Saint John Paul II scales silo wearing full cassock in Portage County, WI, BONUS: 1976 video of the visit

I thought fo show I posted this already!

Get the book!  The following took place in 1976 on the soon to be pope's visit to Wisconsin.

Matt JK: JPII scales silo wearing cassock in portage county, great story! (my emphasis)
Portage County is generally known as a flat area with little change in elevation. It is often referred to as a plains area and is a mixture of agricultural fields and thick forests. Wojtyła had a knack for finding the highest place in a given area in order to survey it. As a result, when he noticed that the highest point on the farm was the silo, he naturally asked if he could scale it. The Zdroiks, especially the boys of the farm, were quite surprised by the request and at the same time impressed. They had never seen a Catholic priest, much less a cardinal dressed in his black cassock with a golden pectoral cross hanging around his neck, scale a silo. Yet, his clerical garb did not deter him, and Cardinal Wojtyła climbed the vertical ladder with relative ease, reached the top of the tower, and gazed over the vast plains below. He wanted to see the “green of America,” and that is exactly what he saw.33
Wisconsin farmland
AAAnnnnddd BONUS coverage today here on The Badger Catholic! Cardinal Karol Wojtyla's (Pope John Paul II) Visit to Stevens Point, WI, 23 August 1976

Lots of footage, media interviews
1:08:30 - Speech at UW Stevens Point(or I think UW Stevens Point rejected hosting the event, this is maybe at the public high school?)

1 comment:

Angie said...

This is great! The video is classic! @ SPASH? Glad you posted it. Pope St. John Paul II, pray for us.