Faithful give thanks for John Paul beatification

The Mass is being celebrated by the Vatican No. 2, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone. Among the large crowds entering the square on Monday were many Poles overjoyed at Sunday’s beatification of the Polish—born pontiff.

Faithful carry an image of late Pope John Paul II during an open-air Mass celebrating his beatification in Guatemala City, on Sunday. Photo: AP.

Tens of thousands of Catholic faithful have filled St. Peter’s Square for a Mass of thanksgiving for the beatification of John Paul II.

The Mass is being celebrated by the Vatican No. 2, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone. Among the large crowds entering the square on Monday were many Poles overjoyed at Sunday’s beatification of the Polish—born pontiff.

After Sunday’s beatification, about 250,000 faithful filed past John Paul’s simple wooden coffin in St. Peter’s Basilica. The pope had been buried in the grottoes underneath the church, but his closed casket was brought to the church’s centre aisle ahead of the beatification.

Some 1.5 million people gathered on Sunday for the ceremony that moved John Paul a step closer to possible sainthood. It was one of the largest Vatican Masses in history.