Virginia Foxx: “I rise this evening to pay my respects to one of the world's greatest spiritual leaders, Pope John Paul II. The Pope was…”

“I rise this evening to pay my respects to one of the world's greatest spiritual leaders, Pope John Paul II. The Pope was a wonderful humanitarian who was much more than just a leader of the Catholic Church and its 1 billion members around the globe. He was a servant of God, whose purpose in life was to work on behalf of all of humanity. John Paul II was a courageous man, courageous all his life, who worked to make the world a better place by fighting for basic human rights, such as the right to freedom from oppression. Having grown up under nazism and communism, he understood firsthand the negative effects of totalitarian rule. He inspired a ``revolution of conscience'' in his home country of Poland, which Lech Walesa credits helped bring about the fall of communism. The Pope was not afraid to take a tough stand and challenge dictators face to face. His criticism of rulers such as Alfred Stroessner in Paraguay, Augusto Pinochet in Chile, and Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines encouraged opposition movements that eventually led to the demise of their regimes. The Pope was also a staunch advocate of the right to life. He constantly challenged people to foster a culture of life.”