"Santo subito" - om å arbeide på sin hellighet, og for den

Sammendrag

"Santo subito" - declare him saint immediately -  was the cry in St.Peter's Square in Rome when Pope John Paul 2. died a couple of weeks ago. The late Pope is one of the major religious personalities of the 20th century. This is due to both his competence as politi­cian and leader of the Church, and to his remarkable abilities to communicate and create enthusiasm. But at the core stands his own spirituality, above all centered on the Virgin Mary. The article explores some aspects of the Pope's performances as an individual chosen by the Virgin herself, and singled out for an important task in world history: The victory over communism and atheism. Building in particular on the works of Richard Bauman, the analytical concepts are performance, intertextuality and traditionalisation. Point of departure for the analysis is the image on the website launched by the Vatican to commemorate the life of John Paul 2.