Saintly encounters of the papal kind: Meeting Pope John Paul II

The Hawaii Catholic Herald asked its readers for stories about meeting Pope John Paul II, or perhaps even Pope John XXIII, both of whom will be canonized by Pope Francis at the Vatican on April 27. Here are the accounts we received.

 

A chaplain and a relic

By John Mihlbauer
Special to the Herald

I have a little story remotely about Pope John XXIII which goes to show how wide his influence spread — even in unexpected ways.

When I was commanding officer of the Coast Guard Cutter Dallas, 1972-1974, homeported at Governor’s Island, N.Y., I and my family, including five of our seven children (two were students at the University of Hawaii), lived in quarters on that island. We learned that the station’s firehouse dog, a Dalmatian named Jake, was given to the firehouse by Father Jacobs (Jake) whom Pope John XIII had befriended in Rome.

Father Jake, a priest in New York City serving as chaplain for several boys schools, also served as a relief priest for the Navy chaplains assigned to Governor’s Island.

One Sunday morning after Mass at the island’s Catholic chapel, Father Jake looked for a place to have breakfast. Finding nothing open, he wandered down to the piers to look at the ships. When he came to the Dallas he asked the quartermaster at the gangway if he knew of a place to eat. The quartermaster invited the priest aboard where he was given a tour and breakfast and befriended everyone on board. Our ship’s hospitality led to a friendship. Eventually, Father Jake and the crew of our Coast Guard cutter adopted each other.

We considered Father Jake our chaplain even though and Coast Guard ships are too small normally to have chaplains assigned. On one occasion Father Jake gave me what I understand to be a second class relic of Pope John XIII, a small rectangle of cloth mounted in a small gold-colored medal.

I’ve lost track of Father Jake (and the cutter, which is now a ship in the Philippine Navy), but I have the relic and fond memories.

Appreciation has grown over time

By Darlene J.M. Dela Cruz
Hawaii Catholic Herald

“It was the first time I’ve ever seen a pope in person.”

Diocesan vicar general Father Gary Secor was in his late 30s when he was invited to concelebrate Mass with Pope John Paul II in Monterey, Calif. The liturgy at Laguna Seca Raceway drew tens of thousands of people eager to see the pontiff during his 1987 visit to the United States.

Father Secor was one of about 100 concelebrants at the Monterey Mass. Although he was “way far away from the altar” and did not get a close-up view of Pope John Paul II, Father Secor said the event was nonetheless a momentous occasion.

“It was exciting at the time,” he said. “I remember talking about it quite a bit afterward.”

Pope John Paul II arrived at and exited the raceway park by helicopter, Father Secor recalled.

The vicar general said he has “always been impressed with Pope John Paul II,” and his “appreciation has grown over time.” Father Secor learned a lot more about the pontiff’s life and personal influences after reading a biography by George Weigel. Father Secor also has been deeply involved in spreading Pope John Paul II’s teachings on the “Theology of the Body.”

Of Pope John Paul II’s elevation to sainthood, Father Secor said, “I think it’s very well-deserved.”

 

‘Holy Father, you forgot me!’

By Darlene J.M. Dela Cruz
Hawaii Catholic Herald

Jon James, professor emeritus at Chaminade University of Honolulu, encountered Pope John Paul II twice. His first time seeing the pope in person was at a general audience in St. Peter’s Square in 1978.

James described the event as, “electrifying.”

“Crowds went wild,” he said. The pontiff “was like a rock star and worked the crowds well.”

In the early 1980s, James attended another papal audience in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall. He sat in the front row, the fourth person from the main aisle. At the conclusion of the event, Pope John Paul II went down to mingle with visitors in James’ row. The Holy Father shook hands with the first, second and third person seated before James, stopping just as James enthusiastically reached to greet him.

“He came down and he went one, two, three,” James said. “I had my hand out, and then he just went back. I said ‘Holy Father, you do three and then you forgot me!’”

“He turned around,” James recalled. “He said, ‘No, no …’ And then he did the gesture with the fingers, (James demonstrates in photo right) like scolding me, but in a very, very nice way with that mischievous smile of his. I was looking at him, and then he blessed me. Then he went over across the aisle.

“It was more like him. He used to do things like that. He was kind of mischievous a little bit, but always with that twinkle in his eye, and that sparkle in his eye.”

“It was incredible, like I got a private blessing from him,” James added. “It’s just etched in my memory.”

 

Something in his eyes

By Darlene J.M. Dela Cruz
Hawaii Catholic Herald

The first time she saw Pope John Paul II in person, Sister of St. Paul of Chartres Clemence Marie Mira said she already knew he was a saint.

Sister Clemence, who ministers at Our Lady of the Mount Church in Kalihi Valley, has several fond memories of meeting the late Holy Father. She traveled to Rome many times during his pontificate, working and studying near the Vatican.

She got her initial glimpse of the Holy Father at a papal audience in the 1980s.

“He is very mischievous-looking,” Sister Clemence said. “There is something in his eyes and the way he moved his hands.”

She got a closer encounter with the pontiff while in Rome with the commission that handled the beatification of Filipino saint Pedro Calungsod in 2000. Sister Clemence said she was allowed access into an office at the papal residence, and often saw the pope “walking up and down the stairs, radiant with joy.”

Sister Clemence also played guitar for a World Day of Consecrated Life liturgy celebrated by Pope John Paul II. The Holy Father gave her a rosary during a special audience at her religious order’s general chapter meeting in 2001.

“He was joyful and very prayerful,” Sister Clemence said. “I’ll never forget that.”

When John Paul II died in 2005, Sister Clemence was on pilgrimage in Lourdes. She recalled the pontiff’s death bringing people to tears as bells mournfully tolled in the French town.

One of the bishops in Lourdes at the time said at the pope’s death, “We have a new saint.”

Sister Clemence was in Rome for John Paul II’s funeral. Having experienced his presence in so many ways throughout her life, Sister Clemence said she hopes the late pope as a saint will be a time-honored example of virtue for Christians and non-Christians.

“I hope his influence shows his love for God,” she said.

 

A report over lunch

By Msgr. John Mbinda
Special to the Herald

There were many occasions when I met Blessed Pope John Paul II, at least three times a year between 1986 and 2006, my tenure in the Roman Curia. The most unique and memorable was an invitation to lunch.

It was in July 1989. I had just returned from an ecumenical meeting in Moscow. Outside the hotel where the meeting was, Ukrainian Catholics had been praying, singing hymns and holding placards, demanding religious freedom. They were never arrested. It was clear that change was in the air. A journalist took pictures of these Catholics and I bought some of the pictures and brought them back to Rome.

When I gave my report on what I witnessed, the cardinal told me that perhaps Pope John Paul II would be interested in hearing my observations. One morning, Cardinal Johannes Willebrands told me that the pope would like to offer lunch for me and a colleague who had been with me in Moscow. The cardinal led us to the Apostolic Palace around 11:45 a.m. We entered the papal dining room and waited for the pope who then arrived and sat across from Cardinal Willebrands.

My colleague and I sat across from the pope’s secretary. Lunch consisted of pasta as a first course and a second course of fish and vegetables We shared with the pope our experience in Moscow. When I mentioned that Ukrainian Catholics were protesting outside the hotel and that no authorities came to arrest them, the pope said, “That is interesting.”

On another occasion in April 1990, pictured above, I introduced my sister Stellamaris Mutua to the Holy Father.

Aloha from Hawaii

By Patrick Downes
Hawaii Catholic Herald

Marilyn Bevins’ Rome photo album is 25 years old, so it has some “age issues.” But its three pounds of photos, clippings and souvenirs still captures the spontaneous delight that happens when a large group of eager Islanders descends into a foreign place.

The occasion was a November 1988 pilgrimage by 100 people from Hawaii to the Vatican. Sixty-five of them were members of a specially-created Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace choir, led by director Michael Markson, invited to sing in St. Peter’s Basilica at a Mass celebrated by Pope John Paul II.

The death of a cardinal prevented the pope from presiding at the Nov. 10 Mass, to the great disappointment of the Hawaii pilgrims. Nevertheless, there in the heart of Christendom they sang their hearts out; five Latin pieces by Mozart, Handel and others. No Hawaiian hymns.

But later at the general audience, the group, wearing muumuus and aloha shirts and bearing leis and gifts for the Holy Father, was given special treatment. They were up front in the audience hall, allowing a close encounter with the pope, to shake hands, exchange words and give him an ukulele and a calabash, carried by Bevins, holding a pineapple, macadamia nuts, Kona coffee and other Hawaiian goodies.

“See the looks of awe and amazement on our faces, even the Italian tour guide,” said Bevins, commenting on her photos.

“When I gave him the gift, you could feel the holiness emanating from him,” she said. “I told him the gift was heavy, so he had an assistant take it.”

“The highlight for all of us,” Bevins said, was when the pope asked to see the Hawaii group separately after the audience for a group photo.

“It amazes me that my memories are still so vivid,” said Bevins, who now sings for the St. Elizabeth Parish, Aiea, choir.

“We could tell we were in the presence of a great and holy man. We met a saint! Everyone wanted to touch him, hold his hand. One younger choir member took his hand and just held it for a while, not wanting to break the connection. Just beautiful.”

Bevins is pictured on the top far left.

 

Face-to-face

By Mary B. Oliveira
Special to the Herald

I traveled with the cathedral choir to have an audience with Pope John Paul II as a parishioner. The choir sang a religious Hawaiian song. After the pope spoke, he walked down the aisle to greet the people. I was standing near the aisle behind some people. He stopped to shake hands and I looked at him face-to-face. I felt so happy to see him. I will always cherish this visit.

A double blessing

By Constance Smith
Special to the Herald

We arrived in Rome from Honolulu. I had made arrangements for my son Greg and I to attend the public audience with the pope on April 21, 1993. When we picked up the tickets, we were informed that the audience would be held in St Peter’s Square.

Before we went to bed that night, we said a prayer that somehow Greg could get close to the pope and be able to kiss his ring. The audience was at 11 a.m., so we arrived at St. Peter’s Square at 9 a.m. I did not know where to sit because I had no idea where the pope would walk. So, I said a silent prayer, “I’ve done what I can Lord, the rest is up to you.”

We were standing in line when out of nowhere came a nun who only spoke German. She took Greg by the hand and I followed behind. She took us to an area that had seats next to it. I saw no way the pope could possibly walk by.

But at the end of the speaking and the blessings, all of the seats were removed and Pope John Paul II walked right next to us. He held Greg’s hand and gave him a special blessing. Of course, Greg was so excited he forgot all about kissing the ring and instead, in imitation of the Holy Father, politely blessed the pope back. (See photo above.)

Most of the thousands of people, including myself, didn’t even see him, because of the crowd pushing and shoving to get to the front.

In the photo, the nun to the left of Greg is the one that took us to our seats.

 ‘I feel a special spiritual connection’

By Darlene J.M. Dela Cruz
Hawaii Catholic Herald

In 1995, Kaneohe native Lindsey Mau made headlines after Pope John Paul II pulled her out of a crowd for a special, personal greeting at Rome’s Leonardo Da Vinci International Airport.

Mau, then 9 years old, had just completed with her grandparents a 16-day vacation in Northern Italy.

An account of the serendipitous meeting with Pope John Paul II was published in the July 28, 1995 issue of the Hawaii Catholic Herald, and in a number of other publications. Mau’s grandmother, Judy Giacobello, who took the photo shown here of the encounter, recently shared her collection of clippings with the Hawaii Catholic Herald. Here is what she said in the original Herald story:

“We were departing on June 30 from Rome’s Leonardo Da Vinci International Airport where we noticed the local military setting up barricades.

“After further investigation we were told Pope John Paul II was leaving on a flight to some destination in Europe. Lindsey ran for the cameras.

“We then positioned ourselves as close as possible … After the pope had said his many farewells to the 15-20 cardinals, he entered our portion of the airport and began blessing the crowd.

“As he turned our way he appeared to have spotted Lindsey. He smiled, said something to his security and one of the security came for Lindsey and took her to the pope. He spoke to her (in Polish, she thinks), blessed her and then kissed her head. It was overwhelming; people cried.

“To think a little girl thousands of miles from home and in a crowd of hundreds was picked for a papal blessing is something we will cherish for the rest of our lives.”

Mau emailed the Hawaii Catholic Herald April 18 her thoughts about her encounter with the Holy Father:

“I was young when I met Pope John Paul II. So, although I was excited, I am not sure I understood the magnitude of this special event. Over the years since, I have grown to realize and understand how precious this experience really was for me and my family as well.

“This experience impacted my life more as I matured and became better able to understand (the pope’s) role in world events, history and countless lives. I appreciated his respect and compassion for so many people of different cultures, faiths and ethnicities.

“I cannot say it changed my faith or the way I approach my goals and aspirations in any specific way; however, this experience contributed to my understanding and personal development of self-identity, particularly as a young woman raised in the Catholic faith.

“I do feel a special spiritual connection to Pope John Paul II and I believe recognizing his life and contributions through sainthood is a beautiful way to honor his memory.”

 

Damien would be happy

By Sister Rose Henry Reeves, SSCC
Special to the Herald

First of all, I felt very honored and happy to have been asked to attend the beatification of Damien in Brussels, Belgium, on June 4, 1996, and to receive the relic of Father Damien’s right hand from Pope John Paul II. During the ceremony, Sacred Hearts Father Joseph Bukoski, Randall Watanuki from Kalaupapa and I walked on stage to accept Blessed Damien’s relic from the pope. I told him that Damien would be very happy to be with his people whom he loved very much. John Paul smiled at me as if he agreed with me. I was elated! I feel very privileged to have had the opportunity to be in the presence of Pope John Paul II, especially now that he will be canonized on April 27. Thanks Be To God!

 

He gave me a rosary

By Patrick Downes
Hawaii Catholic Herald

When Joyce Carbullido learned that Pope John Paul II was going to be canonized, she knew she had to be there. She has felt special closeness to the Holy Father for more than 30 years, ever since they met under a canopy at a hospital in Guam and he pulled a rosary from his pocket and gave it to her.

Carbullido was a nurse in the skilled nursing ward at Guam Memorial Hospital in 1981 when the pope visited. Six very ill bedridden patients were wheeled to a special area on the grounds of the hospital to receive a blessing from the pope who was on a trip to the Philippines, Guam and Japan.

The patients and a select few hospital staff greeted the pope under a special canopy erected for the event.

“He was going around blessing everybody,” Carbullido recalled. She kissed his ring and held out a small statue of Santo Nino, the child Jesus, which the pope blessed.

Pope John Paul greeted everyone a second time. This time it was more personal.

“He looked at me, then put his hand in his pocket and gave me a rosary,” she said. “Just me. I was so fortunate.”

Carbullido, who is originally from Sampaloc Bolinao, Pangasinan, in the Philippines, moved to Guam when she was 12. She settled there and married a Guamanian. After she was widowed in 2001, she moved to Hawaii where her only son Ray Carbullido had relocated. A parishioner at Sts. Peter and Paul Parish, she now works part-time as a caregiver at the Arcadia.

A petite woman who speaks with bright enthusiasm, Carbullido said she prays the pope’s rosary every day and has never been sick since that encounter. She is pictured here in her home with her Santo Nino statue and the pope’s rosary.

“I was so happy,” she said. She said she told the pope that she would “always follow” him.

“So now that he is going to be canonized, I am going to Italy.”

It will be a wonderful trip. She is going with her son and niece Elaine Wang on a three-week adventure that includes visits to Milan, Venice, Florence and Rome for Easter. The canonization on April 27 will be the culmination of their travels.

She will be traveling on her birthday, April 15, which recalls the time she saw Pope Benedict XVI in Washington, D.C., on April 17, 2008, the day after his birthday, which was the day after hers. But that’s another story.

 

A papal pat on the head

By Sister Lily Remedias Duhaylonsod, FSP
Special to the Herald

I was a postulant in the community of the Daughters of St. Paul when Pope John Paul II was elected in October 1978. He was the pope of my formation years.

I was greatly blessed to have been present at that first U.S. Papal Mass on Boston Common, Oct. 1, 1979. His homily spoke to my heart as a young “rookie” in religious life: “To each one of you I say, therefore, heed the call of Christ when you hear him saying to you: ‘Follow me! Walk in my path! Stand by my side! Remain in my love!’”

Little did I know that this would just be my first time to see this pope in person. In 1987, a couple of months after my perpetual profession of vows, I was transferred to Charleston, S.C. When the pope visited St. Joseph Church in Columbia, S.C., I was the first person in my pew. The pope came up the aisle slowly, greeting people. When he came to us, I held onto his left hand as he shook the hands of the three other sisters. I said to him: “Welcome to South Carolina, Holy Father, we love you!” Then he put his right hand onto my head. Only then did I let go. I was thrilled to be that close, to witness how “present” he was to each person, to see his patient and peaceful demeanor.

During 2000-2001 Holy Year, I went on pilgrimage to Rome with 30-plus of my sisters to visit the birthplace of our Congregation of the Daughters of St. Paul. The trip included a brief private audience with Pope John Paul II. As he greeted each of us personally, he pressed a rosary into our hands and repeated after our superior our hometowns: “Boston, Honolulu, New York …” Then two Vatican photographers hurried us into “photo formation.” I was told to kneel on the right of the pope’s chair. All of a sudden I felt this pat on my head — over and over. I realized there was only one person on my left. Then I thought — what’s with my head? Déjà vu 14 years later and the pope is still patting my head! (See photo above.)

I saw the pope up close two more times, at the 2002 World Youth Day in Toronto and the 2003 beatification in Rome of our founder Father James Alberione.

It has been grace upon overwhelming grace to see and personally meet the Vicar of Christ so many times throughout my religious life! I admit that God has “spoiled” me on this point, but this local girl from Hawaii is very, very grateful. With fond memories I celebrate his canonization, the pope of my formative years, “my” pope!

He asked me, ‘Is that correct?’

By Eugene Sabado
Special to the Herald

On June 4, 1995, I was privileged to read the Prayer of the Faithful at the beatification of Father Damien at the square fronting the Sacred Heart Basilica in Brussels, Belgium, with Pope John Paul II presiding (see picture).

Prior to the ceremony while sitting in the section for participants (lectors, servers, etc.), I was summoned to follow a security guard.

I nervously followed him to the back of the stage to a small dwelling and was greeted by a priest (a papal aide) who led me to a table with (gasp) Pope John Paul II standing next to it. I sat down and he showed me a Hawaiian passage from a book he was going to recite, and he started to recite it, and asked me, “Is that correct?”

I nervously answered, “Yes.” He extended his hand and I shook it. (I later was told I was supposed to kiss the papal ring.)

He blessed me and handed me three rosaries, one of which I keep next to my bed. To this day I feel truly blessed by the most remarkable person, soon to be saint, I’ve ever encountered.

I can truly say I personally met Saint John Paul II!