Guest speaker: Prof. James Felak, UW Department of History

The dramatic visit of Pope John Paul II to his native Poland in June 1979 was one of the most significant events of the twentieth century.  Professor James Felak will draw from his research at the Archiwum Akt Nowych (The Central Archives of Modern Records) and Instytut Pamięci Narodowej (The Institute of National Remembrance) in Warsaw to examine how Poland’s Communist regime, in its internal reports, characterized and analyzed this papal pilgrimage.

James Ramon Felak has been Professor of History at the University of Washington since 1989.  He received his doctorate from Indiana University, and teaches courses on modern European and East Central European history as well as the history of Christianity.  He is the author of two books on Slovakia and a number of articles on the history of Slovaks, Czechs, Hungarians, and Poles, especially regarding nationalism, Communism, and Catholicism.    His most recent publication is an article examining how John Paul II made use of saints in addressing his fellow Poles during visits home in 1979 and 1983.

Lecture is free and open to the public