Legendary Poland’s Primate cardinal Stefan Wyszynski gave his votes to cardinal Karol Wojtyla during the conclave in 1978, historian Peter Raina claims.

These revelations come from Raina’s publication 1978: The Election of Pope John Paul II. In the book, the historian uses Cardinal Wyszynski’s journal as a reference. He was among the few people who has ever been granted access to it.

According to the book, during the conclave, Wyszynski was asked by a group of cardinals whether he would accept the appointment.

The Polish Primate was to decline and give several reasons for his decision: Firstly, he believed that the Bishop of Rome should be Italian and, secondly, he felt responsible for defending the Catholic Church in Eastern Europe. Allegedly, Wyszynski was also pointing to his age and stressed that the future pope should be more comprehensively prepared for his role.

According to Raina, Wyszynski suggested Karol Wojtyla as a more suitable candidate and added that it would be Wojtyla’s duty to accept the offer.

In the election following this alleged conversation, the name of Wyszynski never appeared in records again. Instead the name Karol Wojtyla is found, whose name, upon receiving the papacy, is changed to John Paul II.

Peter Raina is a conservative Catholic publicist, author of several books in Polish and

English on the Catholic Church in Poland. (jm)

Source: Rzeczpospolita