April 2, 2026, marked 21 years since the death of Saint John Paul II. However, not everyone wished to remember this anniversary, as if they wanted to erase the memory of the Pontiff who not only changed the Church but made a massive contribution to the collapse of the totalitarian communist system that held a significant part of Europe—including Wojtyla’s native homeland—in subjection.

The silence of Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who governs Poland in a coalition with former communists and heirs of the Polish communist regime, was highly significant. Other high-ranking members of Tusk’s party also seemed unaware of the events of 21 years ago, confirming the anticlerical stance of the current administration.

With this silence, the government contrasted sharply with the attitude of President Karol Nawrocki, who chose to commemorate the 21st anniversary of Saint John Paul II’s death in Warsaw, at Marshal Piłsudski Square. The Polish President paid tribute to the Pope by laying a wreath at the Papal Cross. In 1979, during his apostolic visit to Poland, John Paul II delivered his famous homily in this very square, with words that will forever remain in history: “And I cry—I, a son of the Polish land, and at the same time I, John Paul II, Pope—I cry from all the depths of this millennium, I cry on the eve of Pentecost: Let your Spirit descend! Let your Spirit descend! And renew the face of the earth. Of this earth!”

It was in this precise location that the President chose to commemorate John Paul II and recall his role in the nation’s history. “Today is a special day. I am convinced, and I think to myself, how powerful this man must have been, feared by the entire apparatus of the communist state, including the secret services and counterintelligence. A man against whom the services of the greatest Soviet empire of the time fought. A man strong in the power of his spirit, in the power of his intellect. A man strong in preaching the Gospel, faith, hope, and love, who defeated the communist system and awakened us as a nation to freedom and solidarity. The greatest man the Poles have ever given to the world,” the president stated, emphasizing the need to defend the legacy of John Paul II.

The Papal Cross was later moved to the front of a parish in Warsaw. This historic cross, 25 meters high and made of steel and wood, was burned the day after the anniversary. Firefighters suggest the fire may have been caused by prayer candles lit beneath it, but the destruction of the Pope’s Cross, one day after the anniversary of his death, has become a symbol of the atmosphere created in the country by Tusk’s government. This was made even more significant by a message published on social media by an activist from Tusk’s party: a photo of the cross engulfed in flames with the caption: “What a beautiful sight!”

Fortunately, many politicians remembered the anniversary of Saint John Paul II’s death, such as Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who paid tribute to the Pope with a message on Instagram: “On April 2, 2005, John Paul II left us. He is the Pope I grew up with. I was fortunate enough to meet him, and one thing remained with me above all: his gaze. And that quiet strength of someone who knows how to show a path without imposing it. Ultimately, what he taught is as simple as it is powerful: freedom is not choosing what is convenient or what is most comfortable. It is having the courage to do what you believe is right. Even when it costs. Even when it is not the easiest path. It is a teaching that returns every time one must hold the course. With seriousness, without shortcuts. Twenty-one years later, his example continues to speak. Not only in faith but in the way we face today’s challenges, with even more courage and more responsibility.”

United States President Donald Trump and his wife also published a strong message for the anniversary of Pope Wojtyla’s death, which was largely ignored by mainstream media. Experts noted that it was not a mere perfunctory statement, but a message of great depth.

“Today, Melania and I join Catholics and all those who love freedom around the world to honor the immortal legacy of His Holiness Pope Saint John Paul II, a man of profound faith, a lion of freedom, and one of the staunchest defenders of human dignity of all time,” the president wrote. Trump recalled that the future saint “formed an unshakable conscience, founded on holiness, virtue, and moral courage, during the barbaric Nazi occupation of Poland. Later, as a priest, bishop, and head of the Roman Catholic Church, he worked tirelessly as a witness to hope, proclaiming the eternal truths of the Christian faith to all the nations of the Earth.”

The president emphasized Wojtyla’s vital role in the historic changes of the 20th century: “In the face of atheistic socialism, religious persecution, anti-Semitism, and other threats to human dignity and freedom, Pope John Paul II began a moral and spiritual revolution that led to the defeat of Soviet communism and the liberation of the oppressed nations of Europe. (…) He boldly reaffirmed the Christian identity and religious foundations of Western civilization, awakening in countless hearts the good, the truth, and the beauty.”

Trump did not fail to mention the Pope’s first trip to his homeland in 1979, which initiated the changes in communist countries, quoting his historic sermon: “Man is incapable of fully understanding himself without Christ. He cannot understand who he is, nor what his true dignity is, nor what his vocation is, nor what his ultimate end is. He cannot understand any of this without Christ.” At the end of his message, Trump encouraged “every American to keep the memory of Pope Saint John Paul II alive for generations to come.”

It is a pity that, less than two weeks later, Trump heavily and incomprehensibly attacked another Pope, Leo XIV, with shameful words that sparked outrage not only within the Church but across the entire world.