John Paul II Postulator: From Heaven, the Pope reconciles couples and helps them have children

Polish priest Slawomir Oder is one of the people that best knows John Paul II. As the postulator for his sainthood cause, Fr. Oder has been in charge of presenting the facts proving Karol Wojtyla led a holy life.

FR. SLAWOMIR ODER
Postulator, Sainthood Cause of John Paul II

"We find ourselves before a giant that has impacted us. He was the Church's shepherd for almost 30 years, sowing with generosity.”


The postulator said that John Paul II thought he would be remembered for a topic close to home in people's everyday lives.

FR. SLAWOMIR ODER
Postulator, Sainthood Cause of John Paul II

"During the long years of his pontificate, he touched on many topics, many issues. However, he himself said that he would liked to be remembered, if ever the Church remembered him, he wanted to be thought of as the Pope of Life and the Family.”


In fact, the two miracles that cleared the path of his beatification and canonization dealt with life and the family.

For his beatification, religious French woman Marie Simon-Pierre, who worked at a maternity center, was cured of Parkinson’s.

Meanwhile, for the canonization, the miracle attributed to him was the healing of Floribeth Mora, who prayed so that her husband, kids and grandkids would not be left without a wife, mother and grandmother.

But Fr. Oder said that the majority of letters that he receives are to thank John Paul II for his intercession in the reconciliation of couples, or the birth of a child.

FR. SLAWOMIR ODER
Postulator, Sainthood Cause of John Paul II

"After John Paul II's funeral, many families had a gift, a child. They named their child after John Paul II, with names like Charles, Carolina, John or John Paul, there were so many cases like this.

An exampled comes to mind from this German couple who wrote a beautiful letter of their account. They described a family crisis, and how they overcame it by listening to John Paul II's catechesis on the family. In particular, the series of catechesis titled 'Man and Woman created them,' on the theology of the body.”


For the upcoming canonization, Fr. Oder distributed thousands of photos of John Paul II. Several of them even include a small piece from one of his cassocks, so that a large number people can take with them a piece of the Pope they've known most of their lives.