Read the Poem Pope John Paul II Wrote for the Mother He Lost| National Catholic Register

How the loss of a mother, ‘soul of the home,’ shaped the heart of a pope …

Pope John Paul the Great, as so many call him, touched the lives of countless souls and gifted the Church a rich wisdom, particularly regarding the feminine genius. And the source of that wisdom may be traced back to a humble home in Wadowice, Poland. 

Young Karol Wojtyła was only 8 years old when his mother, Emilia Kaczorowska, died at the age of 45 on April 13, 1929 — just one month before her son’s ninth birthday on May 18. 

In his definitive biography, Witness to Hope, George Weigel says the tragic event bore in the future pope an “uncommon maturity.” 

But a little-known poem written by Karol in his late teens, 10 years later, sheds light on the impact his late mother had on him. It was translated from Polish in 2004, part of a wider collection of poems written by the Polish Pope. 

In the poem, entitled On Your White Tomb, he wrote:

Over this, your white grave
the flowers of life in white –
so many years without you –
how many have passed out of sight?
Over this your white grave
covered for years, there is a stir
in the air, something uplifting
and, like death, beyond comprehension.
Over this your white grave
oh, mother, can such loving cease?
for all his filial adoration
a prayer:
Give her eternal peace –

The love young Karol felt for his mother emanates from every line of his poetry, but her devotion to him began long before he could speak. 

Despite doctors urging her to abort the baby due to her fragile health, Emilia heroically chose life for her son — a decision that would eventually change the course of human history. 

Though she only had eight short years to mother him before her passing, that foundation of sacrifice formed the man who would become pope. 

In the wake of her death, Karol was often described as “sullen and withdrawn,” yet the seeds she planted remained. A former schoolteacher who was educated by the Sisters of Divine Love, Emilia married Karol Sr. on February 10, 1906, and became what the future pope called the “soul of the home.”

While he later admitted in Gift and Mystery that he lacked a “clear awareness” of her specific daily contributions, he acknowledged that her influence “must have been great.”

While history focuses on Karol Jr., Emilia bore two other children who also met tragic ends. Their eldest, Edmund, born in 1906, was a doctor who died in 1932 after contracting scarlet fever from a patient. Their only daughter, Olga, died just hours after her birth in 1916. These early losses meant that by age 12, Karol was left with only his father by his side.

Emilia experienced delicate health, struggling with various ailments, and was weak during much of Karol’s childhood. But his mother had a profound impact on his faith and formation, often speaking with love about the spark she had ignited in his own soul. Emilia died from kidney failure and heart issues. 

Living a life marked by loss and sacrifice, Emilia’s faith has led to the cause for her canonization, alongside her husband. The cause for the couple officially opened on May 7, 2020; they are currently recognized as “Servants of God.” Speaking to the heroic virtue of Emilia and Karol Sr., Father Pawel Rytel-Andrianik, spokesman for the Polish Bishops’ Conference, said: 

“The processes of beatification of Karol and Emilia Wojtyła … testify above all to the appreciation of the family and its great role in shaping the holy and great man — the Polish Pope. The Wojtyłas were able to create such an atmosphere at home and form children in such a way that they became outstanding people… They will become a model and example for many families who want to be holy.”

Pope John Paul II’s longtime secretary, Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz, gave his own testimony, stating: “I heard from him many times that he had holy parents.”

The flowers of life on that white grave have long since faded, but the “stir in the air” that the young poet felt remains. 

Emilia Wojtyła’s life was marked by the cross of fragile health and the grief of lost children, yet she managed to form a man who would tell the world, “Be not afraid.” 

As we remember her this Mother’s Day, may we see that the most profound lessons on the feminine genius were first taught to a future pope not in a university lecture hall, but in the tender, sacrificial and heroic life of his mother.