Letters detail 'extraordinary' 30-year relationship between John Paul II and American philosopher
There is no suggestion that the pontiff's vow of celibacy was broken at any point in the decades-long relationship with Polish-born American philosopher Anna-Teresa Tymieniecka
Anna-Teresa Tymieniecka (right) was a Polish-born American academic and met the pontiff in 1978
Letters written by Pope John Paul II have emerged that reveal the pontiff was involved in an "extraordinary" relationship with a married woman lasting more than 30 years.
The former Pope, who died in 2005 and was canonised in 2014, met Anna-Teresa Tymieniecka before he was elected Pope in 1978.
The letters, which lay undiscovered and away from public view in the Polish national library until they were shown to the BBC's Panorama programme, tell of a complex and intense friendship in which it has been suggested that Ms Tymieniecka told the pontiff she loved him.
The BBC production - entitled 'The Secret Letters of Pope John Paul II' - is expected to detail the late pontiff’s relationship with Anna-Teresa Tymieniecka, a Polish-born American philosopher.
Tymieniecka worked on the English translation of one of the pope’s books, The Acting Person, which was written while he was the bishop of Krakow. The project is said to have sparked a four-year personal correspondence and speculation that the two may have fallen in love.
In the correspondence, Pope John Paul II declares she is a "gift of God", indicating he was struggling to come to terms with the nature of their relationship. He writes: "If I did not have this conviction, some moral certainty of Grace, and of acting in obedience to it, I would not dare act like this."
The letters also reveal he gave her the scapular (a small devotional necklace) his father had given him at his first Holy Communion.
There is no suggestion his vow of celibacy was broken at any point.
In her 50s at the time of her acquaintance with John Paul II, Tymieniecka was married to the Harvard professor Hendrick S Houthakker, who was honoured by the pope in 2003 for advising him on economic policy.
She has denied being romantically involved with the pontiff and, despite having praised him, she criticised his views of love.
The BBC investigation, which will reveal previously unseen letters from John Paul II, who was the pope for nearly 27 years until his death in 2005, has been dismissed by the Vatican.
