came in their millions to World Youth Days. It is a light that, please God, will never go out, so that freedom from want and fear, no less than from moral chains, becomes a reality for all.

This, I believe, will be the lasting legacy of the greatest leader of the second half of the 20th century: Pope John II, Vicar of Christ, a man for our times sent from God.

As a Roman Catholic the values of the universal Church have guided me since being a Catholic youth movement worker in the 1960s, to being a Cabinet Minister today. While many people in this country and in other nations will debate aspects of the Church’s approach to issues such as the role of women in society, the overwhelming impression left in my mind and in the minds of many, I am sure, is the role that Pope John Paul II has played to promote and secure peace throughout the world.

The second impression is the value that the late Pope placed on the recognition of different faiths and on the need to work to eliminate conflict between those faiths, in the pursuit of peace. Finally, New Zealanders will recall the role that Pope John Paul II played in achieving the peaceful transformation of Eastern Europe from totalitarian to democratic rule. May he rest in peace.

The Māori Party mourns the passing of a world leader—an inspired and compassionate man, and someone who was treasured for the spiritual guidance and moral strength he provided, not only to millions of Catholics but also to communities all over the world.

I want particularly to acknowledge the deep grief and sadness felt by the 70,000 tangata whenua of the Catholic faith. Tangata whenua saw the reverence and respect with which Pope John Paul recognised his homeland. We all remember well his historic journey home to Poland and how moved we were to see him kiss Papatūānuku. We think of his unique contribution to Aotearoa now when we remember the visit of Pope John Paul II in November 1986 when 2 years later the consecration of the first-ever Māori Catholic bishop, Tākuira Māriu, took place.

We have all lost a genuine mentor, a holy man. His messages will continue to inspire and challenge us all to create a better world.

Nā reira, e te rangatira, haere atu rā ki ō tūpuna. Hoki wairua mai ki a mātou e whai atu ana i a koe.

[And so to you the chief, depart to your ancestors. Return in spirit to us who in time will follow you.]

Motion agreed to.