'A man of heroic virtues'

Gozo Bishop Nikol Cauchi said the Pope was a man with beautiful, profound and heroic virtues whose constant attention to fulfilling his duties were points in favour of any future canonisation.

Paying tribute to the Pope, Mgr Cauchi said: "His teachings were solid and clear. He was a person - and I don't think there are many of these - who would not say one thing and do another but whose words and deeds truly reflected what was in his heart and mind.

"He was very popular. We know that young people loved him a lot and this was evident in the way they reacted and conversed with him. But I don't think he ever sought popularity and he was certainly never prepared to sacrifice his principles for it. He moved along the lines of the principles of the Gospel; like Christ there were a lot of people that didn't agree with his views and actions but he preached the truth as Christ had taught it. For him, the values of the Gospel came first and foremost and were non negotiable."

Mgr Cauchi said the Pope's teachings were consistently solid and clear: "He taught people that the Church also has a social role and he took a great interest in the social doctrine of the Church. He used to talk of the logic of power and the logic of politics - that people in positions of power reach certain conclusions that normal people recognise as absurd but which they don't think twice about pressing ahead with. The Pope was realistic in the sense that he had his finger on the pulse of humanity and he knew exactly what was going on... he played his part in helping many countries in Europe find peace and freedom once again."

The Bishop said that in his suffering the Pope embodied the teachings of Christ and values of the Gospel. "Some people won't understand this point but the Pope was a contemplative person. Apart from his knowledge of theology, philosophy, history and languages, he had a certain familiarity with the contemplative thinkers of the Catholic faith... So the Pope looked at things in a different way to most people: I think he was so close to Christ that he replicated certain facets. I think he bore some of the suffering and took it with the same sentiments as Christ."

Mgr Cauchi first met Karol Wojtyla when he was still a cardinal at a Synod of Bishops in 1974, when they were in the same discussion group. "The topic was communism and I think when he spoke it was an eye-opener for the rest of us to understand what was going on behind the Iron Curtain. He was a bubbly person whose personality left an impression on you, even the powerful, persuasive manner in which he spoke. And he had a long memory: in fact, when I met him after he became Pope he remembered me straight away and mentioned the occasion in which we had first met."

He said the Pope had a lot of respect for the Maltese. "The Archbishop and I even had occasion to have a light dinner with him and we often told him that our flag was like the Polish one. Once I even recounted the story of the Great Siege in Gozo and the Pope spent about 15 minutes listening to me. He was very careful when talking to others not just to get his message across but to listen to what they had to say - even with children. I think that was one of his greatest qualities.

"He enjoyed smiling and seeing other people smile. And he also took a joke, though one suitable for his ears of course, so that aspect of him wasn't lacking. For me he was the perfect gentleman. Obviously, like every other person, he had his shortcomings but I think he was a very appropriate person to sit on St Peter's throne."

The Bishop said moments like the passing of a Pope always marked an anxious time for the Church but it had emerged from every difficult occasion and flourished. "It is important to remember two things: the office of the Vatican is well organised so administrative matters continue to run smoothly; second, and more importantly, we as Christians believe that Christ always remains close to His Church even when we are going through difficult times."

And on whether the Pope's replacement should be a relatively young man Mgr Cauchi was philosophical: "God is all knowing. You can have an old head on young shoulders or the opposite: an old man with the energy of a much younger one. John XXIII was 77 when he became Pope and some people wondered what he could do. But he brought about radical reforms apart from drawing people towards the Church. The cardinals decide but we Catholics believe that is not just the Pope that runs the Church but that Christ is also involved."

The Bishop appealed to people to treat the Pope with respect even if they did not agree with his views and to pay for him: "People should pray that he gets the reward he deserves".