Viewing of Pope's Body Resumes at Vatican


VATICAN CITY - Police reopened the line to St. Peter's Basilica on Thursday, giving the faithful a final chance to pay respects to Pope John Paul II, while details from the pontiff's last will and testament suggested that he considered resigning in 2000 when he was already ailing and the Roman Catholic church began its new millennium.


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Authorities had closed the line Wednesday night as they rushed to make last-minute preparations for the pope's pomp-filled funeral on Friday, which was drawing leaders from nearly 100 countries. They also closed the basilica for a few hours overnight for cleaning.


By the time the basilica and line reopened, many who had waited hours for a chance to spend a few seconds briefly viewing the pope's crimson-robed body had given up and left, but the line grew strong again as a steady stream of new pilgrims joined the hundreds of thousands already at Vatican City for the funeral.


Rome police chief Marcello Fulvi estimated that some 4 million people had visited the Vatican, surpassing the city's population of 3.7 million.


Newly arrived Poles, waving red-and-white flags, massed around the Vatican, adding a shimmering stripe of color to the procession. An estimated 2 million were making their journey from John Paul's native country to pay tribute to the man credited with helping to end communism in Poland and unite Europe.


"We thought we'd find a lot of people here and could not get to the basilica," said Mikhal Szylar, a 19-year-old student who arrived on a bus from Poland. "We hope we'll be able to see the pope in a few hours."


Also Thursday, the Vatican released the text of John Paul's last will and testament — a 15-page document the late pontiff began writing in his native Polish in 1979, the year after he was elected pope. It was written in his native Polish and translated by the Vatican into Italian.


Writing in 2000, the pope, who suffered from Parkinson's disease and crippling hip and knee ailments, suggested he was considering resigning, saying the time was one of apparent torment for him, mentioning the 1981 attempt on his life. He called his survival a "miracle."


He said he hoped the Lord "would help me to recognize how long I must continue this service to which he called me the day of 16 October, 1978."


He also prayed at the time that he would have the "necessary strength" to continue his mission as long as he was serving as pope.


He also said he had left no material property and asked that all his personal notes be burned. It mentioned only two living people: his personal secretary Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz and the chief rabbi of Rome, Elio Toaff, who welcomed him to Rome's synagogue in 1986.


Officials said Thursday's line was moving quicker, with the wait dramatically shortened to just a few hours. But they announced that the basilica doors would be shut at 10 p.m., making it likely that the line would be cut off later in the day to spare pilgrims too far back from waiting in vain. On Wednesday, some in the throng had waited 24 hours to get inside.


Giant screens were being set up across the city to allow pilgrims who can't get to St. Peter's Basilica for the funeral Mass. Vehicle traffic was banned and schools were to shut down to ease congestion as Rome dealt with an unprecedented influx of people.


The Vatican also released the series of Masses that will be celebrated during the nine days of mourning that begin on Friday with the pope's funeral. Among the prelates celebrating the Masses is Cardinal Bernard Law, who resigned as archbishop of Boston amid the sex abuse scandal and now heads the St. Mary Major basilica — one of the most important churches in Rome.


Officials on Wednesday sent text messages on Italian cellular phone networks that warned subscribers: "St. Peters full." Later that night they erected barricades to prevent people from joining the line.


At one point during the night, pilgrims who had been cut off began chanting, "Open, Open." As the line reopened, police said pilgrims had to wait only about three hours before entering the basilica.


President Bush was joined by his father, former President George H.W. Bush and former President Bill Clinton in giving a private tribute Wednesday night, kneeling at the side of John Paul's bier and folding their hands in silent prayer.





They were among the nearly 200 monarchs, presidents and heads of government and other dignitaries who have begun arriving for a funeral Friday that will be marked by solemn pageantry. John Paul died on Saturday at age 84.

Italian authorities readied anti-aircraft rocket launchers and took other security measures to protect the dignitaries converging on Rome for the funeral. Naval boats were patrolling the Tiber River that marks the boundary of Vatican City, and missile-armed ships were guarding the coastline.

As they planned the transition from John Paul's eventful 26-year reign, the College of Cardinals set April 18 as the start of its conclave to elect a successor, a papal election with new rules and new technologies.

With 3,500 accredited journalists watching, the 116 cardinals expected to chose the next pope will be mindful of the warning in a document by John Paul to abide by their vow of secrecy — or face "grave penalties according to the judgment of the future pope."

The number of cardinal electors under age 80 and thus eligible to vote is 117. On Wednesday, the Philippines Embassy to the Holy See said Cardinal Jaime Sin, 76, was too ill to attend. However, on Thursday, Sin's office in Manila said the cardinal was hoping to attend despite his poor health.

Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said the cardinals would celebrate a morning Mass on April 18, then be sequestered in the Sistine Chapel in the early afternoon for their first secret ballot.

In past conclaves, the so-called "princes of the church" were locked in the Apostolic Palace, crammed into tiny makeshift cubicles without running water and limited toilet facilities.

John Paul, in a 1996 change, said the cardinals would be housed in a hotel within the Vatican walls that he had built. Each cardinal now has a private room and bath.

Also unlike previous conclaves, the electors would be free to roam the Vatican, though they are forbidden from communicating with anyone outside. The Sistine Chapel and other areas will be swept for any electronic listening devices.

According to church law, prelates are expected to hold at least one ballot on the first day of a conclave. If no one gets the required two-thirds majority after about 12 days, cardinals may change procedure and elect the pope by simple majority.

Indonesian Cardinal Julius Darmaatmadja, the archbishop of Jakarta, said he hoped the College of Cardinals would keep John Paul's legacy in mind when they enter the conclave.

"We hope that the man they appointed will be more or less like him," he told reporters as he entered the Vatican for Thursday's pre-conclave meetings.