Show Millions Bid Farewell at Pope John Paul H's Hs Funeral Tracy Wilkinson Richard Boudreaux Los Angeles Times With the world he once mesmerized watching Pope John Paul II was laid in a simple cypress coffin Friday and eulogized eulogized eulogized eulo eulo- on the steps of St. St Peters Peter's church in ina a grand funeral that drew millions of pilgrims pilgrims pilgrims pil pil- grims and leaders from all corners comers of the earth The Polish-born Polish pontiff whose death April 2 ended the third-longest third papacy in history was buried in a marble crypt below the basilica the place of rest for many of John Pauls Paul's predecessors through the ages In a hour 2 minute 40 ceremony of resplendent ritual and emotional homage priests blessed the popes pope's remains and celebrated his life before an audience reflecting the political clout of the global elite and the simple admiration of common common common com com- mon folk The funeral Mass was punctuated by cheers and applause People in the crowd chanted Saint Saint and John Paul German-born German Cardinal Joseph the powerful dean of the College of Cardinals and a close confidante of John JohnPaul JohnPaul JohnPaul Paul led the service He remembered the boy who grew up in Nazi Poland and the sharp intellect who chose the priesthood Today we bury his remains in the earth as a seed of immortality said Our hearts are full of sadness yet at the same time of joyful hope and profound profound profound pro pro- found gratitude At the conclusion of the public portion of the ceremony 12 white-gloved white pallbearers pallbearers pallbearers pall pall- bearers lifted the wooden casket to their shoulders strode to the massive portals of St. St Peters Peter's Basilica then turned back toward the crowd to allow a final good good- bye Inside the crypt where public access was not granted the coffin was sealed in red ribbon encased in zinc and then placed in another wooden casket It was buried in the ground not in a sarcophagus gus as is tradition per John Pauls Paul's wishes homily was interrupted at least 10 times by applause notably when he mentioned the popes pope's dedication to the young and his very public struggle with disability and death recalled one of the final appearances of the pope at his apartment window overlooking St. St Peters Peter's Square on Easter Sunday when he struggled mightily to bless the crowds below but he was no longer able to speak We can be sure that our beloved pope is now at the window of the house of the Father and he sees us and he blesses us said sermon focused on Jesus' Jesus words to Peter the apostle who became the first pope Jesus asks Peter to follow him and to care for his flock essentially installing him at the front of the long line of men who would become maximum leaders of the Roman Catholic Church Dost thou love me In that case feed my flock quoted Jesus as telling Peter And like Peter said Karol was called to tend the flock and has now returned to Christ As the requiem Mass got under way the Sistine Chapel choir sang hymns and anda a series of readers intoned selections from the Bible Sunlight broke through clouds in a silver blue-silver sky while a brisk wind whipped the cassocks and vestments vestments vestments vest vest- ments of the gathered prelates Later the skies grew darker A tapestry portraying the resurrection of Christ hung above the massive church portals Official delegations represented more than 70 countries from Afghanistan to controversially Zimbabwe See Pope continued on page 2 Pope continued from front The humble and haughty the powerful and penitent European royalty queens in black veils Arab sheiks in inflowing inflowing inflowing flowing robes Latin American presidents in business business business busi busi- ness suits they sat in the front rows arrayed in the square To the back pilgrims backpackers and and Roman ark faithful l young and olds old jo jos- jos i rh r i i. tl tied for lor sp space space ce Also in attendance was a remarkable collection of rival faiths Leaders of the Eastern Orthodox Church senior Jewish rabbis and Muslim clerics joined representatives of every Christian denomination tion testament to John Pauls Paul's ability to reach out across traditional traditional traditional tra tra- lines of religious demarcation It was one of the largest such gatherings in the West in modern times and rivaled some of the huge audiences the pope drew while alive in places such as the Philippines President Bush led the American delegation becoming becoming becoming becom becom- ing the first sitting president to attend a papal funeral He was one of the last dignitaries to be escorted to his seat where he and his wife Laura were placed in a second row next to Jacques Chirac of France King Juan Carlos of Spain was in the front row with Queen Sofia The formula for the seating arrangement was complicated and was based in part on the number of years a country has had diplomatic ties with the Vatican and the level of the delegation Cardinals in red blood-red vestments who will meet later this month to select JohnPaul's John JohnPaul's JohnPaul's Pauls Paul's successor sat behind the altar while bishops in purple filled front rows to the left of the square designed by Bernini in t the e century Two cardinals arrived in wheelchairs Many in the enormous crowd waved signs declaring John Paul a saint Santo Sainthood Now Others waved the red and white flags from the popes pope's homeland and chanted Polska Polska before the Mass began and bursts of all applause were frequent unusual for such a solemn occasion pf gf the popular I appeal of the cent John Paul who died at the age of 84 after many illnesses illness illness- es had lain in state inside the basilica since Monday viewed by hundreds of thousands thousands thousands thou thou- sands of mournful people Before the public ceremony began Friday morning a private private private vate ritual unfolded The popes pope's loyal Polish secretary Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz draped a white silk veil on the dead mans man's face and muttered a prayer asking that he see the eternal light and the face of Christ The custom has not been used for centuries and was a throwback throwback throwback throw throw- back to times when the heads of bishops were wrapped in white cloth Dziwisz was joined by Archbishop Piero Marini the master mater of liturgical cere cere- monies Inside the coffin they placed a pouch of silver and bronze medals and a scroll recounting the dead deadman's deadmans deadmans deadman's deadmans deadman's mans man's life Twelve pallbearers in white gloves and tails carried John JohnPaul's JohnPaul's JohnPaul's Pauls Paul's tapered coffin from inside the basilica to the steps Made of blond cypress and emblazoned with the papal emblem a simple cross and the letter M for Mary the coffin was set on an ornate silk carpet The pallbearers known as the Popes Pope's Gentlemen bowed and walked away The audience stood and applauded Marini placed a red copy of the Scriptures on the coffin Liturgy requires that wind blow the pages to show the presence of the Holy Spirit The wind was strong however er and soon the book was closed struck a tone that was reverential but also familiar and more emotional than had been expected of the theman theman man known as the line hard-line enforcer of church doctrine Officiates read prayers prayers' and biblical passages in armor thana than thap thapa a dozen tl languages a bow to the of hurch that John Paul had especially celebrated and expanded with his wide planet-wide travels Prelates from the Eastern rite churches loyal to the pope but following Byzantine x customs blessed John Pauls Paul's remains with incense and sang ancient prayers The litany of the saints a haunting intonation of saints' saints names followed Security was tight but somewhat discreet A single helicopter flew overhead during during during dur dur- ing the funeral and metal detectors were installed at some distance from the square though even a few bishops in full regalia had to tobe tobe tobe be cleared The multitudes virtually doubled Romes Rome's normal pop pop- Reminiscent of ancient times when pilgrims journeyed from the far reaches reach reach- es of the Roman Empire hundreds hundreds hundreds hun hun- i of thousands of people camped out on cobblestone I streets and in the onetime site I of chariot races all to await their chance to say goodbye Only a fraction of the mourners were able to cram themselves into St. St Peters Peter's Square and the Via della I the wide i 4 boulevard that runs directly r. r from the plaza The rest were f watching on enormous screens set up all over Rome wi rE |