Catholic World News News Feature

Pope Named Greatest Pole Of 20th Century June 23, 1998

WARSAW (CWNews.com) - Pope John Paul II is the greatest Pole in this century, according to Poles in a recent survey by the Warsaw political weekly Polityka.

Former President Lech Walesa, the legendary leader of the Solidarity union, only made sixth place with Nobel Prize-winning scientist Marie Curie-Sklodowska and writer Henryk Sienkiewicz ranking higher. Former Communist leader General Wojciech Jaruzelski placed in the ninth place, which is not surprising considering that more than 20 percent of Poles believe that compromises he made during his rule hastened the fall of Communism. More than 50 percent of the population said they were convinced that his decision to introduce martial law in 1981 prevented Soviet intervention.

Poland credits Pope John Paul II, born Karol Wojtyla, for contributing to the dissolution of the Communist regime and in shaping the new Europe. Participants in the survey were asked to name the attribute of each person in the poll that describes them best. The Holy Father was described as pious and famous, Walesa as famous with a fairy-tale career, Jaruzelski as talented in achieving compromises with a sense of honor, Marie Curie was called knowledgeable, and Sienkiewicz as a talent that does not fade away after 100 years.

Another survey by the weekly "Wprost" concentrated on the question of who contributed the most to the fall of Communism in Poland, placing Walesa first place and the Pope second.