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Someone sent David a link to a message board and asked him to put a thoughtful memory of the Pope. Here�s what he posted

My favorite memory of Pope John Paul II was the day he was riding through the crowds of tens of thousands of people who had waited up to a week in the rain and cold for a chance just to see the man. In the middle of the parade he suddenly stopped waving, his cheeks went white, and he told the driver to stop. He ambled onto the top of his bulletproof display case car and through a megaphone said, "Why are you all idolizing me? Go home and love your neighbor. He thinks you are self-righteous. Love your children. They are going to catch a cold out here. It's not like I have anything to do with your salvation. Whether I bless you or not has no bearing on the Mercy of God or the Judgment of God. I am a figurehead. Maybe if we had coffee sometime I could get to know you and then you could quantify your misplaced fervor and devotion."

Oh wait. That never happened. But I wish it had. What did the Pope think of the "Grand Inquisitor" chapter in Brothers Karamazov by Dostoevsky? What would he think about Saint Augustine�s statement "The church is a whore, but she's your mother"? What was his take on Martin Luther's 95 theses? What about the proud, spotless history of the Catholic Church? Or the pattern of molestation among so many priests in the last few decades? What were his personal relationships like? Who held him accountable? What did he struggle with? I'm sure he was a nice guy. But did he do more than bless people and wave? I don't get it.