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'It is like seeing god for me'

Suhasini Haidar

An estimated 70,000 people made the congregation at the celebration of high mass with Pope John Paul II at Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru stadium this morning. The Pope, who released the Synod document prepared by the Asian assembly of bishops last evening, participated in colourful ceremonies that lasted over three hours. Unlike yesterday, when the Pontiff had looked tired, even stumbling a few times, the Pope seemed far stronger today.

Early this morning, Catholics from various parts of Delhi, and some from other parts of the country made their way to the stadium where the mass was to be held. Security has been strengthened all around and outside the stadium, since this was practically the only function where the Pope was to make a grand public appearance. It took people long to find their way through the security cordons and to settle into their seats.

The Pontiff came in at five minutes past nine and drove around the stadium in his now-famous Pope-mobile. The congregation pushed forward and there was much cheering and waving. Some, like Nancy Gorain, a Catholic from Orissa, had tears streaming down her face.

"It is like seeing god for me," she said, "I have been waiting for this moment."

The Pope went up to the specially constructed dais, and began the mass with the words, "In the Name of the Father, the Spirit, and of the Holy Ghost...". The service was interspersed with hymns in English and Hindi, sung by choral singers.

Earlier, the cardinals attending the Synod had been led up to the dais by dancers from Delhi's Jesus and Mary College. Wearing blue and pink saris, the young dancers performed a welcoming choreographed piece that wished them a happy Diwali.

Archbishop of Delhi Alan de Lastic then welcomed the Pope, and wished him on the occasion of Diwali. The archbishop thanked all those who had helped with the organisation involved in the Papal visit, especially, he said, President K R Narayanan, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and Home Minister L K Advani. He announced that the Pope had contributed $ 300,000 (roughly Rs 13 million) to the victims of the cyclone in Orissa last week.

A banquet that was to be held in honour of the visiting bishops was also called off to pay respect to the cyclone victims. In an oblique reference to members of Hindu right wing groups in India that have been demanding that the church stop conversions, the archbishop said the church in India has, under the Constitution, the freedom to "preach, practise and propagate its religion".

"Without this freedom, " he said, "there can be no love amongst us."

Perhaps to silence their critics, the organisers of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India had tried hard to give today's function an 'Indian' flavour. The steps of the dais had been decorated with diyas, meant to celebrate the predominantly Hindu festival of lights.

A temple lamp had been lit to welcome the pope and, later in the ceremony, Indian Catholic nuns performed an aarti of the Pope with thaalis bearing incense sticks and flowers.

When representatives of various Asian countries (including the Phillipines, Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, China, Japan, and Indonesia) went to the altar to make offerings, they were shown the way by Bharat Natyam dancers.

The dancers, led by leading Bharat Natyam proponent Leela Samson, were dressed in orange and dark green and the dance was set to a Hindi hymn, which roughly translates into, 'Give Him your offerings, keep Him in your heart.'

The Pope's message lasted 30 minutes, during which he addressed several contemporary issues. He began, as the archbishop did, with a Diwali greeting to the nation, and then went on to speak of "a new relationship of understanding and solidarity among the followers of all religions.."

He then spoke at great length about "spreading the light of Christianity throughout Asia." One statement that could prove controversial was his message to the gathered Asian bishops when he hoped that the third Christian millennium would witness "a great harvest of faith on this vast and vital continent (Asia)." He concluded by saying that the Synod's message was one of "love and hope for the peoples of Asia".

Thirty chosen people then received communion from the Pope himself, while other Catholics in the stadium received communion from hundreds of local priests. A large contingent from the Missionaries of Charity was present at the mass, and more than one of them said they missed Mother Teresa's presence at the mass.

The Pope concluded the mass with the recital of the Angelus, an exhortation to Mary, mother of Jesus. After distributing copies of the Synod document, the Pope then bid goodbye to the congregation.

The mass today included diplomats from practically every country. Also present were Christian Indian politicians like former Lok Sabha Speaker Purno A Sangma, Congress leader Oscar Fernandes and former minister S Krishna Kumar. Conspicuous by her absence was Congress president and leader of the Opposition Sonia Gandhi. A Catholic by birth, Sonia has received communion from Pope John Paul II, on an earlier visit to the Vatican, which she visited with her husband, then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. Other noticeable absentees were all the members of the Union Cabinet.

As a result, while the upper stalls, meant for ordinary church-goers, were packed to capacity, the stalls reserved for "special invitees" were nearly empty.

EARLIER REPORT:

Pope prays for inter-religious dialogue

The Pope's Visit

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