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That day, before thousands of faithful gathered in Saint Peter’s Square, the Polish Pope delivered one of the most remembered exhortations of his pontificate: “Be not afraid! Open wide the doors to Christ!”
Karol Wojtyła had been elected successor of Peter on October 16, after the brief pontificate of John Paul I. Six days later, the new Pontiff presented himself before the universal Church with a homily that placed at the center of his ministry the confession of faith of Saint Peter and the need to proclaim Jesus Christ to the contemporary world.
“Open the doors to Christ”
In his homily of October 22, 1978, John Paul II began by recalling the words the apostle Peter addressed to Jesus in Caesarea Philippi: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
From that profession of faith, the new Pope explained the mission entrusted by Christ to Peter and his successors, emphasizing that the foundation of the Church lies in the recognition of Jesus Christ as the Son of God.
The most remembered moment came when he issued an invitation that transcended the Catholics present in the square and reached also political leaders and the societies of his time.
“Be not afraid! Open wide the doors to Christ!”, he proclaimed.
His call was not limited to the realm of individual conscience. John Paul II asked that the saving power of Christ be opened to “the frontiers of States, economic and political systems, the vast fields of culture, civilization and development.”
It was an exhortation to recognize the presence of Jesus Christ in all dimensions of human life, from personal existence to institutions and the organization of societies.
A Pope from Poland
The election of Karol Wojtyła had been a historic event for the Church. The Archbishop of Kraków became the first non-Italian Pope since Adrian VI, who died in 1523.
During his inaugural homily, John Paul II recalled Poland’s historical ties with the Apostolic See and acknowledged the responsibility he assumed in succeeding Saint Peter.
He also referred to the meaning of papal authority, linking it to the service of Christ and the Church. In this context, he explained his decision not to restore the use of the papal tiara, following the precedent of his immediate predecessor.
The celebration also coincided with that year’s World Mission Day. The new Pontiff recalled that the Church has the responsibility of bringing Christ’s words to all peoples, so that they may be received as a message of hope and salvation.
An exhortation that marked his pontificate
The words spoken on October 22, 1978, anticipated some of the great themes of John Paul II’s nearly 27 years of pontificate: evangelization, the defense of human dignity, religious freedom, and the presence of the Christian faith in public life.
His teaching was expressed in documents such as Redemptor hominis, his first encyclical, published in 1979; Veritatis splendor, on the foundations of Christian morality; Evangelium vitae, dedicated to the value and inviolability of human life; and Fides et ratio, on the relationship between faith and reason.
The Church also preserves that 1978 call in the liturgy. The second reading of the proper Office of Readings for Saint John Paul II, approved by the Holy See, includes precisely a passage from the inaugural homily.
Canonized on April 27, 2014, John Paul II is remembered each October 22, the date chosen for his liturgical memorial in remembrance of the solemn beginning of his Petrine ministry.