I’ve been impressed with the excellent coverage the Sun Journal has given the pope’s passing. I especially liked the special section with its quotes from people of many religions. To hear from Catholics, Jews and Protestants about the difference Pope John Paul II made in the world is very heartening. We don’t all have such a big stage or a wide influence, but I believe each of us makes a difference.

My thought turned to something written in 1903 by Mary Baker Eddy, who founded the Christian Science Church. Pope Leo XIII had passed on, and she wrote something that sounds very contemporary. “The intellectual, moral, and religious energy of this illustrious pontiff have animated the Church of Rome for one quarter of a century. The august ruler of two hundred and fifty million human beings has now passed through the shadow of death into the great forever. … He is the loved and lost of many millions. I sympathize with those who mourn, but rejoice in knowing our dear God comforts such with the blessed assurance that life is not lost; its influence remains in the minds of men, and divine Love holds its substance safe in the certainty of immortality.”

John Paul’s influence will remain in the hearts and minds of millions for years to come. I hope that the next pope will be as remarkable, in his own individual way, as this special man. Our times certainly need good leaders.

Marilyn Crowley, Waterford

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