On May 13, 1981 Blessed Pope John Paul II was shot 4 times at St Peter's Square in Rome. In a prayer at the shrine, Benedict noted that John Paul firmly believed that the Virgin's "unseen hand" had "rescued him from death in the assassination attempt." Benedict said John Paul had wanted to give the bullet that was extracted from his abdomen to the shrine as a measure of his gratitude; the bullet today forms part of the crown of the statue of the Virgin in a chapel here where Benedict prayed.