The late Pope John Paul II is set to be canonized on Sunday April 27. He and Pope John XXIII will become the newest saints in a ceremony celebrated by Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square.
Before he was pope, though, John Paul II was Karol Wojtyla -- a Polish boy who would go on to become the second longest-serving pope in history and one of only a handful of popes to be informally given the title "the Great."
Here is a snapshot of young Karol's journey from youth to the world leader we know him as today:
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This file photo taken in the 1930s shows Karol Wojtyla posing with a candle in his hand after receiving First Communion at his home in Cracow. (STF/AFP/Getty Images)
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Karol Wojtyla (Pope John Paul II) during his school trip to Wieliczka near Krakow. (Photo by Laski Diffusion/Getty Images)
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Pope John Paul II (as young Karol Wojtyla, sitting second from left) as an acolyte and the priest Kazimierz Figlewicz are seen in this photo taken circa 1930 in Wadowice, Poland. (Photo by Laski Diffusion/Getty Images)
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Pope John Paul II (young Karol Wojtyla, age of 11 or 12 in the middle) is seen with nurses of a hospital in Bielsko-Biala where his brother Edmund used to work in 1931. (Photo by Laski Diffusion/Getty Images)
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Pope John Paul II (young Karol Wojtyla, in the middle) as Polish lancer in secondary school's play Lancers of Prince Joseph of L. Mazur. On the left Halina Krolikiewiczowna (later Kwiatkowska), actress, writer and traveller. On the right Danuta Puklo. (Photo by Laski Diffusion/Getty Images)
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Young Karol Wojtyla (Pope John Paul II) in the camp of military training in Hermanowice near Skoczow in the south Poland. Photo taken by a friend of Wojtyla - Teofil Bojesia. (Photo by Laski Diffusion/Getty Images)
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Karol Wojtyla (Pope John Paul II) in quarry of French Solvay Company in Borek Falecki near Krakow. The photo taken by a husband of Wojtyla's friend an actress Halina Krolikiewicz-Kwiatkowska. (Photo by Laski Diffusion/Getty Images)
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Portraits of Pope John Paul II, then Karol Wojtyla are seen. On the left - 1946 before his orders. (Photo by Laski Diffusion/Getty Images)
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An unlocated file photo dated October 1978 of Karol Wojtyla better known as Pope John Paul II. (Photo credit should read STF/AFP/Getty Images)
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In this file picture taken, February 3, 1986, Mother Teresa and Pope John Paul II wave to well-wishers in Calcutta. (STR/AFP/Getty Images)
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Pope John Paul II is seen in this file picture taken 29 April 1989 in Antanarivo as he reaches out to young well-wishers prior a mass at Youth stadium in capital of Madagascar. (Jean-Claude Delmas-Mike Nelson/AFP/Getty Images)
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Pope John Paul II and South African President Nelson Mandela talk 16 September 1995 at the Presidential guest house in Pretoria. (Gary Bernard/AFP/Getty Images)
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Pope John Paul II places his letter to God between the ancient stones of the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest site March 26, 2000 in Jerusalem's Old City. (Photo by Amos Ben Gershom/GPO via Getty Images)
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Pope John Paul II takes a break during his Alpine vacation in July 2000 in Val d'Aosta, Italy. (Photo by Arturo Mari-Vatican Pool/Getty Images)
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