Post by MJSUNIFC on Apr 2, 2005 21:48:47 GMT -5
The world mourns a well-loved pope
Tears, tolling bells, high praise mark death of Pope John Paul II
MSNBC staff and news service reports-
VATICAN CITY - Tears and accolades poured forth from the faithful in Saint Peter’s Square, the inhabitants of the world’s seats of power and admirers of every stripe in between for Pope John Paul II, who died Saturday after a long public struggle against debilitating public illness.
“Our beloved Holy Father John Paul has returned to the house of the Father,” said Archbishop Leonardo Sandri, announcing the death of the 84-year-old pontiff to a huge crowd that had gathered under the pontiff’s windows to pray for a miraculous recovery that never came.
The statement was met with a long applause, an Italian sign of respect. Bells tolled and many people wept openly. Others sang the “Ave Maria” and other hymns.
The Vatican said the pope, who reigned over the world’s 1.1 billion Catholics for more than 26 years, died in his apartments at 9:37 p.m local time (2:37 EST), surrounded by his closest aides.
Faithful stream to Vatican
As the news spread through Rome, thousands of faithful streamed to the Vatican to join those already there, paying respects to a man who helped undermine Communism in Europe while upholding traditional Church orthodoxy.
The slow mourning toll of one of the great bells of St. Peter’s Basilica made the only sound to cut the stunning, tearful silence in the Vatican.
“We all feel like orphans tonight but our faith teaches us that those who believe in the Lord live in him,” Archbishop Renato Boccardo told a crowd estimated at 60,000 gathered in St Peter's Square.
“My father died last year. For me, it feels the same,” said Elisabetta Pomacalca, a 25-year-old Peruvian who lives in Rome.
“It was a great privilege to pray the Pope through his last minutes. We didn’t know we were doing it but I will always remember tonight as one of the most special moments of my life,” said Sandra Leone, 46, from Rome.
When word of his death reached his hometown in Wadowice, Poland, at the end of a special Mass in the church where he worshipped as a boy, people fell to their knees and wept.
Church bells rang out after the announcement from the Vatican, but it took several minutes for people inside the packed church to find out as they continued their vigil into a second night. Then parish priest, the Rev. Jakub Gil, came to the front as the last hymn faded away, and said, “His life has come to an end."
World leaders react
World leaders reacted quickly to the loss.
"The world has lost a champion of peace and freedom" with the death of the pope, President Bush said in Washington.
Israel’s Shimon Peres said the pope's greatness cut across religious divides. “Even though he represented Catholicism, he managed, with his talent and personality, to also represent our entire global partnership,” he said.
A Mass was scheduled for St. Peter’s Square for 10:30 a.m. (4:30 a.m. ET) Sunday.
The Vatican also said the College of Cardinals — the red-robed “princes” of the Roman Catholic Church — would meet a half hour before the Mass. They were expected to set a funeral date, which the Vatican said probably would be between Wednesday and Friday.
It said the pope's body would will lie in state for public viewing in St Peter’s Basilica beginning Monday afternoon at the earliest.
www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3305285/?GT1=6428
Tears, tolling bells, high praise mark death of Pope John Paul II
MSNBC staff and news service reports-
VATICAN CITY - Tears and accolades poured forth from the faithful in Saint Peter’s Square, the inhabitants of the world’s seats of power and admirers of every stripe in between for Pope John Paul II, who died Saturday after a long public struggle against debilitating public illness.
“Our beloved Holy Father John Paul has returned to the house of the Father,” said Archbishop Leonardo Sandri, announcing the death of the 84-year-old pontiff to a huge crowd that had gathered under the pontiff’s windows to pray for a miraculous recovery that never came.
The statement was met with a long applause, an Italian sign of respect. Bells tolled and many people wept openly. Others sang the “Ave Maria” and other hymns.
The Vatican said the pope, who reigned over the world’s 1.1 billion Catholics for more than 26 years, died in his apartments at 9:37 p.m local time (2:37 EST), surrounded by his closest aides.
Faithful stream to Vatican
As the news spread through Rome, thousands of faithful streamed to the Vatican to join those already there, paying respects to a man who helped undermine Communism in Europe while upholding traditional Church orthodoxy.
The slow mourning toll of one of the great bells of St. Peter’s Basilica made the only sound to cut the stunning, tearful silence in the Vatican.
“We all feel like orphans tonight but our faith teaches us that those who believe in the Lord live in him,” Archbishop Renato Boccardo told a crowd estimated at 60,000 gathered in St Peter's Square.
“My father died last year. For me, it feels the same,” said Elisabetta Pomacalca, a 25-year-old Peruvian who lives in Rome.
“It was a great privilege to pray the Pope through his last minutes. We didn’t know we were doing it but I will always remember tonight as one of the most special moments of my life,” said Sandra Leone, 46, from Rome.
When word of his death reached his hometown in Wadowice, Poland, at the end of a special Mass in the church where he worshipped as a boy, people fell to their knees and wept.
Church bells rang out after the announcement from the Vatican, but it took several minutes for people inside the packed church to find out as they continued their vigil into a second night. Then parish priest, the Rev. Jakub Gil, came to the front as the last hymn faded away, and said, “His life has come to an end."
World leaders react
World leaders reacted quickly to the loss.
"The world has lost a champion of peace and freedom" with the death of the pope, President Bush said in Washington.
Israel’s Shimon Peres said the pope's greatness cut across religious divides. “Even though he represented Catholicism, he managed, with his talent and personality, to also represent our entire global partnership,” he said.
A Mass was scheduled for St. Peter’s Square for 10:30 a.m. (4:30 a.m. ET) Sunday.
The Vatican also said the College of Cardinals — the red-robed “princes” of the Roman Catholic Church — would meet a half hour before the Mass. They were expected to set a funeral date, which the Vatican said probably would be between Wednesday and Friday.
It said the pope's body would will lie in state for public viewing in St Peter’s Basilica beginning Monday afternoon at the earliest.
www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3305285/?GT1=6428