TedLipien.com, Truckee, California, USA, May 01, 2011 — In a public diplomacy blunder likely to offend American Catholics, Polish-American voters and people in Poland, the Obama Administration failed to send a high-ranking American official to the beatification ceremonies for Pope John Paul II, which were held today at the Vatican. Many other religious and ethnic groups in America are also likely to be disturbed by the failure of President Obama to attend the ceremony himself or to send a special delegation headed by Vice President Biden. The White House could have also dispatched Secretary of State Hillary Clinton or prominent members of the U.S. Congress from both political parties. The United States was represented at the ceremony only by Miguel Diaz, the ambassador to the Vatican. This is considered the lowest level of representation at an important event of this kind. King Albert and Queen Paola of Belgium led the list of royalty present and 16 heads of state and several prime ministers attended, including Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski. Read more…
All posts tagged John Paul II
Beatification of John Paul II was a low priority public diplomacy event for President Obama
Hunger for God and Love – 1976 Radio Interview with Karol Wojtyla
TedLipien.com, Truckee, California, USA, May 01, 2011 — Pope John Paul II was beatified today at a ceremony at the Vatican. I’m reposting my radio interview with Cardinal Karol Wojtyla recorded and first broadcast by the Voice of America (VOA) in 1976. The interview was rebroadcast by VOA’s Polish Service on October 16, 1978, after the news of Cardinal Karol Wojtyła’s election as the new pope had been announced at the Vatican.
Listen to excerpt of 1976 Voice of America (VOA ) interview with Cardinal Karol Wojtyla. Ted Lipien talked with future Pope John Paul II in Washington, DC. Read more…
Reagan is Out, Obama is In – U.S. Embassies in Central and Eastern Europe Ignore 100 Anniversary of Ronald Reagan’s Birthday
TedLipien.com, Truckee, CA, February 08, 2011 — One would think that the centennial of Ronald Reagan’s birthday could be a perfect public diplomacy theme for all U.S. embassies in Central and Eastern Europe — a great opportunity for embassy-sponsored events to strengthen ties with America among diverse nations that owe their current independence and freedom in large part to President Reagan’s vision combined with his steadfastness in standing up to the “Evil Empire.” And yet, both highly-trained and highly-paid U.S. diplomats working in the countries of the former Soviet Block by and large completely ignored the anniversary of Ronald Reagan’s birthday. Only two diplomatic post out of more than a dozen in the region sponsored a public event designed to remind older and younger generations of East Europeans of Ronald Reagan’s contribution to freeing them from Soviet domination. Read more…
Who is the leader of the Free World? – Reagan, Bush, Obama – lessons in public diplomacy in response to anti-democracy crackdown in Belarus
En ce moment, il n’y a plus de pilote dans l’avion. [At the moment, there is no longer a pilot on the plane.] — A European comment on President Obama as a leader of the Free World.
TedLipien.com, Truckee, California, USA, January 03, 2011 — Who is the leader of the Free World when democracy is under threat? Read more…
“Hunger for God and Love” – Interview with Cardinal Karol Wojtyla, Future Pope John Paul II
The radio interview, recorded and first broadcast by the Voice of America (VOA) in 1976, was rebroadcast by VOA’s Polish Service on October 16, 1978, after the news of Cardinal Karol Wojtyła’s election as the new pope had been announced at the Vatican. Today is the 32 anniversary of the election of Karol Wojtyła as Pope John Paul II.
Listen to excerpt of 1976 Voice of America (VOA ) interview with Cardinal Karol Wojtyla. Ted Lipien talked with future Pope John Paul II in Washington, DC. Read more…
Interview Prior to Benedict XVI’s Visit to the US in 2008
Voice of America (VOA) Interview with Ted Lipien, author of Wojtyla’s Women: How Women, History and Polish Traditions Shaped the Life of Pope John Paul II and Changed the Catholic Church
INTRO: The head of the Roman Catholic Church Pope Benedict XVI is paying his first visit to the US April 15-20. What message might he bring to American Catholics? Will the conservative pope heed the call of liberal American Catholics, who advocate more freedom, an end to priest celibacy, and women in the priesthood? To shed light on some of these questions, VOA’s Ivana Kuhar recently spoke with Ted Lipien – a Vatican observer and author of an upcoming book on the late pope John Paul II.
Kuhar: In a few days, we will witness the first visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the US. How different is the Catholic Church in the United States now, as compared to the time of the first visit of Pope John Paul II in 1979?
Lipien: Indeed, pope Benedict XVI will be coming to a much different and much more conservative American Catholic Church than Pope John Paul II when he made his first historic visit to the US in 1979. The American Catholic Church has become much more conservative, largely due to Pope John Paul II, and, of course Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger who later became Pope Benedict XVI. Cardinal Ratzinger was Pope John Paul II’s primary advisor and associate. So, he also is responsible for this trend.
Ivana Kuhar , VOA: Studies and statistics show that many liberal Catholics have left the Catholic Church in the US. Why are liberal Catholics leaving the church?
Ted Lipien : Well, it’s widely assumed that they left because they disagreed with many of the positions that Pope John Paul II took on such issues as abortion, birth control, women priests, gay marriages and a general democracy within the Church. So, about one third of Americans who were raised Catholic had left the Church. This is unique because no other major religion or church has lost such a large proportion of its followers. Now, when I say that the Catholic Church is more conservative in the United States, it is still, I think, more liberal than some of the conservative movements within the Catholic Church in Europe.
Ivana Kuhar, VOA: In what respect?
Ted Lipien : For example, the conservative wing of the Catholic Church in the US is not highly nationalistic or xenophobic. Conservative Catholics in the US do not express anti-immigrant sentiments, as you will hear from some of the Catholic conservative groups in countries like Poland, or in some of the other countries in Europe.
Ivana Kuhar , VOA: Do you think that Americans essentially expect Pope Benedict XVI to continue with the same message as Pope John Paul II?
Ted Lipien : Now, I don’t think that American Catholics expect Benedict XVI to offer any major changes within the Church – they simply expect that he will continue the conservative positions on issues that John Paul II took, and in fact he may be even more conservative than John Paul II.
Ivana Kuhar , VOA: What is the main difference between the two pontiffs?
Ted Lipien : John Paul II, when he assumed his papacy, was much younger. He was a former actor. He communicated with gestures, rather than words. There was an excitement about his election and his papacy. Benedict XVI is in fact in some ways more conservative than John Paul II. He will continue all of the major policies of John Paul II. But, I think John Paul II was more careful, more conciliatory to other religions, more open toward the Third World. He saw the future of the Catholic Church in the Third World. It’s really hard to tell where Benedict XVI sees the future of the Catholic Church – whether he sees it in Western Europe and in the US, or whether he thinks that Catholicism will bloom in the Third World and will continue to decline in Western Europe.
Ivana Kuhar , VOA: What about Benedict’s view on priest celibacy and on women priesthood? Is Benedict’s view different than John Paul IIs?
Ted Lipien : Not at all. In fact, if anything, I think Cardinal Ratzinger was responsible to some degree for some of John Paul II’s strong pronouncements on these issues. So, don’t expect women priests, do not expect gay marriages, and do not expect changes in the Church’s position on birth control and abortion under Benedict XVI.
Ivana Kuhar , VOA: Are American Catholics asking for changes? Are they expecting any changes?
Ted Lipien : Well, those who have still remained within the Church, yes. There was a survey done in 1996, in which American Catholics were asked what they expect from a new pope. And anywhere from 65-70 percent said they are in favor of women priests, that they are in favor of more democracy within the Church, and they are in favor of married priests.
Ivana Kuhar , VOA: Does the Catholic Church have an answer for declining number of priests and nuns?
Ted Lipien : For example, in 1965, there were about 180 thousand nuns in the US. In 2005, there were only about 70 thousand. At the same time, the Catholic Church in the US has grown since then, largely due to immigration. But I don’t think that John Paul II, when he was alive, or Cardinal Ratzinger then and now, really thought that changing positions on these issues was the right answer. They would not change them, certainly not on abortion. Benedict XVI will probably not change the Church’s position on birth control. They would not want the Church to be in favor of abortion, of birth control or of radical feminism. I think they were willing to accept a smaller church, perhaps a church that is more conservative, and is dominated by Catholic churches in the developing world, although these churches are also changing as the result of globalization and media coverage. So, who knows what the future will bring.
Ivana Kuhar , VOA: Mr. Lipien, thank you for your time and insight.
Ted Lipien : My pleasure, Ivana.
Ted Lipien is the author of Wojtyla’s Women: How Women, History and Polish Traditions Shaped the Life of Pope John Paul II and Changed the Catholic Church. It was published by O-Books, UK, in June 2008, http://www.o-books.com/ .
Ted Lipien ’s email address is: mail@tedlipien.com. For radio, TV, Internet and print media interviews with the author, please call: 415-793-1642. For more information about Ted Lipien and his book on Pope John Paul II, please visit: www.TedLipien.com
This interview is in public domain and can be republished without additional permission.
Pope Benedict XVI Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/djsacche/185335570/ |Author=eürodäna @ Flickr |Date=2006-06-07 | This photo is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0 License.
Ted Lipien’s 1976 Interview with Card. Karol Wojtyla – future Pope John Paul II
Ted Lipien’s 1976 Interview with Card. Karol Wojtyla – future Pope John Paul II
(opening segment in Polish)
This interview was broadcast first by the Voice of America (VOA) in 1976.
Those interested in broadcast quality copy of the entire interview should send an email to: mail@tedlipien.com
English Transcript
Ted Lipien: I believe the just-concluded Eucharistic Congress in Philadelphia was the main purpose of your Eminence’s visit to the United States; may I ask you to share with us your impressions and to summarize the Congress’s goals and results.
Card. Karol Wojtyla: The Eucharistic Congress in Philadelphia was without any doubt the result of a solid concept, enormous work, and many preparations. In this spirit one should, I believe, also look at its results.
The concept of the Congress was expressed in its main theme: “The Eucharist and the Hungers of Contemporary Man.”* This theme was divided into many subjects. There is no doubt that we have a common need to raise awareness of the physical hunger — the hunger for daily bread — that this hunger afflicts many people and societies. The need to raise awareness about this issue, which is basic for many so-called underdeveloped societies, is especially present in America, in this perhaps the richest nation in the world.
The problem of hunger is as we can see the problem of justice for the entire human family. By taking on this issue, Cardinal Krol and the organizers of the Congress followed such papal encyclicals as John XXIII’s Mater at Magistra and Paul VI’s Populorum Progressio.
Together with this basic hunger– if one could use this expression — go other types of hungers of today’s Man, equally great and equally deeply felt by various societies, by different groups and finally by individuals. The organizers of the Congress rightly included in its program such themes as: “The Hunger for Liberty, “The Hunger for Truth,” “The Hunger for Understanding,” “The Hunger for Love.” To all of these hungers of today’s Man, the Eucharist provides a final dimension: Man hungers for God. His heart is unsettled without Him.
*”The Eucharist and the Aspirations of the Human Family” was the official theme of the 1976 Eucharistic Congress in Philadelphia.
Pope John Paul II’s 1979 Visit to the U.S. – VOA Video
President Jimmy Carter with Pope John Paul II, photograph by Bill Fitz-Patrick, October 6, 1979
Pope John Paul II’s 1979 Visit to the U.S. – VOA Video
President Jimmy Carter’s notes from his private meeting with Pope John Paul II, October 6, 1979, front
Although his notes are sketchy, they show that the discussion included particular situations in the Philippines, China, Europe, South Korea, and the Middle East. The White House issued a statement that day stating that during the meeting “the Pope and the President agreed that efforts to advance human rights constitute the compelling idea of our times.”
National Archives, Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum, Atlanta, Georgia
President Jimmy Carter’s notes from his private meeting with Pope John Paul II, October 6, 1979, reverse
National Archives, Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum, Atlanta, Georgia
John Paul II’s Close Friend Dr. Wanda Poltawska Defended Against Attacks by His Former Male Associates
Some of Pope John Paul II’s male friends and associates, including the Archbishop of Krakow, Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, have attacked Dr. Wanda Poltawska, a Polish psychiatrist and defender of traditional family values, for publicizing her private correspondence with the Pope. They claim that Dr. Poltawska has exaggerated her close personal and professional relationship with Karol Wojtyla. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Whether one agrees or not with her traditional views on gender roles and sexual ethics, as a close friend and his primary medical advisor and collaborator, Dr. Wanda Poltawska had an enormous influence on the development of Karol Wojtyla’s views on artificial contraception, the rhythm method, abortion and other family, marriage, and Church issues.
This former Nazi concentration camp inmate and victim of Nazi medical experiments helped Cardinal Wojtyla write a special study for Pope Paul VI, urging him to confirm the Catholic Church ban on artificial birth control, which he did by issuing Humanae vitae in 1968. Cardinal Wojtyla placed Dr. Poltawska in charge of his extensive program of teaching women natural birth control methods in the Krakow Archdiocese. She and her husband visited John Paul II frequently at the Vatican.
One could not underestimate the importance of her role as a Polish woman who helped to define and reinforce many of Karol Wojtyla’s views on women. Dr. Poltawska was also behind Pope John Paul II’s campaign to promote New Feminism – a Catholic version of feminism that defends traditional Church values relating to marriage, family, and gender roles while stressing equal dignity of men and women.
It’s interesting that some of the Pope’s close male friends were also attacking another Polish woman who also had a close professional relationship with Pope John Paul II. After he was elected pope in 1978, they tried to minimize the extent of his collaboration with Dr. Anna-Teresa Tymieniecka, a Polish-born phenomenologist living in the United States who had worked with Cardinal Wojtyla on translating into English and promoting his book The Acting Person.
In a letter to the Editor of The Universe Catholic newspaper in the UK, Elizabeth Price refers to my book about the role of remarkable Polish women in the life of Pope John Paul II. Despite of what Cardinal Dziwisz and some of the other male friends are now saying, Dr. Wanda Poltawska is one of those remarkable women.
Sir,
As a serious student of John Paul II’s Love and Responsibility and The Theology of The Body and Cardinal Wojtyla’s part in persuading Paul VI to reject the findings of the Pontifical Commission on Birth Control, I believe the influence of his friend the psychiatrist Mrs. Wanda Poltawska was vital. It is therefore a pity that Cardinal Dziwisz and Archbishop Zycinski want to prevent her publishing the correspondence between herself and John Paul II. (Article The Universe June 19th).
Little is known about her by Western Catholics, however a superb biography of John Paul II Wojtyla’s Women – How They Shaped the Life of John Paul II and Changed the Catholic Church by Ted Lipien (O Books 2008) is crucially informative. Ted Lipien is a journalist and broadcaster brought up in Poland who then migrated to the USA . His analysis of Polish culture and family customs, Nazism and Communism, feminism and the effect of all of these both on John Paul II and Wanda, who was a prisoner in a concentration camp, is mastery and thorough. He also gives frequent website addresses for further study. It is a great pity this superbly written very readable and informative book has not been reviewed in any of the Catholic newspapers in this country.
Yours faithfully,
Elizabeth Price
“Wojtyla’s Women: How They Shaped the Life of Pope John Paul II and Changed the Catholic Church,” a book about Pope John Paul II and feminism by international journalist Ted Lipien who had interviewed Karol Wojtyla, offers a unique perspective on the late Pope’s views on women and American society.
SAN FRANCISCO, CA, June 24, 2008 — John Paul II warned about the dangers of secular feminism but accepted of some of its ideas. A new book — “Wojtyla’s Women“ — explores the role of remarkable women who shaped the life of Pope John Paul II, supported his concept of “New Feminism,” and changed the Catholic Church.
Ted Lipien’s new book, “Wojtyla’s Women: How They Shaped the Life of Pope John Paul II and Changed the Catholic Church,” published by the UK publisher O-Books and available on Amazon, reveals for the first time the role of remarkable women in the life of Karol Wojtyla and their impact on his papacy and the Catholic Church. The book also explores John Paul II’s views on feminism, gender roles, love, sex, abortion, and contraception in the context of unprecedented threats against human dignity during his lifetime, from pre-World War II anti-Semitism to the Holocaust, Nazi medical experiments on women prisoners, and communist dictatorship.
The book shows how John Paul II, the most charismatic and influential Pope in centuries, reshaped many facets of Catholic thought. Yet, as Ted Lipien demonstrates, Church policy on women during John Paul II’s papacy remained deeply resistant to popular modern ideas on gender roles. Wojtyla’s Women explores John Paul II’s views on women, marriage, family and sexual ethics from both feminist and conservative Christian perspectives. Previously untapped sources reveal the influence of his upbringing in Poland at the outset of the Twentieth Century, a time when deeply rooted traditions collided with rapid social change and new ideas, against a backdrop of war, genocide, and political oppression.
As the book reveals, Polish women were a remarkable and unexpected influence on John Paul’s understanding of gender issues and the Catholic Church’s theology. They were also the main force behind his advancement of New Feminism and Theology of the Body as alternatives to the Sexual Revolution and to radical and Marxist feminism in the West and in the communist world.
The future Pope John Paul II told Polish Catholics before becoming pope that “the affairs of the Kingdom of God” cannot be left only to women and that “social advancement of women has in it a little bit of truth but also a great deal of error.” John Paul II was strongly opposed to ordaining women priests.
But while he could not reach an understanding with liberal Western women because of vast differences in how he and they were shaped by culture and history, Karol Wojtyla nevertheless supported many ideas embraced by secular feminists and broke with many misogynist Christian traditions.
“Wojtyla’s Women” also analyzes the considerable impact of John Paul II’s views and papacy on the abortion debate in the United States and his conflict with the Clinton Administration over U.S. policies on birth control programs and abortion in the Third World. Lipien writes in his book that John Paul II was successful in raising awareness of the moral aspects of abortion through his campaign of “the culture of life versus the culture of death.” The book demonstrates, however, that Wojtyla’s campaign to promote natural birth control methods for women has not succeeded in any country, including his native Poland.
With VOA Left Voiceless, Obama Fails to Reach Russian Public – Jonathan Liedl, The Heritage Foundation
This post by Jonathan Liedl of the Heritage Foundation on the SZONE.US Forum includes several links to FreeMediaOnline.org reports.
With VOA Left Voiceless, Obama Fails to Reach Russian Public
President Obama’s foreign policy thus far has been marked by an emphasis on public diplomacy. As a result, successfully engaging foreign publics has become a top priority of his administration. The President himself has taken an active role in this effort, delivering several high-profile speeches to audiences around the world. His July 7th oration in Moscow, which focused on the importance of media freedom and human rights, was one such occasion.
But Obama’s message failed to reach his intended audience- the Russian public. On Russian television, which is tightly controlled by the Kremlin, Obama’s remarks were largely ignored, receiving hardly any air-time.
To make matters worse, a crippling cyber-attack had rendered the international websites of Voice of America (VOA) useless. As a result, VOA, the federally-funded broadcast service congressionally mandated to provide objective, accurate news to foreign audiences, was utterly incapable of offering the Russian public unbiased coverage of the President’s speech. VOA’s loss of web-based capabilities might have been less damaging if not for the fact that its oversight, the Broadcasting Board of Governors, decided in 2008 to completely do away with VOA’s Russian language radio and television broadcasts into the country.
VOA has demonstrated its ability to circumvent anti-American state-media and deliver objective news programming, most notably in Iran following the June 12th election. However, the internet-only approach in Russia, and the inability to provide sufficient security for this service, allowed Kremlin-controlled media to undermine Obama’s attempt to connect with the Russian public. Unless the Obama Administration takes the necessary steps to ensure the vitality of VOA and similar programs, our nation’s outreach to foreign publics will continue to be rebuffed by unreceptive governments.
>
-
U.S. Taxpayers Pay for Spreading Racist Views on Radio Liberty in Russia
-
Citizen Journalists in Belarus Tell Election Story to Voice of America but VOA Fails to Deliver News Back to Belarus
-
Kremlin Can’t Pursue War Against Internet Without Hackers, Expert Says, But This Is No Consolation for Voice of America
-
Broadcasting Board of Governors Tried to Hire John Cochran for a Public Relations Job While Cutting Voice of America Radio to Russia
-
RFE/RL Has Lost Its Uniqueness Warns Former Director of Radio Liberty's Russian Service
-
CUSIB’s Ted Lipien warns against diminished public stake in U.S. international broadcasting
-
BBG Watch stories added to TedLipien.com
-
Samizdat at Radio Free Europe – Radio Liberty describes discrimination against foreigners, women and ‘old white guys’
-
Top China-Watcher Dr. Willy Lam supports continuing Voice of America Chinese broadcasts
-
BBG Watch most popular posts focus on mismanagement at Broadcasting Board of Governors
Opinia.US
Anonymous: This is correct? How is he justifying this? To retain these employee...
Brahna: Like too many others, Mr. Lobo fell into step, following "past practic...
Anonymous: Horsecrap. Nothing says SES members have to get bonuses. Anyone earn...
VOA contractor: I am very happy to see the POV director at VOA has posted a survey lin...
Anonymous1: You're right. it is truly extraordinary. Victor Ashe is a courageous...