Pope John Paul II’s Life Celebrated
‘Under a clear Vatican sky, millions of mourners gathered in the shadow of the Basilica of St. Peter Friday to say goodbye to Pope John Paul II, applauding as 12 pallbearers placed his simple wood coffin directly in front of the great domed shrine shortly after 10 a.m. local time (4 a.m. EDT) for the start of one of the largest funerals of all time.
A cross and a copy of the Gospels were laid atop the coffin and a large crucifix stood to the side. One by one, the princes of the Roman Catholic Church, the cardinals, filed in, their crimson robes billowing in a brisk breeze. A Latin chant was sung as the cardinals took their seats behind a read altar trimmed with gold.
Pallbearers carry a simple wooden coffin with the remains of the late Pope John Paul II to a bier in front of St. Peter’s Basilica where his funeral is being held. (Reuters)
“Let us pray,” said presiding Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, one of John Paul’s closest aides and friends, formally beginning the Mass….’
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