Saturday April 30, 2011, Interview with Joaquin Navarro-Valls, in "El Mundo"
his face with tearful eyes, one day before death of John Paul II, went around the world. And six years later, Joaquin Navarro-Valls (Cartagena, 1936) still remains at times visibly excited when talking about KarolWojtyla, with whom he worked side by side for 21 years as its press officer. This member of Opus Dei numerary who came to work as a psychiatrist and as a journalist before becoming in the first and so far only, lay in front of the press office of the Holy See is without doubt one of the best people they met John Paul II, who tomorrow will be raised to the altars in a beatification ceremony presided by his successor, Benedict XVI.
During the two decades he worked with John Paul II, did at some point the feeling of being in a saint?
These days everyone says: "The Church makes John Paul II a saint." And I'm not at all agree. Because a person is holy or while living or never will be ... Not that the Church now a saint of John Paul II, it certifies that in his life was holy. And that's something he saw.
And what is noticeable?
would take too long to explain. Perhaps it's a very subjective thing, but to me he looked especially good humor. It may seem paradoxical thing, but it is. When you are 17 or 18 years to have good humor is a mandatory thing, biological. At 40, when one begins to have problems working with women, children, and no ... And at 80, when it is above the weight of life, disease and a host of things, continue to have good humor is exceptional. For me the mood was one of the definitive traits of his holiness, that positive way of looking at things, completely ignoring their own problems and living for its mission to the people.
was perhaps imagine that in recent years, when John Paul II was already sick when stressed that ability to put a good face of adversity ...
Indeed. I remember such a time when he already had a cane, a cardinal, and thought that you would lift your spirits, said: "Holy Father, I see very well." And he faced banter, replied: "But is that you think I do not see on TV the condition that I am? ".
A personal question: do you pray to John Paul II?
Well ... I try to keep in touch with him. Earlier, as the work we had, we spent together two or three hours a day, depended. On long trips were still more hours. Now I have the feeling that I have won: they are 24 hours a day. What I can say is that people think that a Christian prayer is an obligation or merely a conviction. For John Paul II was a necessity: I could not stop.
And you know what Wojtyla asked in their prayers?
Very often, when he went to his apartment, I saw him praying for hours in his little chapel, with pieces of paper in his hand, passed one, then another, then another ... What was he doing? I dared not ask. But he asked his personal secretary, Stanislaw Dziwisz. He told me that John Paul II came to him letters from all over the world, in every language, perfectly unknown people asking him to pray for this or that. Letters were like: 'Pray you for me because I am a mother of four children and I have been diagnosed a very serious cancer, "or" Pray for my child you take drugs. " In short, all the miseries of the world imaginable. The Pope spent hours praying for all that they asked, with the cards in your hand! His prayer was full of all the needs of others. I'm sure he had no space in his prayer to God to put to their stuff.
What do you think was your greatest virtue?
Sometimes one gets the distinct impression that the Christian virtues are opposed to each other. Thus, the person who is thinking straight in transgression of intransigent, as cold and distant. And at the opposite pole, the one that is comprehensive in character sometimes falls into a kind of indifference, be merciful to confuse the whole matter a damn. In John Paul II did not occur this madness of virtues. For example, was a man who never missed a minute, while never in a hurry.
And your weakness?
Your weakness? I wonder to what extent you can not use some of the great goodness of a person who really loved all those around you, as was the case ...
" In that sense there are those who believe that the process of beatification of John Paul II has been too rapid, which has not been time to fully discuss their role with the serious and widespread cases of child abuse committed by priests during his pontificate and relationship with Marcial Maciel, the serial pederast and founder of the Legionaries of Christ who enjoyed the personal support of Pope John Paul II ...
is a long subject, but I'll try to summarize. Were in those years a handwritten letter addressed to Maciel an American newspaper in which he swore to God that all things said about him were false and I did not think defense, which led him as a cross, and so on. This letter is there, the internet, I have it on file. And despite all that, the canonical procedure against Maciel was begun in the pontificate of John Paul II. It was completed in the first months of the pontificate of Benedict XVI, and in fact it was I who said that. And all this, I repeat, despite the pledges of that person. But also, let me remind you that at that time there were two cardinals of the Church-one was Bernardin, of Chicago, and the other Pell of Sydney, who were publicly accused of sexual abuse. Well, in less than a month showed that both allegations were false. There to remember that context. But I repeat: in the Maciel case of the canonical process was initiated in the pontificate of John Paul II.
Yes, but John Paul II was very slow to open the case against Maciel. Do you think that this delay could be the result of being too good?
No, what happened was that there was legally obtained the data later.
But Maciel enjoyed the protection of collaborators of John Paul II, because although it had long had many complaints against him took years to which commenced on
process ... I have cited the case of Pell and Bernardin and I could cite others ... You're talking about allegations. But a person, also in canon law, is innocent until proven guilty ..
As press officer John Paul II, were there any difficult moments of communication between you and the Pope?
No. One of the things that has always helped me professionally and humanly also impressed me is that he had it all: audiences with characters in the world, heads of state, whatever ... or personal things eg their diseases. Never, not once in 20 years, I've heard him say, "But this information I give is for you, not made public." He trusted the professionalism of others. He was a man from that point of view was to a very secular, very professional. I was the press officer and he left in my hands the responsibility to decide what was public and what not.
But could pick up the phone and call at any time?
Always.
And do you ever did?
course. The last days of his life, for example, my daily journey was divided into two very distinct periods: be in the room where he was dying, something that was very difficult, and then be with you, the journalists in the room press. But that was not an exceptional thing to go, but that was well from the beginning. John Paul II praised very much the legitimate interest of the people, not only for disease but for all things.
The John Paul II will be the fastest beatification in modern history of the Church. Do you think this rate is justified?
not know if it will be the fastest person is beatified ... For many centuries, saints were canonized by popular acclaim. That is, were the people who knew the life of that person and say, "This man is a saint." From this point of view what happened on the day of his funeral, when people began shouting "Santo subito", as it is in any way indicative. However, Benedict XVI decided to make the process of beatification. I believe, although I understand the reasons to the contrary, it would be a wonderful thing available to people all six volumes the process of beatification, which is a marvel. See the life of John Paul II told through historical documents and not only by eyewitnesses is magnificent. Even, and is very interesting in there are the testimonies of some people seriously at variance with the beatification.
But he believes that only six years after the death of John Paul II, is there enough historical perspective to elevate him to the altar?
I would answer to that is not to make a historic ruling, but whether John Paul II was a heroic virtues. That is what un proceso de beatificación. Los historiadores luego escribirán volúmenes y contarán además con el material histórico de los archivos vaticanos, que ahora están cerrados y que no han sido tenidos en cuenta para el proceso de beatificación porque no tienen valor desde el punto de vista de evaluación de la santidad de la persona. La pregunta que se hace en el proceso de beatificación es: ¿vivió esta persona las famosas siete virtudes cristianas –tres teologales y cuatro morales– y las vivió en grado heroico? Y eso es algo a lo que se puede responder ahora, recurriendo sobre todo a los testimonios directos.
¿Recuerda la última After speaking with John Paul II?
not remember when was the last time, but certainly was in the final period, probably days before his death. If you mean my leave of him, was without words, there was no need. He was well aware, we locked eyes suffering, because the end was painful, and kissed his hand. I remember it was very cold hand, because in these last days had very low blood pressure. But I had no desire to say anything ... What could I say? What I expected him to tell me? Were twenty years working together day and night, traveling together, resting together in the mountains ... Any words would have been insufficient.
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