Book Review: John Paul the Great by Peggy Noonan

John Paul the Great: Remembering a Spiritual Father by Peggy Noonan

The book is a well-crafted blend of John Paul II's biography, his wide-ranging theology, and Noonan's personal experience of him as a spiritual father. She goes through the details of his childhood, growing up in a Poland first occupied by the Nazis then by the Soviets. Neither invader wanted the Catholic religion to flourish, so Karol Wojtyla (John Paul II's pre-papal name) had to study in secret. He worked in a factory. The other workers knew about his vocation and supported it by taking shifts for him and hiding his study materials. He was an active young man and continued skiing, hiking, and other physical activities throughout his priesthood. He worked as a pastor, eventually rising from parish and academic work to bishop of Krakow. 

He was a key advisor during the Second Vatican Council and became the first non-Italian pope in centuries. In many ways, he led a new era in the Church and the world. He traveled extensively (typically kissing the ground as soon as he got off the plane) and inspired the faithful crowds wherever he went. His travels and messages about human freedom and dignity provided much impetus for the downfall of Communism in Europe. His example of loving others, even the man who tried to assassinate him in 1981, was widely admired. He started the Wednesday catechesis where he talked about various issues at Wednesday audiences, including his theology of the body. He kept up the work of ministering to the Church in the world until the end when he died in 2005. He had a lot of illnesses but showed the value of human life and the way to suffer with dignity and grace.

Noonan interweaves her personal experiences of John Paul (though she only met him a few times) with his story. As a young reporter in the 1980s, she went to Saint Patrick's Cathedral in New York City when he celebrated a Mass during his first papal visit to the United States. She wasn't very religious at the time but was still touched by his presence. She grew in faith through the years and had more fascinating encounters with the pope. She writes candidly and charmingly about these experiences.

Reading this book gives a good overview of the life and theology of John Paul II and also a glimpse into the life and theology of Peggy Noonan, a woman who admired and followed John Paul. The book is a very human portrait of both of them.

Highly recommended.

The book is discussed on A Good Story is Hard to Find Podcast #265.