"John Paul the Great"

That's what Vice-President Dick Cheney called the late Holy Father at last night's 58th annual Radio-Television Correspondents' Association Dinner.

P.S. Jackson's Junction has Video: Cheney — "Pope John Paul The Great" you can stream or download.

And LexisNexis has a transcript from FNC's Hannity & Colmes program, which broadcast the vice-president's speech live.

.... But ladies and gentlemen, I do want to be serious for a moment tonight. And I want to convey the personal regards from the president and Laura who left for Rome this morning and arrived there just a few hours ago.

On Friday, they'll lead the American delegation at the funeral mass for Pope John Paul II, accompanied by Secretary Rice and former Presidents Clinton and Bush. This is the first time a U.S. president has attended a papal funeral, and the gesture could never be more appropriate. Pope John Paul II was the rarest of men and one of those leaders whose name will be familiar hundreds of years from now.

Just last year, Lynne and I had the honor of meeting the Pope at the Vatican. And we were very grateful to have that memory. Because he served so long, journeyed so far and invited so many into his presence, I'm sure many in this room have covered the Pope at one point or another, either in this country or abroad.

If you ever saw John Paul II in person, then you are in a group that numbers in the hundreds of millions. Others have spoken of the religious significance of John Paul's papacy. All of us, I think, can give testimony to his impact on history.

At first glance, nearly 27 years ago, the world knew him only as the Polish Pope. We now know him for all he was, a force for good in the world, guiding the faithful, and at times helping guide great events.

The quiet, humble priest who lived under Nazism and communism rose to be a foe of tyranny, not fearing any man, not submitting to any evil, and always bearing witness to hope. Those with power who had others at their mercy, he challenged with a greater power of unarmed truth.

He set himself against all acts of tyranny, large and small. The Pope was a worldly and intellectual man who understood his times probably as well as anyone else alive, yet never sought to please the listener or to ratify popular opinion.

He tried instead to lift the sights of mankind, defending the weak against exploitation, neglect and servitude, and resisting every affront to freedom, innocence or the dignity of any life.

The death of such a man makes this world poor. But the life of such a man has made this world so much better. The Pope, who kissed the ground of well over a hundred countries, made four pilgrimages to the United States. He spoke to us with words not of comfort but of challenge, to live up to our calling, to be fair, and just, and true to our deals in every way.

Our country, he said, is a providential nation called to be a hospital society and a welcoming culture. John Paul II understood all the gifts and the possibilities of the United States. As I left his office last year, the Pope took both of my hands in his and said, "God bless

All of us here tonight have had the good fortune on occasion of meeting notable and remembered figures, even heroic ones. I think it's safe to say that none of us is likely ever again to encounter so great a man as Pope John Paul II. We will carry with us images of his energetic and righteous life and the example of character he left to us all. We will remember the little known cardinal from a captive nation who stepped onto a balcony and exhorted the faithful, Be not afraid.

We will remember the world leader who was a victim of malice and violence, then visited a jail cell to forgive the gunman, calm his fears and call him a brother. We will remember the man whose very presence affirmed the goodness and dignity of life, not just in times of great vitality, but in years of declining strength, and eventually, in days of silence.

For his life of integrity and deep kindness and moral courage, the pope was loved by men, women and children of all faiths. So it is fitting that our great and diverse country should fly its flag at half staff in his memory as three presidents of the United States pay respects for the American people to John Paul the Great.

[Follow-up: "John Paul the Great" II.]

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Thu. 04/07/05 07:19:35 AM
Categorized as Pope John Paul the Great & Religious.