On this day in 1978, at 6:18 p.m. in Rome, white smoke rose above the Sistine Chapel and the world heard the words “Habemus Papam.” After several ballots, Cardinal Karol Wojtyła was elected the 264th Pope of the Catholic Church and took the name John Paul II.
For those committed to the dignity of human life and the flourishing of family, that moment was nothing short of providential. In Pope John Paul II we would come to see a pontiff whose life and teaching bore constant witness to a “culture of life” in a world so often tempted by a “culture of death.”
From the very beginning of his pontificate, John Paul II embraced a mission to defend life at every stage and to strengthen the family as the foundational unit of society. He spoke boldly against abortion, euthanasia, and the many pressures that threaten the rights of unborn children.
His landmark encyclical Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life) remains a theological and moral touchstone for pro-life advocates. There he reaffirmed the “inviolable dignity” of each human being from conception until natural death and insisted that no violation of human life is ever licit, even under the guise of “progress” or “choice.”
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