Pilgrims attend a prayer vigil at the ancient Circus Maximus in Rome April 30, 2011 the eve of the beatification of Pope John Paul II. Today April 27, 2014, Pope Francis will preside over the celebration which will declare both Pope John Paul II and Pope John XXIII saints. (CNS photo/Alessia Pierdomenico, Reuters)  ...read more

Pope John Paul II prays in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican. Paul John Paul died later that year on April 2, 2005. (CNS photo/Reuters)  ...read more

Krakow Auxiliary Bishop Karol Jozef Wojtyla, the future Pope John Paul II, is pictured with priests in an undated photo. He was ordained a bishop in 1958 at age 38, then Poland’s youngest bishop. He will be canonized April 27 with Blessed John XXIII. (CNS photo)  ...read more

Polish Auxiliary Bishop Karol Wojtyla of Krakow, wearing sunglasses, is pictured in St. Peter’s Square in 1963 during the Second Vatican Council. The future Pope John Paul II helped draft council documents on religious liberty and the church in the modern world. He will be canonized April 27 with Blessed John XXIII. (CNS photo/Giancarlo Giuliani, ...read more

The Milewski family greets Pope John Paul II at the door of their modest house in Wigry, Poland, June 8, 1999. The pontiff made an unexpected visit to the home on his day of respite during a 13-day visit to his homeland. (CNS photo by Arturo Mari) ...read more

Pope John Paul II is pictured during a 1986 interfaith prayer gathering in the Italian town of Assisi. (CNS file photo/KNA)  ...read more

  Pope John Paul II was in many respects a pope of firsts: the first pope to visit the White House, the first pope to visit Cuba, and the most widely traveled Pope in history. He is recognized as helping to end the Communist rule in his native Poland, and eventually all of Europe. He ...read more

Pope John Paul II gestures during his 1980 visit to Paris, France. (CNS photo/Catholic Press Photo)  ...read more

Pope John Paul II holds a koala bear during his 1986 visit to Australia. (CNS photo/L’Osservatore Romano) ...read more

On the promotional cover for the documentary John Paul II – I kept looking for you the caption reads, “The World’s Biggest Documentary about the New Saint”… now, usually, I would say that’s just marketing hype, but in this case the documentary lives up it. Once you get past the English dub, which I’ll admit is ...read more