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Assassination Attempt on JP2

Assassination Attempt on JP2

1980 AD

πŸ“‚ CHURCH

πŸ“– About This Event

On May 13, 1981, Pope John Paul II was shot by Mehmet Ali Ağca, a Turkish nationalist, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican. The attack occurred on the Feast of Our Lady of Fatimaβ€”the exact anniversary of the first apparition of the Virgin Mary to the shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal, in 1917. The Pope had made a pilgrimage to Fatima the previous year in fulfillment of a promise made during an earlier aviation crisis, and many saw the assassination attempt as connected to the Fatima messages.

Two bullets struck John Paul II, one in the abdominal region causing severe internal bleeding, and another that passed through his left hand. He was rushed to the Gemelli Hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery. He survived, and on May 13, 1983β€”the second anniversary of the attackβ€”he visited Our Lady of Fatima, kneeling at the exact spot where he had been shot and saying, 'Mother, I offer myself to you. Take all that I am into Your Immaculate Hands.'

In 1983, John Paul II visited his assailant, Ağca, in prison, telling him, 'I have forgiven you from my heart, as Christ teaches us to do. I pray for you, and from this prison you can begin a new life.' In 2009, Ağca claimed that the Soviet KGB had orchestrated the assassination attempt. Key Scripture: Luke 23:34; Matthew 5:44; Acts 7:60; CCC 2301-2303, 2841-2848

πŸ“œ Key Facts

Date 1980 AD
Category Church
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