John Paul II remembered as great defender of life and family

Jan 18, 2011 / 09:51 am

A member of the Pontifical Academy for Life's board of directors recently explained that Pope John Paul II will be remembered as “a great lover of life and defender” of the unborn.

Patricio Ventura-Junca, who is also director of the Center for Bioethics at the Catholic University of Chile, spoke with CNA on Jan. 17 about his reaction to John Paul II's upcoming beatification.

The Vatican announced that the late Pope will be beatified May 1.

Ventura-Junca expressed joy at the announcement and noted that the late Pope embraced advances in biology as well as the idea that “nobody has the right to eliminate an innocent person.”

He was “a great visionary because he realized that the future of the world depends on the family, because it is precisely in the family where values and faith are passed on,” Ventura-Junca added.

He also said by beatifying John Paul II, the Church is providing a model for all Christians and non-Christians. “The number of people who came together at his death showed it. I believe he was a man who went way beyond the borders of the Vatican, traversed the world and also brought Christian thought beyond Christians,” he said.

“John Paul II the Great was a man ahead of his time because he trusted in the laity” to participate as members of the Church in disciplines such as science, philosophy and bioethics.