Pope concludes trip, reaches out to Indians

MEXICO CITY -- Greeting his followers in the Zapotec language, Pope John Paul II ended an 11-day pilgrimage on Thursday by reaching out to Indians, who have been steadily deserting the Roman Catholic church, and urging the faithful to treat Native Americans with greater respect.

Despite health problems that left his body bent and his words slurred, the 82-year-old pope ignored aides' pleas to cut back his trip, and traveled to Guatemala and Mexico to deliver a message that the church cares about Indians in the Americas, home to the largest Catholic populations in the world.

On Thursday, amid thick clouds of incense, John Paul beatified two Zapotec Indians martyred in 1700. He urged all Catholics to be as faithful to their religion as the two men were. Essentially informants for the colonial government, they were killed by an angry mob after telling authorities about a Zapotec religious ceremony.

"As they were being tortured, they were invited to renounce their Catholic faith and save themselves. But they answered bravely: 'Once we have professed baptism, we shall always follow the true religion,'" the pope said before leaving for Rome.

Ironically, Thursday's ceremony was filled with rituals reminiscent of the pagan ceremonies about which the men had warned authorities.

Clouds of incense filled the Basilica of the Virgin of Guadalupe as dancers in elaborate feathered headdresses leapt and spun to Indian band music. Indian women brushed herbs over the pope and other clerics, a traditional practice originally meant to cleanse people of illness and evil spirits.

John Paul called the martyrs examples of how "one can reach God without renouncing one's own culture."

The pope, who suffers from symptoms of Parkinson's disease and hip and knee problems, appeared invigorated, tapping his fingers to the music and smiling at the dancers.

Thursday, for the third straight day, John Paul appealed for more respect for Indians, who suffer poverty and discrimination throughout the Americas. He urged his followers to have "brotherly solidarity with the neediest and the marginalized."