October 22, 2023
— St. John Paul II
Karol Wojtyla Jr. knew sorrow from a young age. He was only 9 when his mother Emilia, a school teacher, died of heart and kidney failure at 45 years old. All her life she suffered from frail health, but she was very religious and passed her faith on to her two sons.
After she died, young Karol was withdrawn and sad for a long time. He clung to her memory throughout those many years without her. It is said his love for her intensified, and that because of her example, he developed a strong devotion to the Blessed Mother.
As Pope John Paul II, he lived by the motto, “Totus Tuus,” which was engraved on his coat of arms. It comes from the writings of St. Louis de Montfort, who wrote about devotion to the Blessed Virgin and said, “Totus tuus ego sum et omnia mea tua sunt…” which means, “I am all yours, and all I have is yours.”
Could Emilia ever have imagined her son Karol would someday become St. John Paul II?
Karol Wojtyla’s love for his earthly mother never diminished. When he was 19, he wrote a poem to her titled, “Over This, Your White Grave:”
Over this, your white grave,
the flowers of life in white—
so many years without you—
how many have passed out of sight?
Over this, your white grave,
covered for years, there is a stir
in the air, something uplifting
and, like death, beyond comprehension.
Over this, your white grave,
oh, Mother, can such loving cease?
For all his filial adoration
a prayer:
Give her eternal peace.
***
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