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Who shot Pope John Paul II in 1981?
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St. John Paul II
Pope John Paul II waving to pilgrims, September 10, 1989.
On May 13, 1981, Pope John Paul II was shot and nearly killed in St. Peter’s Square by Mehmet Ali Agca, a 23-year-old Turkish man.12
Although no conspiracy was ever proven in court, the event sparked widespread suspicion regarding potential Soviet involvement. The Pope later publicly forgave his assailant and attributed his survival to the Virgin of Fátima, who he believed guided the bullet away from his vital organs.1