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Pope John Paul II beatified in front of audience of 1.5 million =
The late Pope John Paul II was beatified in a three-hour ceremony in = the=20 biggest event hosted by the Vatican since two million people attended = his=20 funeral six years ago.
Image 1 of 3
Pope Benedict XVI, =
center,=20
kneels in prayer in front of the casket of late Pope John Paul II, laid =
out in=20
state at the Altar of the Confession inside St. Peter's Basilica, at the =
end of=20
a solemn celebration in St. Peter's Square where he was beatified, =
Sunday, May=20
1, 2011, in the fastest beatification in modern times. More than a =
million=20
faithful are estimated to have attended the celebration at the Vatican =
and=20
surrounding streets. Photo:=20
AP
Image 1 of 3
Italian Prime =
Minister Silvio=20
Berlusconi (L) chats with Prince Felipe of Spain and Princess Letizia of =
Spain=20
prior the beatification ceremony of late pope John Paul II on May 1, =
2011 at St=20
Peter's square at The Vatican. Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims are =
expected to=20
attend a Vatican ceremony on Sunday in which Pope Benedict XVI will =
honour his=20
late predecessor John Paul II with near-sainthood status. =
Photo: AFP
Image 1 of 3
A general view of =
St. Peter's=20
Square and Via della Conciliazione from the top of the Basilica during =
the John=20
Paul II Beatification Ceremony held by Pope Benedict XVI on May 1, 2011 =
in=20
Vatican City, Vatican. The ceremony marking the beatification and the =
last=20
stages of the process to elevate Pope John Paul II to sainthood was led =
by his=20
successor Pope Benedict XI and attended by tens of thousands of pilgrims =
alongside heads of state and dignitaries. Photo:=20
Getty Images
An estimated 1.5 million people packed into St Peter's Square to = watch Pope=20 Benedict XVI declare his Polish predecessor "blessed" in a display of = religious=20 pomp watched on television and the internet by millions around the=20 world.
Pope Benedict XVI approved the beatification, the fastest in modern = times,=20 after Vatican experts ruled that the "miraculous" recovery of a French = nun from=20 Parkinson's disease was attributable to his intercession from beyond the = grave.
The search is now on for a second miracle which, after scrutiny by = doctors=20 and Vatican theologians, would enable the Polish pontiff to be=20 canonised.
The Pope's millions of admirers remember him for his charisma, his = survival=20 of an assassination attempt in 1981 and his pivotal role in challenging=20 Communism during the Cold War.
In an apparent reference to John Paul's bold defiance of Communist = regimes=20 and his support for the Polish Solidarity movement, Pope Benedict XVI = said his=20 predecessor "turned back with the strength of a titan ... a tide which = appeared=20 irreversible."
In another tribute, Cardinal Agostino Vallini, the vicar general of = the=20 diocese of Rome, told the massed crowds that John Paul was "feared by = those who=20 regarded him as an adversary."
The first non-Italian Pope in 455 years when he was elected in 1978, = John=20 Paul II brought new vitality to the Vatican but alienated many Roman = Catholics=20 with his conservative social views on homosexuality, birth control, = euthanasia=20 and Aids.
However, yesterday there were uncomfortable questions about John = Paul's=20 alleged failure to tackle the issue of paedophile priests, a scandal = that has=20 exploded under Pope Benedict XVI 's six-year papacy.
An association of sex abuse victims, the Survivors' Network of those = Abused=20 by Priests, criticised the "hasty" push towards sainthood and said "most = of the=20 widely documented clergy sex crimes and cover-ups" took place under the = late=20 Pope's watch.
A group of 70 Belgians who claim they were sexually abused by = Catholic clergy=20 announced that they would take legal action against the Vatican for = "culpable=20 negligence" in failing to protect them from predatory priests.
The Belgian Catholic Church was shaken last year by the revelation of = nearly=20 500 cases of abuse by priests since the 1950s, including 13 known = suicides among=20 victims.
The Most Rev Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, said it was = right=20 that John Paul II was beatified despite the clerical sex abuse = scandal.
The leader of Catholics in England and Wales said it was not a "medal = for=20 good management service" but a declaration of the Polish Pope's = closeness to=20 God. "It is not to say he did not make mistakes, saints make loads of = mistakes=20 but they are close to God."
The ceremony, which began under grey skies but ended in a blaze of = sunshine,=20 was attended by cardinals, the representatives of five royal families, = including=20 the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, and 16 heads of state.
They included Robert Mugabe, the leader of Zimbabwe, who despite = being=20 subject to international travel bans was given special permission by the = European Union to fly to Rome to attend.
A Vatican spokesman said Mr Mugabe could not be prevented from = attending the=20 ceremony because the Holy See has diplomatic relations with = Zimbabwe.
The beatification was seen as an opportunity to repair the Church's = image and=20 raise morale among rank and file Catholics.
Pilgrims from around the world, including a huge contingent of Poles = from the=20 late Pope's homeland, waved flags and cheered throughout the ceremony, = with some=20 breaking down in tears of joy.
"John Paul was a wonderful man and it's a privilege to be here," said = Anne=20 Honiball, 48, a nursing home administrator from Worthing, who carried a = small=20 Union Jack flag.
"We missed the royal wedding but we are Catholics and this was a bit = more=20 important, I suppose," said Mrs Honibal.
A huge tapestry of a smiling John Paul II was unveiled at the front = of St=20 Peter's Basilica as Pope Benedict XVI received a silver reliquary = holding a vial=20 of the late Pope's blood. It will remain in the Vatican and become an = object of=20 veneration for the faithful.
Hundreds of thousands of Catholics filed into St Peter's at the end = of the=20 ceremony to pay their respects to John Paul's wooden coffin, which was = watched=20 over by Swiss Guards wearing their distinctive harlequin uniforms and = plumed=20 helmets.
The Catholic Church is pushing hard for the former Pope to be = canonised,=20 although there is no set timetable and it is likely to take several = years.
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