The Making of a Saint, by Monika Jablonska

“But looking at the fuller picture, I clearly see that a number of situations and individuals had a positive influence on me, and that God was using them to make his voice heard.” — Pope Saint John Paul II

Think of everything that Karol Wojtyła brought with him to Rome: his teachings, his knowledge, his holiness, his philosophy, his way of looking at certain things, and his concerns about family, youth, human rights, and more. All of this—his experience and contribution—came from events and people who shaped his mind and heart in the early years of his life.

Karol Wojtyła’s parents, Emilia Kaczorowska and Karol Wojtyła père, greatly influenced the future pope’s vocation with their example of deep faith, love, and Christian values that permeated their daily lives in an extraordinary way. As pontiff, he would later remark in his book Gift and Mystery: “My preparation for the priesthood in the seminary was in a certain sense preceded by the preparation I received in my family, thanks to the life and example of my parents.” Little Karol learned from his mother the sign of the cross. “This mystery was taught to me by the hands of my mother, who, by folding my little hands, showed me how to draw the cross, the sign of Christ, who is the Son of the living God.”  ….

Read more here:  crisismagazine.com/2020/the-making-of-a-saint