Hundreds attend Pope's Mass

Hundreds packed St John's Co-Cathedral, in Valletta yesterday evening for a Mass for the repose of Pope John Paul II's soul.

The turnout was so strong many remained outside. Some of them complained to The Times that in the circumstances arrangements should have been made to make provision for a strong crowd. "Half the temple was taken up by dignitaries and people involved in the liturgical function," one man said.

Speaking during the homily, Apostolic Nuncio Felix de Blanco Prieto heaped praise on John Paul II, saying he had constantly injected people with hope and courage. Archbishop Joseph Mercieca urged those present to recall that John Paul II was the first Pope to enter an Orthodox Church, a synagogue and a mosque - which was why he was loved and respected by everybody.

"He was an instrument in the hands of God to bring about change and radical progress in different aspects of life," Mgr Mercieca said.

The Archbishop told the congregation to take heed of the Pope's message during his visit to Malta in 1990 when he praised the Maltese for holding strong to their Christian faith.

The Pope will be laid to rest on Friday when Malta is expected to grind to a halt.

The Church yesterday announced that all its institutions would be shut on Friday as a sign of mourning. These include all Church schools, the Curia and Caritas in Floriana and the Ecclesiastic Tribunal in Valletta.

Friday will be the third day of national mourning for Malta, after last Sunday and Monday. All government functions and public activities will be cancelled and flags on all public buildings and offices will be flown at half-mast.

As many as two million pilgrims are expected to be in Rome to pay their respects along with 200 heads of state for a Mass at St Peter's celebrated by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.

In Ireland, an overwhelmingly Catholic nation, Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern stirred arguments by initially refusing to hold a national day of mourning on Friday, a surprise move considering that even Cuban President Fidel Castro decided to hold three days of national mourning.

But Mr Ahern yesterday climbed down and said schools would be allowed to close and public servants could take time off for the funeral on Friday.

Both President Eddie Fenech Adami and Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi yesterday signed the book of condolences at the Appostolic Nunciature, Tal-Virtú, in Rabat.

Dr Fenech Adami and Dr Gonzi will be attending the Pope's funeral. They will be joined by Opposition Leader Alfred Sant who accepted an invitation by the Prime Minister to form part of the official Maltese delegation.

In the meantime, crowds of tens of thousands of people continued to fill the streets around the Vatican yesterday as they queued to see the body of Pope John Paul II lying in state.

Travel agents in Catholic Poland, the land of Karol Wojtyla's birth, were struggling to meet demand for transport to Italy.

The same could be said for Malta. Booking a ticket to Rome was a nightmare this week as hundreds of Maltese people decided to pay a personal farewell to the much-loved Pope.

Two aircraft left early this morning for a day's visit to the Vatican, as Rome experiences what may be the greatest tide of pilgrims in history.

Mondial Holidays said last night that due to the "massive" demand by members of the public to be in Rome for the funeral functions of Pope John Paul II, it will be holding a special day trip for the occasion. The agency said it will charter an Air Malta aircraft that will depart Malta at 4.30 a.m. to arrive in Rome at 6 a.m. and will then leave Rome to Malta the same evening at 11.30 p.m. arriving in Malta 90 minutes later.

Rome's hotels and guest houses are already full and work is underway to erect makeshift shelters at sports grounds.