I can’t believe that it’s been 8 years since Blessed John Paul II entered into Eternal Glory. I remember the days leading up to his death as if they were yesterday. I can even tell you where I was when the announcement of his death reached my ears. It was a sad day indeed for many of us who consider ourselves the “JP 2 Generation.” For those of you who follow my blog and read my posts, you know well that Blessed John Paul II is a major figure/subject I write about a lot on here. I would encourage you to read my others posts on him as well today. It will help you understand the man we lovingly refer to as: John Paul the Great.

With that being said, I give to you some great quotes from Blessed John Paul II. Please use these quotes on your Facebook, Twitter, or other Social Media sites to continue to promote the legacy of JP 2, his love for Christ and the Church, and his love for the New Evangelization. It’s on Social Media sites that we must reach out and evangelize (Synod on the New Evangelization).

“Everyone in the Church, precisely because they are members, receives and thereby shares in the common vocation to holiness. In the fullness of this title and on equal par with all other members of the Church, the lay faithful are called to holiness: “All the faithful of Christ of whatever rank or status are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of charity”; All of Christ’s followers are invited and bound to pursue holiness and the perfect fulfillment of their own state or life.” – Christifideles Laici (The Lay Members of Christ’s Faithful People)

“To begin with, it is clear that the Church has always looked on catechesis as a sacred duty and an inalienable right…that the parish community must continue to be the prime move and pre-eminent place for catechesis.” – Catechesi Tradendae (Catechesis In Our Time)

 “The first communion is the one which is established and which develops between husband and wife: by virtue of the covenant of married life, the man and woman “are no longer two but one flesh” and they are called to grow continually in their communion through day-to-day fidelity to their marriage promise of total mutual self-giving.”  – Familiaris Consortio (The Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World)

“Local ordinaries, and parish priests and rectors of churches and shrines, should periodically verify that the greatest possible provision is in fact being made for the faithful to confess their sins. It is particularly recommended that in places of worship confessors be visibly present at the advertised times, that these times be adapted to the real circumstances of penitents, and that confessions be especially available before Masses, and even during Mass if there other priests available, in order to meet the needs of the faithful.” – Misericordia Dei (On Certain Aspects of the Celebration of the Sacrament of Penance)

“The formation of future priests, both diocesan and religious, and lifelong assiduous care for their personal sanctification in the ministry and for the constant updating of their pastoral commitment is considered by the Church one of the most demanding and important tasks for the future of the evangelization of humanity.” – Pastores Dabo Vobis (I Will Give You Shepherds)

“In this perspective an expression which I have frequently employed finds its deepest meaning: the Church must breathe with her two lungs! In the first millennium of the history of Christianity, this expression refers primarily to the relationship between Byzantium and Rome. From the time of the Baptism of Rus’ it comes to have an even wider application: evangelization spread to a much vaster area, so that it now includes the entire Church.” – Ut Unum Sint (On Commitment to Ecumenism)

“…we believe that the venerable and ancient tradition of the Eastern Churches is an integral part of the heritage of Christ’s Church, the first need for Catholics is to be familiar with the tradition, so as to be nourished by it and to encourage the process of unity in the best way possible for each.” – Orientale Lumen (The Light of the East)

“You must also rethink – and very profoundly – the meaning of Baptism and Confirmation.  For in these two sacraments is contained the fundamental deposit of the Christian life and vocation. From these there begins the path towards the Eucharist, which contains the fullness of the sacramental gifts granted to the Christian: all the Church’s spiritual wealth is concentrated in this Sacrament of love.” – Apostolic Letter, To the Youth of the World, March 31, 1985

“Marian devotion, nourished by prayer, will keep families united and prayerful with Mary, like the disciples of Jesus before Pentecost (cf. Acts 1:14). – Ecclesia in America (The Church in America)

“The Church in America must incarnate in her pastoral initiatives the solidarity of the universal Church toward the poor and the outcast of every kind. Her attitude needs to be one of assistance, promotion, liberation, and fraternal openness. The goal of the Church is to ensure that no one is marginalized.” – Ecclesia in America (The Church in America)

“We are now on the verge of understanding the ‘sacramental’ character of marriage. According to the teaching of the Church, it has been a sacrament from the beginning, that is to say ever since the creation of the first human couple. The ‘sacrament of nature’ was subsequently reinforced, in the Gospels, by the institution or rather the revelation of the ‘Sacrament of Grace’, which is connected with it.” – Love and Responsibility (Karol Wojtyla)

“Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth—in a word, to know himself—so that, by knowing and loving God, men and women may also come to the fullness of truth about themselves (cf. Ex 33:18; Ps 27:8-9; 63:2-3; Jn 14:8; 1 Jn 3:2).” – Fides Et Ratio (On the Relationship between Faith and Reason) 

“BE NOT AFRAID” – From his Homily, Solemn Mass of Inauguration of Pope John Paul II