Pilgrims pack basilica as pope's body is put on public display

Falling silent, whispering the rosary and clasping their hands, tens of thousands of pilgrims paid their final respects to Pope John Paul II on Monday after his body was carried on a crimson platform to St. Peter's Basilica.

Incense wafted through the church where he will be laid to rest Friday in an ancient grotto holding the remains of popes through the ages, immediately after a funeral to be attended under heavy security by President Bush and dozens of other world leaders.

There was no stopping for a lingering view, a motionless moment of reflection. Many wept as they walked past the bier. Some collapsed against the wall outside after leaving the basilica, designed by Bramante and Michelangelo and dedicated in 1626.

People who had never had an audience with the pope felt as if they had lost a dear one.

"His face was suffering," said Sister Emma, a 76-year-old Italian nun. "I felt a sense of sadness, even though I know he's in Heaven."

The crowd cheerfully chanted and clapped hands on the street leading to St. Peter's Square as it moved slowly toward the basilica. As soon it entered the square, people fell silent as if they were entering a sacred place. Their glimpse of the pope's remains was quick at best, as police whispered "Hurry up."

But some still managed to snap photographs with cell phones as they passed John Paul's body, clad in a scarlet velvet robe, his head crowned with a white bishop's miter and a staff topped with a crucifix tucked under his left arm.

"I would like to tell him how much I love him," said Lorenzo Cardone, 9, waiting in line with his parents.

Chicago Cardinal Francis George said the cardinals prayed for about one hour before the procession and that the pope looked "at peace, but a man who had suffered."

Up to 2 million pilgrims are expected in Rome to pay their final respects this week.

Meeting of cardinals

Hours before the body was moved to the basilica, the College of Cardinals -- meeting in tradition-bound secrecy -- set Friday as the date for the funeral in the first of a series of gatherings preceding their secret vote this month to elect a new pope.

Catholic bishops are finding travel arrangements difficult to attend Pope John Paul II's funeral, a spokeswoman with the Springfield-Cape Girardeau Diocese said Monday.

Recy Moore, the diocese spokeswoman, said Bishop John J. Leibrecht will attend. She said the cardinals have their travel arrangements set, but the bishops are on their own, trying to organize a trip through travel agencies.

Carolyn Kempf, a travel consultant with Elite Travel in Cape Girardeau, said her business has not received customers wanting to go to Rome for the funeral.

"I'm surprised we didn't get more calls," she said. "But I think people have known for a while he was ill and maybe those people already took off."

John Cosco, with the AAA travel agency, said no one has asked for a trip to Rome at his business, either.

Cosco and Kempf both say the trip would be expensive because of the last-minute nature.

Kempf said an advanced airplane fare would cost somewhere between $600 and $700. But to buy it on the spot and to get it within a couple of days would cost up to $2,300.

Staff writer Bob Miller contributed to this report.

It was not clear if they discussed other issues. Chief Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said there were 65 cardinals attending, while the remaining cardinals were heading to Rome.

Navarro-Valls said John Paul would "almost surely" be buried in the tomb where Pope John XXIII lay before he was brought up onto the main floor of the basilica. John XXIII was moved after his 2000 beatification because so many pilgrims wanted to visit his tomb, and the grotto is in a cramped underground space.

In London, Buckingham Palace announced that Prince Charles postponed his wedding until Saturday so that he could attend the funeral. In Guyana, the 34-nation Organization of American States postponed an election for a new chief.

Navarro-Valls made no mention of a date for the papal election, or conclave, implying that no such decision had been made. By church law, the conclave must take place within two weeks of the burial.

Archbishop Josef Clemens, secretary of the Vatican office for lay people and a former aide to top Vatican Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, said not all the cardinal electors had arrived in time for Monday's first session. Asked about the atmosphere among the cardinals, he said: "Sad, but hopeful."