The Catholic Church is not going to care what I write or say about the canonization of Pope John Paul II. The Church has never been a democratic institution, so to hell with my opinion. And I am a just a former Catholic who was raised in the faith and went to Catholic schools from kindergarten through high school, so my views count for nada. And as a former, diehard Catholic friend of mine used to say, "What do you know about the Catholic faith when you were raised in the 70s?" What can one of the fallen have to say about the canonization of such an obviously great man such as Pope John Paul II?
I don't know. Maybe I could be impolitic and bring up the fact that child rape was going on during John Paul's reign? And not just a few cases of child rape that might have gotten lost in the Church bureaucracy, but only God and the Vatican knows for sure.
OK. To be fair to the Vatican, they may not have the exact number of actual rapes that occurred over the years. After all, most sexual assault victims do not report the acts perpetrated against them, and this especially goes for kids. And to top it off, what Catholic kid is going to talk about a priest raping them?
However, some brave rape survivors have come forward to tell their tales and press charges. The initial horror of the crimes was compounded by the Church's attempts to protect pedophile priests. The media reported on the Vatican's transfer of pedophile priests to other parishes way back in the 1980s. I remember seeing those early reports. This protection of pedophile priests was an added assault to the victims and their families.
The Church protected criminals who preyed upon their followers.
Does it matter that John Paul knew about the rapes? Not to me it doesn't. He was the man in charge, and he had decades to try and address this problem. John Paul was responsible for the actions of his fellow bishops and cardinals. Therefore, John Paul let priests and others in the Church rape kids.
My former, diehard Catholic friend would defend John Paul by saying, "Everyone has a mixed record." I don't think she would have this view if a priest had ever raped either of her two children. I know that is a harsh assessment, but I don't recall Catholic saints as having "mixed records" that included sanctioning rape.
Saints are supposed to be holy people. They have a connection with God. Yes, they are still human, but they are supposed to be BETTER than your average person. We mere mortals posses mixed records, but saints are less mixed than the rest of sinners.
On this point, I have to say that the soon to be Saint John Paul II does NOT deserve this honorific.