Dear FRONTLINE

Not to diminsh the good of Pope John II, however, your fluffing over issues regarding the vast enthusiasm shared by the Polish people in killing Jews is unforgivable. View Kaufman's film Shoah. Your further fluff about Pope Pius's concern about Jews being the reason for his silence requires thinking people to suspend reality. If Pope Pius had been so concerned about Jews, as you report, he would have taken action against the head of the Polish Catholic Church that you rported to have sent around the statement balming Jews for the ills of Polish society. BEtter yet, he would have changed the dogma of the Church blaming Jews for the death of Christ. He did nothing and by Catholic dictum, sins of omission, is thoroughly guilty of crimes against humanity. He, alone, had the power to save lives, yet refused to act.
I am thoroughly disappointed in your sloppy reporting which only detracts from the real good Pope John II has brought to the church.

G Lerner

Dear FRONTLINE

I wasn't seeking faith when I found it; instead I was compelled to make a decision which was only the foundation of faith. I remember distinctly the grain of the table I traced with my fingertip as the unexpected presence of God urged me with these words: "You can no longer walk the line; you are either for me or against me. Choose now." There were no guarantees either way, and never will be, at that juncture. But what I've found since making a decision in favor of faith is that the evidence of faith comes after commitment, and not before. There's just no way to circumvent this process!

t. g

Dear FRONTLINE

I believe This Pope's legacy will be to bring all religions professing a belief in God closer together in love and understanding. His restatement of basic truths will shine as a beacon to those drowning in relativism.Those trying to declare a democracy where they get to vote on right and wrong will continue to oppose this Pope's teaching which depends on God's will not the popular majority.

Gene Walacavage

Dear FRONTLINE

While this is my first time to respond to your program, or to any program, for that matter, I felt moved to do so by your once again intelligent reporting. The sheer fineness of your programs, along with the thoughtfulness, and depth that you offer is refreshing and reassuring in a medium choked by commercials and commercialism. You restore my faith in broadcast journalism, and I am glad to help support PBS.

Joseph Corbett
Rehoboth, Massachusetts

Dear FRONTLINE

Without truth there is no love. Is the person loving God who they have made in their own image and likeness or are they letting God reveal himself to man as He truly is?
Sexuality for John Paul II is the couples way of entering into a communion of persons, similar to the communion of persons that takes place in the Blessed Trinity. John Paul II is saying that contraception, abortion and homosexual acts as defined by God, are obstacles to this union with God who is life giving and love giving.
Jesus said, " Blessed are the Pure of heart they shall see God." JPII's counsels are the way of the pure of heart. One has to choose between being a son or daughter of the world or a son and daughter of God.
Just like the Holy Spirit a third person proceeds from the Father and Son in the communion of persons in the Trinity, a third person the child proceeds from the communion of life and love between husband and wife. The family is an icon of the Blessed Trinity. Contraception destroys the image and likeness the married couple have to the Trinity.
Hooray for JP II who understands this so well and is trying to lead married couples to this union with God in their sexuality and in their lives. He is only against contraception and abortion because it destroys this union and likeness the couple has to the Trinity. When a married couple is open to new life it is possible for three persons to be one flesh, similar to three persons in one God, in the Trinity.
Read his book "Love and Responsibility" where he frees couples to enter into a union with God in their married love.

John Purk
Kansas City, MO

Dear FRONTLINE

The highlight of the program was the ex-prison warden speaking on his experience with the death penalty. Euthanasia, abortion, the death penalty - it is too easy sometimes to see these issues from all sides. The Pope's insistence on valuing human life over convenience will be his main legacy.

Michael Colangelo

Dear FRONTLINE

PBS had a chance to show a true and vivid picture of this man and fell miserably short. Professor judt seems to fancy himself a papal psycologist rather than a professor of eastern europe. his observations were rather trendy but quite shallow given the life we've seen led by John Paul. The Church was not established as a democracy by Christ. The Pope's teachings have been consistent with the gospel message and the doctrines of the Church. Catholics are not only called to faith they are called to obedience.With regard to the holocaust, to say the Catholic Church was silent about what was happening to the Jews is to revise history. The reports of the day including the NY times said that the Catholic Church was the only voice speaking out. The Chief Rabbi of Rome was so moved by the actions of Pope Pius to protect the Jews that he converted to Catholicism. You may also want to read statements by Golda Mier and the book on Pius by Jewish author Pinchus Lapide. Was enough done? certainly not! But when the Dutch bishops spoke out again hundreds were killed the next day.

Mike McGuire
Burke, Virginia

Dear FRONTLINE

During these difficult times of lost of faith, moral values and love I believe Pope John Paul II is a messenger reminding us the scriptures and the message giving to us by our God since ancient time. Love one another! If we were truly loving beings we would be incapable of harming anybody neither physically, nor psychologically, nor morally, nor intellectually, nor spiritually. John Paul II is holding the church together, its integrity and its values. And he is taking this message of God a step further; he is bringing it to all humanity, not only to the Catholics. He is reaching out in his role to save souls.

Carolina Sievers
Houston, TX

Dear FRONTLINE

The Holy father does not seek to leave a legacy behind. Please do not try to make him like the current President. He will be remembered for his authenticity! First to Our Lord as a child of God. Second for being faithful as the succesor to the Apostle Peter which the office he has been called to.Lastly, as Pope John Paul II The Great! A Pope who was faithful to and taught the Church and the world the true "Spirit" of the Second Vatican Council.

Tom Krug
Edmond, Oklahoma

Dear FRONTLINE

I only got to see the last hour of the special on JPII, but I am immensely grateful that it was produced and put on. I cannot judge the way the film handled conflicts within the Roman Church, since I am an Anglican; but as a presentation of a man of deep faith in the God of Life in the midst of a culture of death, this film was magnificent. I was surprised that no one interviewd Michael O'Brien, author of Father Elijah and other Children of the Last Days novels, who dealt with many of the themes Pope John Paul II has confronted throughout his life.

As for the part about women's ordination, I wish people would understand what the Pope means when he says that the priesthood is a sacred gift from Christ, no one has a right to it, and the Church does not have the authority to change the priesthood. You may not agree with this, but I hope people will try to understand. We in the Episcopal Church have women priests, and most of them may well be devoted servants of our Lord. But how do we know we are right about this? I appreciate the Pope's humility on this issue--the humility to recognize the limits of human authority, even in the church which claims the highest degree of authority for the Church.

Fr. Joseph Davis
Memphis, TN.

Dear FRONTLINE

In the years to come. I do think that this Pope will be regarded as a great person. With very special regards. He has done a great deal of good for many countries and for leaders of nations. No one will ever forget nor will history. He has done a great deal to help non Catholic's as well as bring back a lot of people within the Catholic Church back to the faith of the church. I am to this day very impressed with his warm ability to be with the people and for the people.

Eldreth Nancy
Landenberg, PA

Dear FRONTLINE

Except for brief portions of the last two segments the show was a deplorable hatchet job. You paraded a group of writers and intellectuals who attempted to dismiss the Pope as a man whose views are the result of a torturous and pessimistic early life. Perhaps their rejection of him is a result of their torturous and pessimistic current life?

Of course skewering him with amateur psychoanalysis makes the depth of his and Catholic teaching much easier to dismiss. The unremitting parade of persons who deplored his i.e. Catholic teaching could have easily been balanced by segments from the many of us -- including prominent theologians and intellectuals -- who agree with him. You did a great disservice to your viewers in all but the last two segments. I do not expect you to tell only "his" side of the story. I do expect the intellectual rigor of his achievements and the depth of support he evokes to ACTUALLY be part of the story. You would never know he was an accomplished philosopher in his own right from watching your show.

Tieing the church's teaching on artificial contraception to a memory of his Mother-as-Virgin-Mary was particularly insulting and dismissive. It might give you a different perspective to look at very successful methods of natural family planning such as the Sympto-Thermal method as well as his book "Love and Responsibility"

The biased heart of the program was only partially redeemed by Suro's? doubt that JPII may be a prophet and the modern world misguided.

BY the way...you need to get a better research staff. Check out the full speech of the pre-war Polish Cardinal you quoted and you will realize it has the exact opposite of the meaning you gave it.

Rod Coffey
Leavenworth, KS

Dear FRONTLINE

The teachings of Christ were not understood or acted upon by many when He walked upon this earth. That is because the world was busy preparing the garden of what would become Christianity. The same is true of Pope John Paul II. It will be many years, perhaps a thousand years before the legacy of this man is written.

Dan Twork
Ashland City, Tennessee

Dear FRONTLINE

Ms. Germaine was right, at university as a student of logic and reason I lost my faith; although I must confess, it was not very strong to begin with. However, as a senior in college something drew me back to the church and two weeks before graduation I took my first communion/confirmation. However, even before that time I have struggled with the conflict between reason & faith with only the advice from a remarkable political science professor to guide me. He too was a student of logic but ironically also a very devout catholic. I asked him once, "How do you reconcile your faith with what you know about reason & logic?" and he said to me "You can't. Greater men than us struggled with the same issues and we can only hope to come to a greater understanding someday." I think listening to Mr. Stone's testimony tonight helped me take one step towards that goal. For that, I thank you.

Eddie Cortes
Houston, Texas

Dear FRONTLINE

I was disappointed that the discussion on faith did not attempt to deal with the subject that went beyond what is common knowledge. For example, is it a matter of belief, a matter of trust, or both? Or is it something more? It should be expected that what has been handed down to us as authoratative spiritual knowledge Faith will undergo reinterpretation in some relevant and coherent way before it is accepted by thoughtful persons.

jim gomez
houston, tx