The election in October 1978 of Karol Wojtyla, the first non-Italian pope since 1523, had enormous symbolic importance. The world was in the midst of the cold war when John Paul assumed the papacy and the stand of the former prelate against Poland's officially atheistic government had already energized Catholics in that country and struck fear in supporters of the Soviet satellite governments.

In June 1979, the new pope visited Poland for nine days. Directly challenging the Polish leadership, he declared that "Christ cannot be kept out of the history of man in any part of the globe, at any longitude or latitude of geography. ... Christ cannot be kept out of this part of the world. To try to do this is an act against man." The applause lasted for eight minutes and a banner was unfurled reading "freedom, independence, protection of human rights". Later, John Paul aligned himself and the church with the Solidarity labor movement and its ultimately successful struggle for a democratic Poland. In many ways the success of anticommunist forces in Poland was the forerunner of the end of the Soviet empire.

While Pope Paul VI had traveled fairly widely during his papacy, John Paul far outstripped him. John Paul logged over 500,000 miles to 120 countries, including seven visits to the United States and the first ever papal visit to Britain. Without exception, the pontiff would be greeted with huge, adoring crowds worthy of a rock star.

Although a man of enormous personal charm, John Paul was also a steadfast, even stubborn, advocate of the traditional positions of his church. He adamantly favored priestly celibacy and opposed the ordination of women. He was extremely troubled by what he termed the "culture of death", which he saw in abortion, euthanasia and (usually) the death penalty. And while he was a proven enemy of communism, he was also quite independent. For example, he was skeptical of unfettered capitalism and frequently opposed military interventions favored by the United States. Although many disagreed with him at times, no one ever doubted his sincerity or devotion to principle.

In his last years, John Paul showed great physical and moral courage in performing his duties despite debilitating ailments. Of course, we already knew of some of this courage from the time that he forgave and met with the man who tried to assassinate him in 1981. In the end, John Paul faced his death with great dignity.

There are of course remaining challenges at the end of John Paul's long reign. In many countries the number of practicing Catholics is declining and the level of religious fervor low. The next pope will have to decide how the church will relate to the many individuals who consider themselves Catholic and members of the church but cannot bring themselves to accept one or more of the church's doctrines. He must also see if there is any room for change in areas like priestly celibacy where there may not be doctrinal impediments to new policies.

Even for people of a certain age, it will take considerable time to imagine the papacy in the hands of someone other than John Paul. He was a leader for the ages and his legacy will endure.