The theme of culture and its connections with the faith and life of the Church is one of the grand themes that determine the content and context of the teaching of John Paul II and deeply mark his pontificate also from the point of view of particular initiatives and undertaken actions which set the specific tone for that very pontificate. The paper shows that contemporary culture lacks a measure of its own truth, lacks harmony, dignity and peace, lacks an interior norm that could constitute its structure and, as it were, become its stronghold. The paper very clearly confirms such diagnosis. By means of his in-depth and thorough understanding, Pope John Paul II recalled this diagnosis to the Church. Therefore, also the faithful were summoned to engage themselves and to participate comprehensively in culture.
Key words: John Paul II, culture, Catholicism, human being, community, the Church