DesScorp's Journal: Pope Jp II: in memory of a great man

With the passing of John Paul II, humanity loses a great leader, teacher, and defender. You don't have to be Catholic (and I'm not) to realize just how important this man was, and how big his impact was. He was the first of the Troika that brought down the Iron Curtain and ended communism as a respectable ideology forever. He championed human rights and dignity by pushing one simple ideal; all human lives have value, no matter who you are. All are precious in the eyes of God.

He moved the Catholic church forward at the same time he defended its core principles from those that would water them down. No easy feat, that. Under his stewardship, the church grew to over 1 Billion souls, making Christianity again the world's largest faith, after Islam had superceded it for a time. He touched young people's hearts in a way no previous Pope had done. And can anyone here name another world leader that met with, and forgave, his would-be assasin? That's Christian Grace if there ever was an example of it...

Sadly, of the that Troika, only Lady Thatcher remains, now that the Pope has joined President Reagan at the gates of St. Peter.

Thinking back, I realize how lucky I am, for I have lived in a time of Giants. The Catholic Church will be hard pressed to replace this man.