Millions attend Pope’s funeral
Hundreds of dignitaries from around the world, including Foreign Minister Shalom and President Katsav, mourn pontiff’s passing in Rome
ROME - At least 2 million people attended Pope John Paul II’s funeral Friday, making it one of the largest funeral ceremonies in history.
Presidents, prime ministers and kings from around the world joined hundreds of thousands of pilgrims, prelates and religious leaders to pay a final farewell to the Pope, in one of the largest religious gatherings in the West in modern times.
Groggy pilgrims who had camped out on the cobblestones awoke in their sleeping bags to hordes of the faithful stepping over them as they tried to secure a good spot to view the funeral Mass in St. Peter's Square.
The square and the boulevard leading to it were a sea of red and white flags waved by pilgrims from John Paul's beloved Poland, many in traditional dress shouting "Polska! Polska!"
"We just wanted to say goodbye to our father for the last time," Said Joanna Zmijewsla, 24, who traveled for 30 hours with her brother Szymon from a town near Kielce, Poland, and arrived at St. Peter's at 1 A.M. Friday.
American Archbishop James Harvey, head of papal protocol, greeted black-clad dignitaries and religious leaders as they emerged from St. Peter's Basilica onto the steps.
An international presence
Turbans, fezzes, yarmulkes, black lace veils, or mantillas, joined the zucchettos or skullcaps of Catholic prelates in an extraordinary mix of religious and government leaders from around the world.
Israel was represented by Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom and President Moshe Katsav.
Bells tolled as the final leaders took their places on red-cushioned wooden seats. Ten minutes before the scheduled start of the funeral, the U.S. Delegation arrived, headed by President George W. Bush and including his father, former President George H.W. Bush, and former President Bill Clinton.
The funeral was being celebrated by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, dean of the College of Cardinals, a close confidant of John Paul and mentioned as a possible successor
Rome itself was at a standstill. Just after midnight Friday morning, a ban took effect on vehicle traffic in the city center. Air space was closed and anti-aircraft batteries outside the city were on alert. Naval ships patrolled both the Mediterranean coast and the Tiber River near Vatican City, the tiny sovereign city-state encompassed by the Italian capital.
Italian authorities took extraordinary precautions to protect the royalty and heads of state or government attending the funeral. Dignitaries from more than 80 countries, including the presidents of Syria and Iran, as well as Jewish and Muslim leaders, also attended the ceremony.
