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CNN Live At Daybreak

Pope Ends Nostalgic Journey to Hometown

Aired August 19, 2002 - 06:05   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Pope John Paul II is returning to Rome, having wrapped up a four-day visit to his homeland. The pope told the more than two million gathered in Krakow, Poland that he would like to return one day, but it was entirely in God's hands.
CNN's Chris Burns joins us live now from Krakow.

Good morning.

CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

Over my shoulder is Kalwaria Cathedral. That is the place where Pope John Paul II last night spent a very long time, an unusually long time, praying there privately. That is the place where he became a priest, bishop and archbishop. It's also the place where the kings of Poland were crowned and buried, and where many people believe that he, himself, might be buried someday, at least belongs there.

Many -- all of the steps of his trip, almost every step of this four-day trip has been retracing the steps of his life, of his past. Once again, today, as we see, he's been celebrating mass this morning at the Calvary Zebrzydowska. Now, that is not far from here.

It is also not far from his birthplace, Wadowice, where he went to that sanctuary, a 400-year-old sanctuary built by a Polish nobleman into what many believe and dub as the Polish Jerusalem, complete with the stations of the cross. And if there is any place where John Paul II, as Karol Wojtyla, when he was very young went to and received spiritual inspiration, it was at this Kalwaria Zebrzydowska, fashioned after the Calvary in Jerusalem, where Jesus, according to the Bible, spent his last days. So an extremely powerful moment for the pope, once again, retracing his steps.

He'll board a helicopter later today, a fly-over Wadowice, where he was born, and then go on to Czestochowa, the sanctuary, the monastery of Jasna Gora, where the most holy relic of Poland is placed. That is the Black Madonna. He is expected to go there.

Now, we'll have to see whether he is strong enough to really visit that monastery. That is all in question.

It's been a very trying visit for the 82-year-old pontiff, suffering from progressive Parkinson's disease and arthritis, but he has still made a great effort and has been energized by the people. If you had seen the most intimate moments that he has had with his people where out the window, from the window of the archbishop's palace, where he has been staying, where he lived for more than a decade as archbishop, and through that window, he spoke to them back in 1979 when he came here, when there was a communist rule, inspiring his people to rise up and seek freedom.

And once again, speaking out of that window last night one last time to his people, an extremely emotional moment for many people there, the pope hearing the chants of "We love you, we love you." And he takes -- he says, unfortunately, this is a farewell to you. And he takes the song of greeting, a traditional Polish song of greeting, and begins to sing, "We are saying farewell to you." And the people singing back, taking the song and singing, "We are saying welcome to you, stay with us."

And the pope responding later, saying, "With my heart and my thoughts, I will always stay with you. You are different from back then," responding to the times really of communism when they were under the communist rule, saying that your hearts, your habits are still the same. They are very good habits. "We will meet again," he said, "I hope you wish me the same."

And they responded, of course, enthusiastically, very emotional moments, very intimate moments with the people outside that window.

Of course, yesterday, he led a mass of two-and-a-half million Poles, the largest -- perhaps the largest ever in Poland, and also visited his families' graves, his parents' and his brothers' graves.

So very much the retracing of footsteps, that he's not saying good-bye forever, almost every step of the way appears to be so -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Yes, it makes you wonder if he really is going to retire after this trip.

BURNS: That's true. That's a good question actually. Most -- lots of denials right and left that he does intend to remain pope until he passes on. However, his illness is increasingly debilitating, and there are plenty of questions and talk about whether he should remain pope. All up to speculation at this point -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Absolutely. Chris Burns, thank you for joining us live from Poland this morning. We appreciate the report.

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