Pope Francis Defends “Memory” of Pope Saint John Paul II

Pope Francis recently defended St. John Paul II, denouncing recent allegations claiming the former pope secretly engaged in immoral nighttime activity.

Pope Francis addressed the issue on Divine Mercy Sunday, a day founded by John Paul II, and described the claims as “unsubstantiated and offensive.”

Following the Regina Caeli, Pope Francis spoke to the faithful in St. Peter’s Square and emphasized the importance of honoring the late pope’s memory and dismissing the baseless accusations against him.

The allegations emerged from Pietro Orlandi, the brother of Emanuela Orlandi, a 15-year-old Vatican citizen who disappeared 40 years ago.

Orlandi insinuated on Italian television that John Paul II would secretly leave the Vatican for immoral reasons. He and his family’s attorney did not reveal the source of this claim.

Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz, John Paul II’s personal secretary for over 30 years, vehemently dismissed the rumors as “baseless and vile.”

Meanwhile, Orlandi met with the Vatican’s chief prosecutor to discuss his sister’s disappearance, and Pope Francis granted the prosecutor full freedom to investigate the case without restrictions.

Vatican media director Andrea Tornielli has expressed that no one should be subject to such slander without evidence.