45 years from the attack on Saint John Paul II during a General Audience in St Peter’s Square, the memory of the event continues to be linked to themes of prayer, forgiveness, and trust in God reflected in the words of the Pope and his successors.
Vatican News
Forty-five years have passed since the attack on Pope John Paul II in Saint Peter’s Square on 13 May 1981, an event that marked the history of the Church and dramatically drew the attention of the international community.
The memory of that day remains linked not only to the images from Saint Peter’s Square, but also to the words of prayer, forgiveness, and trust in God pronounced in the years that followed by the Pope and his successors.
In May 1981, the international socio-political context was marked by renewed tensions between East and West. The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan had intensified the Cold War climate, while concern was growing in Eastern Europe over the emergence of the independent trade union Solidarność in Poland. In Italy, years of terrorism and extremist political violence known as the Anni di Piombo – Years of Lead – rocked society to the core.
On Wednesday, 13 May 1981, Saint Peter’s Square was filled with pilgrims gathered for the weekly General Audience. Pope John Paul II was greeting the faithful from the white jeep traditionally used to circle the square when shots were fired at close range. The Pope was seriously wounded and immediately transported to Rome’s Gemelli Hospital.
Among those reporting on the event live was Vatican Radio journalist Benedetto Nardacci, whose voice conveyed the confusion and silence that followed the attack.
Observing the crowd in the square, he described people standing in silence and waiting for news, while bishops and clergy invited the faithful to pray for the Pope’s recovery.
A statement released by the Holy See Press Office later confirmed that the Pope had been struck in the abdomen and was undergoing surgery at the Gemelli Hospital. The communiqué added that, although his condition was serious, there were “founded hopes for recovery.”
Four days later, during the Regina Caeli message from the hospital, John Paul II addressed the faithful and spoke publicly of forgiveness for Mehmet Ali Ağca, the man responsible for the attack.
He assured his prayers for the attacker and entrusted himself once more to the Virgin Mary with the words: “Totus tuus ego sum.”
Suffering transformed through love
In the years that followed, the events of 13 May 1981 became closely associated with the Pope’s devotion to Our Lady of Fatima. John Paul II repeatedly expressed his conviction that his life had been preserved through her intercession.
During the funeral Mass for John Paul II on 8 April 2005, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger reflected on the late Pope’s witness of suffering and faith. Referring to passages from John Paul II’s final book, Memory and Identity, he spoke of suffering transformed through love and united to the mystery of Christ.
Pope Francis also recalled the attack during the General Audience of 12 May 2021, on the eve of the anniversary. Referring to the connection between the date of the attack and the liturgical memorial of Our Lady of Fatima, he said the event reminds humanity that “our life and the history of the world are in God’s hands.”
The memory of Saint John Paul II continues to resonate in the life of the Church. On 11 May 2025, shortly after his election to the See of Peter, Pope Leo XIV addressed young people during the Regina Caeli, repeating the words closely associated with the pontificate of Pope Wojtyła: “Do not be afraid! Accept the invitation of the Church and of Christ the Lord.”
A week later, on 18 May 2025, the anniversary of the birth of Karol Wojtyła, Pope Leo XIV presided at the Mass marking the beginning of his Petrine ministry.