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CNN Live Today
Tens of Thousands of Roman Catholics Converging on Vatican
Aired October 16, 2003 - 10:08 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Tens of thousands of Roman Catholics and their leaders from around the world are converging this hour on the Vatican. Less than two hours from now, Pope John Paul II will celebrate a mass celebrating his 25th anniversary as the pontiff.
Our Jim Bittermann is in Vatican City to set the stage for that.
Jim, hello.
JIM BITTERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Daryn.
Yes, in fact, we're here at St. Peter's Square, where that mass is going to begin in just under two hour's time, at almost exactly the same time Pope John Paul II was named pope 25 years ago.
Now, the square has been cleared out here over the last couple of hours, they performed a security check and they also cleaned up the square a little bit. And now, just in the last 15 or 20 minutes or so they let people in. There was a mad scramble as people trying to get some of the front seats that had been set up here for this mass this evening. They are expecting thousands of people to come here.
This is kind of -- St. Peters is kind of the front lawn of The Vatican, from lawn for Catholicism. There's a lot of events that take place here, many historical events, and of course this will be another one of them this evening.
In fact, it was 25 years ago, and perhaps we can zoom in on the balcony there, 25 years ago today at 6:19 in the evening when there was white smoke and then about an hour after that, about 7:15 in the evening, Pope John Paul II came out on the balcony, his name was announced and he came out as first time as pope.
Of course, over the last 25 years there have been a lot of other things that have happened here in the square, not very far away from where I'm standing back in 1981. In fact, Ali Hadja (ph), a gunman, tried to assassinate the pope. Since then, security has been tight, perhaps accounting for that kind of security check we saw today. Some of the pilgrims that are coming in here today have gone through metal detectors as they come in.
But really, there's not a whole lot that can be done in terms of security, just because of the openness of this place, and the way the church wants to keep it open, that is to keep it a place where pilgrims can come to see their leader -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Jim, and just a question here about other activities and other things planned as the weekend goes forward and the festivities go forward concerning Mother Teresa and what might happen to her legacy on Sunday.
BITTERMANN: Right, we're expecting a really big crowd for that. That's another event that's taking place here in St. Peter's Square. They're projecting perhaps as many as a quarter of a million people coming for the beatification of Mother Teresa, and that will take place on Sunday.
Then just a couple of days that on Tuesday, the pope is going to create 31 new cardinals, 30 of whom will be here, and that will take place, also right here in St. Peter's.
KAGAN: Jim Bittermann, thank you for that.
Well, earlier today, the pope addressed cardinals and bishops assembled in the Vatican's audience halls. He also signed a document that looked to the future and contained at least one surprising element.
Joining us to better understand its significance, our Vatican analyst Delia Gallagher. Also she is associate editor of the monthly magazine, "Inside the Vatican," in Rome.
Delia, great to have you here with us.
DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN VATICAN ANALYST: Hi, Daryn.
KAGAN: Tell us about this 192-page document that the pope has released.
GALLAGHER: Well, Daryn, this was a document that had been planned for some time. It was written by the bishop, and then was approved by the pope. It's sort of a joint effort between the two of them.
And one of the surprising elements, or not so surprising, depending on your point of view, is the fact they did address the sex abuse scandal, though not in those words.
Let me give you some of the exact words. They said, "The bishop must intervene in a timely manner in the reparation of scandals and crimes which involve the church's ministers."
So this is a very clear statement on behalf of the Vatican, but also on behalf of the bishops, let's keep that in mend, that this document was, in fact, written and wanted by the bishops themselves -- Daryn.
KAGAN: And of course You can't talk about this pope without talking about his health. How is that being appraised today, Delia?
GALLAGHER: Well, that's always a day-to-day thing, Daryn, and we did see him this morning. He again is tired. He did manage to speak the beginning of his speech, and then that was taken over by another cardinal and the pope came in tend to give the greetings, and we're seeing that more and more now, that he does complete his whole speech.
But again, this pope has the capacity we have seen over and over to have this sort of spirit that lifts him up again and makes him carry on. So it's always an interesting thing to watch, because one day he looks very tired, and everyone says this is it, and then the next day we see that he's able to come back in good form.
KAGAN: And then finally, Delia, one question bouncing off the question I asked Jim Bittermann about Mother Teresa, how she will be beatified on Sunday. This is a pope that has made creation of saints a regular part of his papacy.
GALLAGHER: Yes, that's right. And Of course, the interesting thing about the beatification of Mother Teresa is that this is a process which has been speeded up particularly for her. Of course the pope knew her, she was a good friend of his. And the process of beatification doesn't usually begin until five years after a death. Mother Teresa died in '97. It is now five years later, and the process has already ended for her beatification. So that is a clear sign of her favoritism with the pope.
KAGAN: And on that fast track, when would she become a saint?
GALLAGHER: Well, that will depend. They will go back to the drawing board and look at another miracle. From beatification from sainthood, it takes another miracle, and so you could expect perhaps within the next year or two, that sainthood could be in line -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Wow. Very, very quick. Delia Gallagher, thank you for that.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
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Aired October 16, 2003 - 10:08 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Tens of thousands of Roman Catholics and their leaders from around the world are converging this hour on the Vatican. Less than two hours from now, Pope John Paul II will celebrate a mass celebrating his 25th anniversary as the pontiff.
Our Jim Bittermann is in Vatican City to set the stage for that.
Jim, hello.
JIM BITTERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Daryn.
Yes, in fact, we're here at St. Peter's Square, where that mass is going to begin in just under two hour's time, at almost exactly the same time Pope John Paul II was named pope 25 years ago.
Now, the square has been cleared out here over the last couple of hours, they performed a security check and they also cleaned up the square a little bit. And now, just in the last 15 or 20 minutes or so they let people in. There was a mad scramble as people trying to get some of the front seats that had been set up here for this mass this evening. They are expecting thousands of people to come here.
This is kind of -- St. Peters is kind of the front lawn of The Vatican, from lawn for Catholicism. There's a lot of events that take place here, many historical events, and of course this will be another one of them this evening.
In fact, it was 25 years ago, and perhaps we can zoom in on the balcony there, 25 years ago today at 6:19 in the evening when there was white smoke and then about an hour after that, about 7:15 in the evening, Pope John Paul II came out on the balcony, his name was announced and he came out as first time as pope.
Of course, over the last 25 years there have been a lot of other things that have happened here in the square, not very far away from where I'm standing back in 1981. In fact, Ali Hadja (ph), a gunman, tried to assassinate the pope. Since then, security has been tight, perhaps accounting for that kind of security check we saw today. Some of the pilgrims that are coming in here today have gone through metal detectors as they come in.
But really, there's not a whole lot that can be done in terms of security, just because of the openness of this place, and the way the church wants to keep it open, that is to keep it a place where pilgrims can come to see their leader -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Jim, and just a question here about other activities and other things planned as the weekend goes forward and the festivities go forward concerning Mother Teresa and what might happen to her legacy on Sunday.
BITTERMANN: Right, we're expecting a really big crowd for that. That's another event that's taking place here in St. Peter's Square. They're projecting perhaps as many as a quarter of a million people coming for the beatification of Mother Teresa, and that will take place on Sunday.
Then just a couple of days that on Tuesday, the pope is going to create 31 new cardinals, 30 of whom will be here, and that will take place, also right here in St. Peter's.
KAGAN: Jim Bittermann, thank you for that.
Well, earlier today, the pope addressed cardinals and bishops assembled in the Vatican's audience halls. He also signed a document that looked to the future and contained at least one surprising element.
Joining us to better understand its significance, our Vatican analyst Delia Gallagher. Also she is associate editor of the monthly magazine, "Inside the Vatican," in Rome.
Delia, great to have you here with us.
DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN VATICAN ANALYST: Hi, Daryn.
KAGAN: Tell us about this 192-page document that the pope has released.
GALLAGHER: Well, Daryn, this was a document that had been planned for some time. It was written by the bishop, and then was approved by the pope. It's sort of a joint effort between the two of them.
And one of the surprising elements, or not so surprising, depending on your point of view, is the fact they did address the sex abuse scandal, though not in those words.
Let me give you some of the exact words. They said, "The bishop must intervene in a timely manner in the reparation of scandals and crimes which involve the church's ministers."
So this is a very clear statement on behalf of the Vatican, but also on behalf of the bishops, let's keep that in mend, that this document was, in fact, written and wanted by the bishops themselves -- Daryn.
KAGAN: And of course You can't talk about this pope without talking about his health. How is that being appraised today, Delia?
GALLAGHER: Well, that's always a day-to-day thing, Daryn, and we did see him this morning. He again is tired. He did manage to speak the beginning of his speech, and then that was taken over by another cardinal and the pope came in tend to give the greetings, and we're seeing that more and more now, that he does complete his whole speech.
But again, this pope has the capacity we have seen over and over to have this sort of spirit that lifts him up again and makes him carry on. So it's always an interesting thing to watch, because one day he looks very tired, and everyone says this is it, and then the next day we see that he's able to come back in good form.
KAGAN: And then finally, Delia, one question bouncing off the question I asked Jim Bittermann about Mother Teresa, how she will be beatified on Sunday. This is a pope that has made creation of saints a regular part of his papacy.
GALLAGHER: Yes, that's right. And Of course, the interesting thing about the beatification of Mother Teresa is that this is a process which has been speeded up particularly for her. Of course the pope knew her, she was a good friend of his. And the process of beatification doesn't usually begin until five years after a death. Mother Teresa died in '97. It is now five years later, and the process has already ended for her beatification. So that is a clear sign of her favoritism with the pope.
KAGAN: And on that fast track, when would she become a saint?
GALLAGHER: Well, that will depend. They will go back to the drawing board and look at another miracle. From beatification from sainthood, it takes another miracle, and so you could expect perhaps within the next year or two, that sainthood could be in line -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Wow. Very, very quick. Delia Gallagher, thank you for that.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
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