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St. Pete Exhibit Celebrates Pope's Connection To Jews

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By NICOLA M. WHITE, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 14, 2008

Updated: 01/13/2008 11:11 pm

ST. PETERSBURG - He was in his 20s during one of the most turbulent times in European history. Almost every Jew in his small Polish town died during the Holocaust.

World War II and the persecution of Europe's Jews had a profound effect on young Karol Wojtyla before he became Pope John Paul II.

A traveling exhibit that opened Sunday at the Florida Holocaust Museum shows just how much. Through photographs, videos and personal letters, the exhibit commemorates the late pope's connection to the Jewish community and his efforts to heal centuries of pain between the Catholic Church and the Jewish faith.

"A Blessing to One Another: Pope John Paul II & the Jewish People" will be at the museum through April 13. The exhibit features photos of the pope as a baby and excerpts from letters in which he writes about his parents dying and how hurt he felt when his Jewish classmates were killed after the Nazis invaded Poland.

The exhibit chronicles how John Paul II was the first pope to recognize the state of Israel and his apologies for the Catholic Church's failure to intervene during the Holocaust and mistakes "in every age."

"I think it's very moving," said Murielle Rotella, a Catholic from Tampa who came to the exhibit Sunday with her husband, Joseph, and some Jewish friends. "Many of these things I didn't know about John Paul II."

"I got goose pimples," Joseph Rotella said. "I think the pope is one of the greatest ambassadors to religion in the world. This guy is unbelievable."

Museum officials hope the exhibit, which is being locally sponsored by the Diocese of St. Petersburg, will bring people of all faiths together.

"It's marvelous," said Marcia Shepard, of Bradenton, who went to the exhibit with her husband, Marvin. "Those of us who are Jewish will learn about his life, and those who are not will learn about the Jewish people."

IF YOU GO

"A Blessing to One Another: Pope John Paul II & the Jewish People" will be at the Florida Holocaust Museum through April 13. The museum, located at 55 Fifth Street S. in St. Petersburg, is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. For information, visit www.flholocaustmuseum.org, or call (727) 820-0100.

Reporter Nicola M. White can be reached at (813) 779-4613 or nwhite1@tampatrib.com.

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