The Polish ex-Pope, who died on April 2, 2005, was recently accused of concealing pedophile crimes as Archbishop of Kraków.
By Le Figaro with AFP
Published on 2/4/2023 at 2:39 p.m
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Thousands of Poles demonstrated on April 2 to defend the reputation of former Pope John Paul II. KACPER PEMPEL / Portal
Thousands of Poles demonstrated on Sunday to defend the reputation of former Pope John Paul II, who was recently accused of concealing pedophile crimes as archbishop, in a country known for its ties to the Catholic faith.
On horseback, in historical costume or simply with a yellow and white Vatican flag or white and red Poles, tens of thousands of Poles in Warsaw followed a “national march for the Pope who died on April 2, 2005,” AFP journalists noted. “As every honest man defends his children, his father and his mother, every Pole takes up the defense of John Paul II,” said one of the placards waved by the participants.
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Like all others, this march was organized by Catholic organizations with open support from the government and the ruling populist nationalist party (PiS). Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak was particularly involved. “We pass the test by bearing the truth, which must oppose lies, slander and insults,” tweeted Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki in particular.
destroyed statue
“We thank God for this immeasurable gift that the Polish Pope was and remains for the Church, for Poland and for the world,” emphasized PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski in a letter to the members of his left. “We stand up to defend his honor and good reputation,” he emphasized a few months before the parliamentary elections in Poland.
On the same day in Lodz (centre) a statue of John Paul II was vandalized: his hands were covered in red paint and the pedestal was inscribed “Maxima culpa” (“The biggest mistake”, editor’s note). . This inscription refers to the book by the journalist Ekke Overboek “Maxima culpa. John Paul II knew”, recently published in Poland.
That book, and a similar report by commercial broadcaster TVN, claimed that the future Pope had kept quiet about cases of pedophilia, which has since sparked a heated debate between power and the Church on the one hand, and liberals and the left on the other.