John Paul II whipped himself to remove sin

London, Nov. 23: Pope John Paul II, who died four years ago at the age of 84, regularly whipped himself in “remorse for his sins”, a nun has claimed.

Pope John Paul is being considered for sainthood by the Catholic Church. And, as part of Vatican’s investigation, thousands of documents have been collected and examined by officials from the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

Among them is the testimony of Polish nun Tobiana Sobodka, of the Sacred Heart of Jesus order, who worked for Pope John Paul in his private Vatican apartments and at his summer residence in Castel Gandolfo near Rome.

Sister Sobodka said, “Several times he (Pope John Paul) would put himself through bodily penance. We would hear it — we were in the next room at Castel Gandolfo. You could hear the sound of the blows when he flagellated himself. He did it when he was still capable of moving on his own.”

The flagellation is also confirmed by another bishop who has given testimony, Italian newspaper La Stampa reported.