VATICAN CITY -Thousands of mourners filed past the grave of Pope John Paul II after the Vatican reopened its grottoes for public viewing yesterday, many carrying rosaries and medals they hoped would be blessed by the spirit of a man they already consider a saint.
While the numbers visiting the grave did not compare to the 3 million pilgrims who descended on Rome last week to view the pope's body and attend his funeral, the emotions were no weaker.
I felt at total peace. Every hair on my body just stood up
said Catherine Creen, a 60-year-old New Yorker who met John Paul in 2000. It's the same feeling I had when I saw him alive. He continues to reach out to people in death.
Above ground, cardinals discussed the state of the Roman Catholic Church and prepared for their conclave next week to select a new pope. Italian newspapers reported that support was building for conservative German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.
Below, just steps from the traditional grave site of the apostle Peter, the church's first pope, the faithful paid their respects.
Pilgrims knelt in prayer, some with tears streaming down their faces. Many handed rosaries or religious medals to an usher behind the red rope, who briefly laid the trinkets on the marble tomb before returning them to their owners.
One woman handed the usher a single red rose, but when he tried to return it, she shook her head. The flower, she signaled, was for John Paul.
In an apparent effort to avoid the lines that stretched up to three miles to see the pope's body last week, the ushers kept the crowd at St. Peter's Basilica moving quickly. Many pilgrims said they did not even realize they were at the grave until they had already walked past.
We've been in Rome for three days waiting for this moment and we felt a little defrauded said Silvano Loayza, a 61-year-old Peruvian who lives in Tracy, Calif. There wasn't even time to pray. The man kept saying
'avanti
avanti
avanti.'
But many pilgrims emerged feeling that they had made some kind of connection with John Paul. Some said they had come not only to pray for the pope but also to pray to him. Many Catholics believe John Paul, who died April 2 at age 84, was a saint.
I'm hoping maybe for a little miracle. I'm praying to him that my husband gets his eyesight back
said Myrna Palmer, 67, of Hagerstown, Md. Her husband, Gorman, lost sight in one eye after chemotherapy.
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