Assassination attempt on John Paul II (1981-05-13)

“exactly at 5:17 P.M. the sounds of shots shattered the joyous atmosphere.”

“The pope trembled and swayed, blood staining his white robe. He sank back, in slow motion, onto the seat of his Jeep.”

“But that May 13 was not just another day in the Marian month of May—it was the sixty-fourth anniversary of Mary’s first apparition at Fatima.”

“The man who had fired the three shots at the pontiff with a Browning HP Parabellum, a very effective combat weapon, was interrogated for hours.”

“To be sure of hitting his target he had aimed at the pope from a squatting position.”

“When those nearby tried to subdue him, he threatened them with his gun.”

“When a young policeman finally reached him, he pressed the trigger once more, but the 9mm pistol had developed a loading defect.”

“When the crowd saw this, they closed in on him, and it was only with great difficulty that the Swiss Guards, who hurried to the spot, managed to prevent them from killing him right there.”

“At first he denied the deed, and claimed he was a student at the University of Perugia in Italy.”

“Finally the car reached the left side of the basilica, where the pope was given first aid. Ten minutes later an ambulance took him to the Catholic University hospital.”

“Meanwhile, three surgeons were fighting to save his life. His blood pressure had sunk so low that his pulse was barely perceptible. The operation lasted five hours and twenty minutes.”

“Luckily, the carotid artery had escaped damage by only a small fraction of an inch, and no vital organs had been hurt. The pope was saved.”

““I forgive him” were the first words of the pontiff, when he regained consciousness after some hours and had been told about the arrest.”

“The pope was convinced that the Mother of God had saved him, for if he had not happened to move his body in a particular way while handing the little girl he had embraced back to her parents, the shot would have penetrated his heart.”

“When John Paul II was released from the hospital on August 14, 1981, the first thing he did was to go to the Crypt of Saint Peter’s to pray at the tombs of his predecessors.”

“After their release the Italian press cited the papers as evidence that the KGB gave to the Bulgarian Secret Service the original order for the assassination of John Paul II that was attempted by their agent Ali Agca.”

“Pope John Paul II believed the lady saved him from death when there was an attempt on his life on May 13, 1981.”

“May 13 was when the lady first appeared to the three young children, and the pope was doubtless aware of the date.”

“He later put the bullet that almost killed him into the crown of a statue of Our Lady of Fatima.”

“In 1982 he made a journey to Fatima to thank the Mother of God for saving his life, after he was shot in 1981.”

““I have come because on this day, a year ago, an attempt was made to assassinate the pope, strangely enough, on the anniversary of the first apparition of Fatima on May thirteenth, 1917,” he said. “I recognized, in the connection between the dates, a specific call for me to come here; therefore, I am here.””

“A tall man dressed as a priest had pushed his way into the group of clergymen near the pope. He started insulting the pope loudly, blaming him for the situation of Catholics in Poland, for letting Communism become stronger, and for the Second Vatican Council.”

“His secretary and the American bishop, as well as security guards, protected him with their bodies, while the Portuguese police arrested the man.”

““Down with the pope! Death to Communism!” he shouted in Spanish, as he was taken away.”

“On the next day, which was the anniversary of both the first apparition and the day when his life was saved, John Paul II solemnly repeated the consecration of the world.”

“There could be no better description of the events of May 13, 1981.”

“When John Paul II read the contents of the Third Secret after the assassination attempt, the plan of divine providence became clear to him.”

“"When, after the attempted assassination on 13 May 1981, the Holy Father had the text of the third part of the Secret brought to him, wasn't it inevitable that he should see his own fate in it?" Cardinal Ratzinger asked.”