In the summer of 1992, amidst the stately grandeur and breathtaking sights of the Eternal City, a group of Christendom pilgrims experienced a profound grace. That moment became an indelible part of each participant’s faith journey as they met face-to-face with their Holy Father, a man who is now honored as one of the greatest saints in recent history. On the 20th anniversary of his passing, Christendom reflects on the historic occasion when Pope St. John Paul II met privately with these pilgrims, including the college’s founder, Dr. Warren Carroll, expressing his love and pride for each of his spiritual children and proclaiming Christendom a “great work for the Church!” The lasting effects of that gathering continue to inspire and uplift the Christendom community, resonating in the hearts and minds of those who bore witness to that incredible moment.
Prior to the establishment of the college’s Junior Semester in Rome, Carroll and future college president Dr. Timothy O’Donnell brought a group of students and college friends to the canonization of Claude La Colombière, thanks to college friend Cardinal Jan Schotte, who helped obtain tickets. Cardinal Schotte, who both consecrated the old Christ the King Chapel and gave to Christendom the papal chalice, was instrumental to the success of this event.
This story comes from the latest issue of Instaurare Magazine, the official magazine of Christendom College. Read more from Instaurare here!
“It was an incredible gift,” O’Donnell reflects. “We had front-row seats, we were very joyful, and we all thought it was as great as it could get.” The group even got to see Pope St. John Paul II as he proceeded into the canonization. Thrilled by such a close encounter, the group declared the pilgrimage a complete success.
After such a fulfilling experience, the group of pilgrims felt surely that their trip had reached its peak. However, the adventure was far from over. Before this, O’Donnell had contacted the Vatican to inquire, as a hope, about an audience with the Holy Father. As he had not heard back, he had resigned himself to the idea that it would not be possible. However, during a tour with longtime friend of the college and former English Program Director for Vatican Radio Sean-Patrick Lovett, O’Donnell received a phone call. The caller was Stanisław Dziwisz, the personal secretary of the Holy Father. He informed O’Donnell that a meeting would be possible the next day. O’Donnell hesitated, caught between excitement and practicality: while the offer of this meeting was extraordinary and generous, their flight home was scheduled for the same time frame. Putting the moment in the hands of God, O’Donnell responded that they only had today.
Silence.
After a prolonged moment, Dziwisz told O’Donnell to meet at the bronze doors at 11 A.M. This private audience was to be squeezed between two existing meetings, and with the Pope’s full schedule, the magnitude of the situation was not lost on the group.
The reason for this incredible generosity lies in an established friendship between Pope St. John Paul II and then-president Dr. Damien Fedoryka. Fedoryka had met with the Pope multiple times before, so the Holy Father was already acquainted with what Christendom College was and what it stood for. He truly wanted to meet with the students, and he was willing to make it happen.
Alumnus John Echaniz ’93 recalls lying in his hotel room when fellow student David Brown ’92 rushed in, shouting, “Get up! Get up! We’re going to see the Pope!” The incredible news spread like wildfire as the group rushed to get dressed in a manner befitting a meeting with the Pope, followed by a dash to the agreed meeting place.
Filled with excitement and disbelief, the group was brought through the bronze doors and along a series of grand halls and doorways into the office of Pope St. John Paul II. While waiting, and to cope with rising nerves, the group prayed the Rosary and sang. Alumna Anna Aronhime ’93 remembers an attendant entering the room to inform them that while the Holy Father loved their singing, it was loud enough to disrupt the meeting he was having, and therefore he must cordially ask them to quiet down. A little embarrassed, the group shifted into anxious whispers as the moments ticked by. Just when their nerves seemed ready to snap, the doors opened, and in walked the white figure of the Holy Father. Aronhime recalls:
“He immediately smiled and said, ‘Ahh, you must be the Americans!’” In that instant, the atmosphere in the room transformed from nervousness to joy, as Aronhime describes, “He just completely relieved the anxiety.”
Pope St. John Paul II then went around the group gathered in a circle, speaking with each one as they knelt to venerate the Fisherman’s ring. Reflecting on this moment, Chairman Steve O’Keefe ’93 shares: “There are many profound memories from the day, but the one that I would like to share was St. John Paul II’s vivaciousness and the urgency of the Pope to speak with us. The Pope clearly was eager to hear our experiences at the college and convey our importance to the Church and the world.” As he moved down the line of students, the Pope mentioned Fedoryka several times, asking the students to send his greetings.
“Being in the presence of a person of profound holiness is hard to describe,” Echaniz says. “People say it is like a glow, radiating holiness. Suffice to say, we wanted to go where he would lead.”
At the end of the line, all eyes turned to Dr. Warren Carroll, the man who worked so tirelessly to establish Christendom and who dedicated his life to the college and the students. It felt as though the entire experience was culminating in this moment. As he fell to his knees and venerated the ring, many students began to cry as they witnessed the founder of their college share such an important moment.
“It was a true blessing to behold Dr. Carroll at what must have felt like the crowning moment of his life’s work,” Echaniz says. “At that moment, he was obviously bursting with joy.”
O’Donnell echoes this sentiment: “The joy of the students seeing the joy of Dr. Carroll—why, everyone thought they had died and gone to heaven.”
O’Donnell thanked Pope St. John Paul II for his time, but the Holy Father smiled and replied that, on the contrary, it was he who was thanking them. He then spoke a sentiment that would become the most historic endorsement the college has ever received: “Christendom is a great work for the Church!”
This meeting continues to linger in the minds of those who were there, with starry-eyed renditions of the story flowing in from alumni, many of whom are friends to this day, having shared something so precious that it continues to bond them.
Alumnus Mo Woltering agrees, saying that meeting the Holy Father inspired him throughout his life.
“Meeting the Holy Father had a major impact on me. So much so that I pursued graduate studies at the John Paul II Institute both in Washington, D.C., and Rome. Afterwards, I was able to kiss the Pope’s ring again, and this time I was able to thank him for being such an inspiration.”
O’Keefe concludes, “I believe the totality of the experience of Rome, culminating with the Holy Father, was a life-changing event for all involved.”
Life-changing indeed. This Rome pilgrimage was not merely a visit to a historic city or a remarkable series of events: it was the profound touch of grace that would resonate throughout the lives of those who participated. Meeting Pope St. John Paul II was not just a fleeting moment of joy: it was an endorsement of their mission and a galvanizing affirmation of their faith that would stay with them for the rest of their lives. The Holy Father’s words, “Christendom is a great work for the Church,” echo with enduring power, serving as both a blessing and a mandate for the college and its alumni to be builders of a legacy of love and unwavering faith. On the 20th anniversary of Pope St. John Paul II’s passing, Christendom College remembers the words of Dr. Warren Carroll: “One man can make a difference.”
One summer in 1992, the college witnessed a remarkable encounter between two men who truly did make a difference.
Pope St. John Paul II, ora pro nobis!
Written by Lianna Youngman.