Suffering

Pope John Paul II, who has ruled the Roman Catholic church for more than 26 years—knows that in his public experience of suffering lies enormous power. More than 20 years ago, after recovering from the pistol shot that almost took his life in front of St. Peter's in 1981, John Paul declared that suffering, as such, is one of the most powerful messages in Christianity. "Human suffering evokes compassion," he wrote in 1984, "it also evokes respect, and in its own way it intimidates."

In 1994, as age and infirmity began to incapacitate John Paul publicly, he told his followers he had heard God and was about to change the way he led the church. "I must lead her with suffering," he said. "The pope must suffer so that every family and the world should see that there is, I would say, a higher gospel: the gospel of suffering, with which one must prepare the future."