13/05/2026
On 13 May 1981, the world fell silent for a moment.
The sun was shining in St Peter’s Square; people were smiling at the Pope, waving their hands and holding up their children. And suddenly, shots rang out. A man dressed in white slumped in agony. In an instant, fear gripped the hearts of millions of people.
And yet, at that moment, God wrote a story greater than hatred.
Saint John Paul II would later say simply, like a man who had touched a mystery:
“One hand fired the shot, and another guided the bullet.”
He truly believed that Our Lady of Fatima had saved him. It was no coincidence that the assassination attempt took place on the very anniversary of the apparitions at Fatima. It was as if Mary had stood between her son’s death and his life.
People often ask: why suffering? Why does pain also affect the good? John Paul II did not answer with grand theories. He answered with his life. He showed that suffering endured with God does not destroy a person — it purifies the heart. It teaches us to love more. It teaches us to trust even when everything hurts.
What is most moving, however, is something else.
The Pope forgave the man who wanted to kill him. Not years later. Not when emotions had subsided. He forgave almost immediately. And later he went to prison and looked the assassin in the eye as a brother. This is Christianity in its purest form — not just talking about loving one’s enemies, but truly loving when the heart has been wounded.
Today, many years on, those bullets no longer scream with hatred. One of them rests in the crown of the statue of Our Lady of Fatima. It is a beautiful sign. A sign that faith is stronger than violence. That good can triumph over evil. That God can save a person even in the midst of darkness.
The 45th anniversary of the assassination attempt is not merely a commemoration of that dramatic day. It is a lesson for each of us.
That we must not lose hope.
That forgiveness has greater power than revenge.