For the benefit of man – personalistic aspects of John Paul II’s thought

Abstract

The Encyclical Redemptor hominis, which was the programme of John Paul II's pontificate, included in its guiding principle not only the conviction that man's destiny is bound to Christ, but also a reflection on the individual and social nature of the human person. In the Pope's teaching, knowledge about oneself and one's reality appears as a commitment to action, to taking responsibility in the spirit of the personalistic norm formulated by him, that is, the conviction that every human being is entitled to love because he is a person. This one simple sentence can be called the axis of Karol Wojtyla's action and conduct, which is realized through a triad of mutually derived attitudes. They are the principle of participation, dialogue and leadership. This article is devoted to the discussion of this triad and the order of dependencies between them.