John Paul II has died. I think even people who disagreed with every word he said will have to admit that this kind and learned man made a difference.

A good difference, mostly.

Oh sure, he made lots of people angry, but who doesn’t? Heck, people get angry because their toast doesn’t pop up, or because of a stupid driver in the left-hand lane, or because they overslept. People get angry from reading this blog; those things aren’t even important, and people get angry. So, of COURSE the Pope will make someone somewhere angry. Pope things are important.

I remember John Paul I. He was Pope only a few weeks, and he died most unexpectedly in his sleep. I remember reading that John Paul II took the name out of respect. It was a gesture of respect. A gesture of respect is a good beginning.

I am not Catholic, but I could read and hear about the Pope’s travels and speeches and many of his political and religious leanings, without breaking out into a sweat of horror and going berserk. I can not say the same for many other leaders. I didn’t agree with everything he said or did, but why should anyone? Jeepers. Any group of any kind of people will have trouble agreeing on pizza toppings. How could any group of any kind of people possibly agree on whether or not an important political and religious leader was doing a good job or not?

It seemed to me that most Popes were untouchable, unapproachable icons, little more than animated statuary with opinions and dictates, who made rules that infuriated whole societies. Scary people with power. John Paul II seemed different. He was a person. He was a person who loved other persons, and wanted to be with them. He mingled.

He was smart. That is important to me. He spoke many languages. He was a college graduate. He had a lot of work experience besides just hanging about in churches and cathedrals all his life. He was not an ivory tower Pope. He knew what it was like to work with his hands. He knew what it was like to worry, and to sweat, and to be afraid. His resume was loaded with good things.

He remembered these things after he was elected Pope. Some people tend to forget their roots, but I don’t think he did. He was literary. He wrote poetry. He seemed to smile and laugh a lot.

He was a ham actor. To catch and keep anyone’s attention these days, even the Pope would have to know a few lines and play a few gigs. I’ve read that he loved a good joke, even on himself. That is important, too.

I’m sure people who are more knowledgeable and Catholic than I am, will say much more and better things about John Paul II. In my Protestant hippie ignorance about all things Catholic, I can only talk about what I observed.

I think he will definitely be missed. I’ve read just tonight that the Cardinals are wanting to elect a much older Pope, so he can be replaced within a shorter time frame. Kind of like a president being limited to two terms.

So, all you eligible elderly Catholic Cardinal-types out there: hold on to your Geritol and blood-clot-stockings. One of you is going to replace a man who was probably the most popular Pope ever. Not that ‘popularity’ should have anything to do with it. Heck, you don’t want a ‘celebrity Pope.’ But hopefully they’ll choose one with enough stamina to live a few more years after the smoke starts pouring up.

Bless you, John Paul II. Even people like me respected you. And in the world of religion, that’s saying quite a lot.