In human relationships, it is said that the most difficult concept to learn is how to forgive. When we have been hurt or betrayed by someone, it is human nature to feel angry and resentful toward that person. It is also normal to demand justice. Because we live in an imperfect world, it is easy to dislike people for their shortcomings. Although we are familiar with the phrase, “forgive and forget”, can we really find it in our hearts to forgive those who have done us wrong? Perhaps, the best example of forgiveness came from Pope John Paul II. In 1983, he visited in prison and forgave the man who tried to kill him two years before.

Beloved Pope
One of the most beloved popes in history, John Paul II captured the world’s admiration during his almost 27-year as pontiff. His compassion for people from all walks of life touched even non-Catholics who recognized him as one of the world’s greatest spiritual leaders. It is said that he was the most recognized man in the world and by far the most widely traveled pope in history. In his years as the Pope, John Paul II successfully encouraged dialogue with world leaders and representatives of other religions, whom he several times invited to prayer meetings for peace. He was also a most respected and well-loved church leader, especially among the youth. However, with such popularity, the Pope easily became a target of numerous assassination plots including one that almost cost him his life.

Assassination Attempt
On the afternoon of May 13, 1981, Pope John Paul II was shot while he rode in an open car across St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City, where 20 000 people had gathered to see him. The Pope was rushed to a nearby hospital, barely surviving the six-hour operation. He was shot four times—twice in the stomach, once in the right arm, once in the left hand. Two bystanders were also injured in the attack. The Pope believed that it was Our Lady of Fatima who helped keep him alive throughout the ordeal.

“Could I forget that the event in St. Peter’s Square took place on the day and at the hour when the first appearance of the Mother of Christ to the poor little peasants has been remembered for over sixty years at Fatima, Portugal? For in everything that happened to me on that very day, I felt that extraordinary motherly protection and care, which turned out to be stronger than the deadly bullet.”

The would-be assassin, a 23-year-old Turkish terrorist named Mehmet Ali Agca, was immediately apprehended at the scene of the crime. The police found in his pocket a note scribbled in Turkish that reads: “I am killing the Pope as a protest against the imperialism of the Soviet Union and the United States and against the genocide that is being carried out in El Salvador and Afghanistan.”

Agca served nearly 20 years in Rebibbia, an Italian prison, for the crime after the Pope intervened to have his life-imprisonment sentence reduced.

A Lesson in Forgiveness
Following the assassination attempt, the Pope showed the world how to forgive. At the hospital, he said, “Pray for the brother who shot me, whom I have sincerely forgiven.” John Paul II met with Agca two years later and eventually arranged for his release from Italian prison. The Pope also displayed courage in not letting the assassination attempt change his travel itinerary and reach out to millions of people all over the world.

For people who are used to seeing and experiencing violence in every form, Pope John Paul II’s action is a lesson in forgiveness for a troubled world. When he pardoned and even embraced the man who almost killed him, he gave new meaning to the phrase: to err is human, to forgive divine.

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