"Yes, Brothers and sons and daughters, these words first of all," the newly-elected pope said. "He who is infinite, inscrutable, ineffable, has come close to us in Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, born of the Virgin Mary in the stable at Bethlehem."
The pope exhorted those seeking God, those who already believe, and those struggling with doubt to pay attention to Peter's profession of faith in Jesus. Peter's faith and obedience to a higher calling led him to leave his simple way of life as a fisherman and journey to Rome.
"What else but obedience to the inspiration received from the Lord guided him and brought him to this city, the heart of the Empire?" the pope said. "Perhaps the fisherman of Galilee did not want to come here. Perhaps he would have preferred to stay there, on the shores of the Lake of Genesareth, with his boat and his nets. But guided by the Lord, obedient to his inspiration, he came here!"
"Son of Poland"
On the day he began his new mission as Bishop of Rome, Pope John Paul admitted he was "a bishop full of trepidation, conscious of his unworthiness."
As a self-proclaimed "son of Poland," John Paul was the first non-Italian pope in more than 400 years. In this moment, as he took over the See of Peter, he proclaimed that the unbroken tradition of the papacy had made him a Roman, too.