I concluded Part 2 with a description of the nine languages in which Pope St. John Paul II was fluent. Here, I begin with a description of the languages in which he communicated although he was not fluent in them. I will conclude this series with lessons for priests and laity to be learned from him.

Languages in Which He Was Not Fluent

In addition to those languages in which His Holiness was fluent, there are those numerous languages he learned to pronounce in order to greet the people — whether they came to Rome or he traveled to them. For example, he delivered greetings in English, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Czech, Ukrainian, and Lithuanian on the occasion of his papal inauguration, October 22, 1978.[i] He delivered greetings in Japanese, English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Chinese, German, and Russian at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial on February 25, 1981.[ii] He spoke in Pidgin English during a beatification homily in Papua New Guinea, January 1995.[iii] He celebrated Mass in the languages of Igbo, Efik, Tiv, Hausa, Edo, and Yoruba, in Oba, Nigeria, in March 1998.[iv]

It is important to observe that John Paul II’s purpose in his language studies was not to impress his audience with his facility but to communicate to them. And he worked at it. Before his February 1981 visits to the Philippines and Japan, he worked two hours every day in studying how to pronounce Tagalog and Japanese.[v] On that trip to the Philippines, he addressed the million Filipinos present for the beatification of Lorenzo Ruiz in Tagalog and English.[vi] The trip that year to Japan was recalled by Rev. Franco Sottocornola, director of the Shinmeizan Center for Interreligious Dialogue in Japan, at a three-day event held in Kraków in 2009:

In Nagasaki… the Pope presided over the Eucharist and welcomed in the Church a group of ‘hidden Christians,’ ordaining new priests and celebrating other liturgical rites, entirely in Japanese. Sottocornola classifed this as ‘an amazing event.’ ‘Later I learned from well-informed individuals that the Holy Father had prepared for months, celebrating Mass in Japanese in his private chapel… To hear the Pope speak in their own language profoundly moved the Japanese… [John Paul II was] a master in the art of communicating…’[vii]

Undoubtedly, Pope St. John Paul II took special pleasure in writing the apostolic letter Slavorum Apostoli (The Apostles of the Slavs), June 5, 1985, to commemorate the 1100^th year since Saint Methodius had died.[viii] The brothers Cyril and Methodius were responsible for evangelizing the Slavs and translating the Bible and liturgical texts. As John Paul wrote: “They realized that an essential condition of the success of their missionary activity was to transpose correctly Biblical notions and Greek theological concepts into a very different context of thought and historical experience.”[ix] John Paul quoted St. Cyril’s defense of the use of vernacular in attacking those Church officials who would restrict the Scriptures to but three languages:

[M]any peoples had already in the past and now possessed a liturgy written and celebrated in their own language, such as “the Armenians, the Persians, the Abasgians, the Georgians, the Sogdians, the Goths, the Avars, the Tirsians, the Khazars, the Arabs, the Copts, the Syrians…And you are not ashamed to decree only three languages (Hebrew, Greek and Latin), deciding that all other peoples and races should remain blind and deaf!… ‘Let every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.’” [Phil. 2:11; my emphasis].[x]

Lessons for Priests and Laity

Few of us, priests or lay, can emulate His Holiness the Saint in becoming fluent in seven languages and Latin in addition to his native language, and in learning how to pronounce numerous other languages to be understood. But we, priests and laity, could do the following to spread the Gospel:

1)Learn one language in addition to our native tongues.[xi]

2)Learn to pronounce Latin. It would take a very large number of multilingual priests to be able to celebrate Mass and the sacraments in the multitude of languages spoken in many of our parishes, wherever they are located in the world. It simply cannot be done. For example, the Catholic cathedral in Oslo, Norway, St. Olaf, completed in 2016, has parishioners from 70 countries.[xii] While its Masses are celebrated in six languages (Norwegian, English, Polish, Vietnamese, Croatian, and Tagalog), Mass is not celebrated on Sundays (much less weekdays) in all six languages.[xiii] Furthermore, some parishioners cannot understand any of the six languages.

One alternative, as Pope Benedict XVI required for “international Masses” at which there are large numbers of attendees fluent in diverse languages, is the celebration of Mass in Latin. This can be effective if a substantial number are familiar with the Latin Mass — either Tridentine or Novus Ordo.[xiv] On May 11, 2025, Pope Leo XIV, in his first public appearance, sang the “Regina Coeli” in Latin.

3)Use simultaneous interpretation. I dub this “the Mass in Tongues” because of its similarity to the event on Pentecost where each could hear the Spirit-filled Apostles in his own language (Acts 2:6; see also Mark 16:15-17). One celebrant, speaking in a single language, can be heard in the various languages of those present if there are (1) interpreters and (2) modern technology. The following is one example of this:

The Yoida Full Gospel Church has 800,000 members throughout South Korea and other countries… On Sundays, there are services every two hours — each attended by about 12,000 — in the church’s vast halls in downtown Seoul…All the services are in Korean, but simultaneous interpretation is available in English, Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, French, Russian, Indonesian and Malay.[xv]

Similarly, the First Baptist Church of Glenarden, Maryland, a “megachurch,” has a sanctuary for 4,000 people with an audioroom where members interpret the services into Spanish for Spanish-speaking members with headphones sitting in the sanctuary (that is, the main part of the church).[xvi]

Legionary of Christ Father Edward McNamara, professor of liturgy at the Regina Apostolorum university, addressed the issue of simultaneous interpretation of homilies in two columns for Zenit dated September 11 and 25, 2007. In his September 11 column, Father McNamara stated his decided preference that the priest-homilist read his prepared text in the language of the people even if it is accented and otherwise problematic. He would prefer this over having a deacon or a layperson reading the text prepared by the priest because of the confusion among the congregation over whose homily is actually being delivered. He recognizes that the simultaneous translation, by either a deacon or layperson, is legitimate under canon law. In his September 25 column, he quoted with approval a reader who found the simultaneous translation to be extremely beneficial since the people can see and hear the priest-homilist’s intonations, facial expressions, and gestures. Fr. McNamara added that, if an immediate simultaneous translation would not be possible, one solution would be to have a translation prepared ahead of time, with the English delivered by the priest-homilist in sections, and the foreign language translation given after each section.[xvii]

We already have a precedent for the concept of simultaneous translation of Mass. It is the signing of the Mass for the deaf simultaneously with the words stated, or sung, in a vocal language. I add that canon law, in Canons 983, 990, and 1388, allows a third person to serve as translator during the Sacrament of Reconciliation between priest and penitent. (Has this ever been utilized?)

4)Finally, learn how to pronounce a language other than one’s own. All those who celebrate Mass, who serve as lectors, who recite the Prayers of the Faithful, who sing hymns, and who serve as ushers/greeters, can learn how to pronounce the languages of those who attend Mass. Furthermore, when we, priest or lay, visit the homebound, we can pray the Our Father and the Anima Christi and some other prayers in their languages.

[A link to Part 1 is here; a link to Part 2 is here.]

[i] Weigel, p. 262.

[ii] Weigel, p. 394.

[iii] Weigel, p. 751.

[iv] Weigel, p. 773. This Mass in Oba, Nigeria, is an example of a “multiethnic [or more properly multilingual] Mass” as mentioned by Rev. Edward McNamara, L.C., in “Genuflections and Ciboria: And More on Languages,” Zenit.org, Sept. 25, 2012.

[v] Weigel, p. 391.

[vi] Weigel, p. 392.

[vii] Rev. Franco Sottocornola, “September 7th: Panel on Memory and Prophecy: The Spiritual Heritage of John Paul II: Japanese Memories; “The Spirit of Assisi in Kraków, Sept. 6-8, 2009, Community of Sant’Egidio. See also US News & World Report, 6/27/83 USNWR 22 1983 WLNR 365345 (celebrating Mass in Japanese for three months before his visit).

Rev. Edward McNamara, L.C., a professor of liturgy and dean of theology at the Regina Apostolorum University has discussed the canonical texts on the question of the validity of a Mass celebrated in a tongue in which the celebrant is not fluent. “Knowledge of Latin,” Zenit.org, June 10, 2014.

[viii] Slavorum Apostoli (1985).

[ix] Id., para. 11.

[x] Id., para. 17.

[xi] This was recognized as a necessity by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in 2001. The Basic Plan for the Ongoing Formation of Priests | USCCB, sec. H(5).

[xii] “Project Launched to Build New Cathedral in Norway,” Zenit.org, June 3, 2014 (no longer accessible).

[xiii] “St. Olav’s Catholic Church,” Visit Oslo.

[xiv] “In order to express more clearly the unity and universality of the Church, I wish to endorse the proposal made by the Synod of Bishops, in harmony with the directives of the Second Vatican Council, (182) that, with the exception of the readings, the homily and the prayer of the faithful, it is fitting that such liturgies [international gatherings] be celebrated in Latin. Similarly, the better-known prayers (183) of the Church’s tradition should be recited in Latin and, if possible, selections of Gregorian chant should be sung.” Post-Synodal Exhortation Sacramentum Caritas, Feb. 22, 2007.

Of course, Benedict XVI was referring to a Mass for members of the Latin Church and perhaps a papal Mass for the Universal Church. Some language other than Latin may be appropriate for an “international Mass” with large numbers of congregants from any of the non-Latin Churches.

[xv] Reena Advani, “Church in Seoul Full of Korea’s Faithful,” All Things Considered, National Public Radio, Aug. 25, 2005.

[xvi] Hamil R. Harris, “Where We Worship: First Baptist Church of Glenarden,” Washington Post, Sept. 23, 2011.

[xvii] “Spanish Homilies Read by a Layman,” Zenit.org, Sept. 11, 2007, with follow-up Sept. 25, 2007.