Karol Wojtyła/Pope John Paul II quotes

View Quote Man does not live by rocks alone.

View Quote Faced with this abyss of evil. I can only respond with an abyss of love.

View Quote I will do whatever God asks.

View Quote [to his friends on sexuality] Listen, sexuality is dear to God. As long as it is an expression of true love. It is the matter we use to give ourselves to another person. Not for fun or for a moment. But completely. Sexuality expressed in an irresponsible moment is only another way that we can dehumanise each other.

View Quote Freedom to worship is a sacrosanct right of workers, all workers! And the fact that we are all here together demonstrates that this Catholic community is already a reality! As we stand here in the middle of Nowa Huta! There is already a church!

View Quote [when being asked about the Soviets removing their cross from Nowa Huta] Next Christmas, we shall put it back. We will put it back until it stays.

View Quote [seeing Roman for the first time after years] Praise God's mercy.

View Quote [praying] Is this what you always intended to guide me? Like me, perhaps Peter felt great trepidation. Perhaps he would prefer to remain by his lake, with his boat and his nets, like me. In you, there must be suffering ahead. The pope needs to be intimate with suffering. So, guided by you, he arrived here. And now you ask me... to leave Kraków, and my people, my friends, my beloved mountains. If this... is real. So be it. Mary, Totus Tuus. I am all yours.

View Quote [now the new Pope, speaking in Italian] Praised be Jesus Christ. ["Always be praised"] Dear Brothers and Sisters, the eminent Cardinals have called a new bishop of Rome. They have called him from a far country... Also I don't know if... if I can make myself clear in your, in our Italian language. If I make a mistake, I know you will correct me.

View Quote I am not a pope who will stay cloistered. I must get out. I must have contact, or I cannot be a pasture.

View Quote I want to be your voice, the voice of those who cannot speak. The voice of those who are silenced. The voice of the worker who can no longer wait for the full recognition of his dignity as a man and the Son of God.

View Quote We have been called to an impossible task. We can only trust in God and let him lead us.

View Quote [First Encyclical 'Redemptor Hominis'] Man cannot live without love. He remains a being that is comprehensible for himself. His life is senseless. If love is not revealed to him. If he does not encounter love. If he does not experience it, make it his own. If he does not participate intimately in it...

View Quote Friendship is one of God's greatest gifts. A rare place where the truth is spoken.

View Quote I wish to sing a hymn of praise to Divine Providence which has allowed me to come home as a pilgrim. [the crowd of people cheer] I son of polish land. I John Paul Two. I shout from all the depths of this Millennium, I cry on the vigil of Pentecost: Lord, let your spirit descend! Let your spirit descend and renew the face of the earth. The face of this land!

View Quote Always remember, you are polish. And music is in your soul. Let me tell you one or two things. First, I love you all. [the crowd of people clap and cheer] Second, second, allow Christ to find you. Third, I wish I could stay with you here, and climb the Tatras. [the people start chanting "Stay with us!"] Too late. It's too late! Where were you last October when I was elected? [the people laugh]

View Quote Forgiveness is God's might.

View Quote [struggling to walk] I'm a sportsman! I've always been a sportsman! Now every step I take, is like a knife.

View Quote [learning about his illness] Let's get to it. I have work to do.

View Quote To discover your own unique person. This is a difficult undertaking. To become what you must become. You are asked to make sacrifices to bear burdens, and why you do all of this? It is a time in your life, you are asked to encounter the mystery of God. I can tell you this: When your way becomes too difficult. You must always remember, you are not alone. You are not alone. The living God walks beside you. He is, and always will be, your best friend. I also can say to you: I feel so refreshed by our celebration together this day that I believe we must repeat it next year. And the year after, and the year after that! We will call it - we will call it "World Youth Day"! It is our invention! How beautiful you are! God bless you all!

View Quote [to Cardinal Ratzinger] It's worth suffering for the truth. Without such will, we should not undertake that path. These words are yours, aren't they?

View Quote [after his last public appearance] We will try again tomorrow...

View Quote I leave no property behind me of which it is necessary to dispose. My personal notes are to be band. I ask that this be attended to by Father Stanislaw, whom I thank for his collaboration and help, so prolonged over the years and so understanding. As for all other thanks, I must leave them in my heart before God himself. Because it is difficult to express them.