I was a bit on the young side to remember Pope John Paul’s visit to Poland. Well, ok, I was 17, not too young, but I was focused on getting a tan and what I was going to do Saturday night. I wasn’t focused on world politics at the time.
I remember when he was elected Pope – the previous pope died after only a month in office- and I remember people getting all excited about him going to Poland. It wasn’t until years later that I understood that visit’s importance in the collapse of communism.
Peggy Noonan recites the quandry of the Polish communist government, how they underestimated 2 or 3 million people showing up to throw flowers. The people had spoken, and they chose God over atheistic communism. The athiestic communist then fled to the United States where they found a home in the Democratic Party. And when these people got home and turned on the television… no mention of the crowds, and only a brief glimpse of the pope. The people could see that the government only showed propoganda, for they had seen the millions of people with their own eyes. Communism in Poland died that day, and Catholicism returned.
Chasing the Wind 
Leave a comment