Pope John Paul II served as Pope and leader of the Vatican State from 1978 to 2005. John Paul II was elected by the second Papal conclave of 1978. The conclave was called after Pope John Paul I, the successor of Pope Paul VI, died 33 days after his ordination. John Paul II, formerly Cardinal Wojtyła, was elected on the third day of the meeting and took up his predecessor's name in honour of him. John Paul II is credited with assisting to end Communist rule in his native country of Poland and lat... morePope John Paul II served as Pope and leader of the Vatican State from 1978 to 2005. John Paul II was elected by the second Papal conclave of 1978. The conclave was called after Pope John Paul I, the successor of Pope Paul VI, died 33 days after his ordination. John Paul II, formerly Cardinal Wojtyła, was elected on the third day of the meeting and took up his predecessor's name in honour of him. John Paul II is credited with assisting to end Communist rule in his native country of Poland and later on in all of Europe. John Paul II considerably improved the relations of the Catholic Church with Judaism, Islam, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and the Anglican Church. He emphasized the Church's teachings on matters such as artificial contraception, the ordination of women, and a celibate clergy, and was seen as generally traditionalist in his interpretation of the Second Vatican Council and its reforms. John Paul II was one of the most travelled world leaders in history. He visited more than 120 nations during his time in office. As part of his special emphasis on the universal call to holiness, he beatified 1,340 people and canonised 483 saints, significantly more than any Pope before him during the preceding 500 years.
John Paul II had named most of the College of Cardinals, consecrated a huge number of the world's bishops, and ordained many priests by the time of his death on 2 April 2005. One of his most important aims was to transform and reposition the Catholic Church. He wanted "to place his Church at the heart of a new religious alliance that would bring together Jews, Muslims and Christians in a great religious armada". John Paul II’s term in office was the longest in modern history, only after that of Pope Pius IX, who was in office for more than thirty one years (1846 to 1878). John Paul II was born in Poland, and he was thus the first non-Italian pope since the Dutch Pope Adrian VI (1522 to 1523). Following his death in April 2005, his canonization process commenced a month later with the traditional five-year waiting period having been set aside. He was succeeded by Pope Benedict XVI and was beatified on 1 May 2011. After two miracles had been attributed to him, John Paul II was canonized on 27 April 2014.
