By Beth Wallach
"For us, his death is particularly sad. We feel a certain bond with him that no one else can really understand," said Agnieszka, who left Poland three years ago. Visibly upset, she was among hundreds of mourners who attended a special 11 a.m. Mass at St. Agnes Cathedral on Sunday celebrated by Bishop Emil Wcela.
Amid the strains of the opening hymn, parishioners filed into the church, filling it to near capacity by the service's end. People not only came to celebrate the weekly Mass, but also to hear words of comfort about the pope, whose 25-year reign was the third-longest papacy in history.
On the second Sunday of Easter, also known as the Sunday of Divine Mercy, Wcela began by reminding people that the Most Rev. William Murphy, bishop of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, was in Israel, but would be back in time to celebrate a special Mass on Monday night in remembrance of the pope. Wcela spoke about how the events of the past week - the deaths of Terri Schiavo and the pope - were reminders to all about the reality of death. With the two deaths occurring during the Easter season, the bishop said, it was time to think about life and death and what it all means.
Bishop Murphy said in a written statement that John Paul II was "welcomed into the eternal Kingdom of God." The statement also said that the pontiff had staunchly defended those "persecuted by ideologies and powers that denied the transcendent value of the human spirit."
"I didn't know the pope well," said Wcela in his homily, but he recalled four meetings he had with the pope over the years. He said that every five years, groups of bishops make visits to the Vatican for the purpose of visiting the Holy See and celebrating Mass at St. Peter's Basilica. Wcela recalled seeing a vigorous pope on three of his four visits - an athlete, a skier and a hiker who enjoyed great health. He applauded the pontiff for his global visits, for connecting so well with youth, for being a dominant force in the fall of communism, for standing up to Nazi tyranny, and for healing the rift between the church and its Jewish brethren.
Regarding his last visit to the Vatican in October 2004, the bishop said of the pope, "It was clear that his life had changed." No longer the robust man who would lunch with visiting bishops in small groups and ask them to show him their dioceses on a map, on this visit, Wcela and the other bishops met with the pontiff just once.
John Paul II was the most widely traveled pope in history, visiting 170 countries and encountering more people than any other pontiff. More than 17.6 million people attended his general audiences, and he had 737 meetings with heads of state. In a special Mass celebrated by Murphy at St. Agnes Cathedral on Monday night, the bishop said, "Children of the world saw in him their own father, their own grandfather. They saw in him the face of God."
"Everyone's very sad," said Rockville Centre resident Al Rotondo, "but we should be very happy, because he was such a great pope that connected with people. I think he brought the morale and the consciousness of the Catholic Church way up. He was such a great inspiration, and he had a great life."
May Rizzo of Oceanside was among the mourners who was tearful when she left St. Agnes on Sunday. "It's very sad, but he's with God and God bless us all," she said.
Jane Glazer of Rockville Centre, who attended the 8 a.m. Mass on Sunday, said, "We're all very saddened by the pope's death. He was a great man and a terrific inspiration his whole life. From standing up to the Nazis [to] fighting communism, he represented Christian love, and that was his great contribution."
"He was a pope of firsts," said Rabbi Barry Dov Schwartz of Temple B'nai Sholom in Rockville Centre, who was part of a delegation of Jewish clergy that had the last public audience with the pope with the Pave the Way Foundation in Rome in January. Pave the Way is a Long Island-based group whose mission is to promote peace by embracing the similarities among the world's religions and encouraging understanding through cultural, technological and intellectual exchanges.
Reached for comment by phone, Schwartz said of John Paul II, "He was the first pope to visit a synagogue in Rome, to visit Israel, and to recognize the Holocaust. He made heroic and significant efforts to deepen the relationship between Roman Catholics and the Jewish people. He was beloved by the Jewish community." Regarding his recent audience with the pontiff, Schwartz said, 'We went [to the Vatican] to express our appreciation for a pope who really, for the first time, embraced our people in a personal way. He will be remembered in death as he was in life."
Former Rockville Centre resident and Pave the Way founder Gary Krupp had the opportunity to meet the pope four times since 1990. He was knighted by the pontiff into the order of St. Gregory the Great in 2000, the seventh Jewish man ever to be so honored. "[My wife] Merry and I have lost a very good friend," said Krupp. "My contact with him has changed the course of my life. Our dealings with the Vatican prompted us to form Pave the Way Foundation. We believe the pope's blessing in this endeavor has been responsible for many of our successes. We will continue to work toward our mission, knowing the pope was a supporter."
Greg Prunty, who attended the early-morning Mass, called John Paul II "the people's pope." Said Prunty, "He rose to be a blessed man and led by example."
Another Rockville Centre resident, Christopher Del Bello, shared those sentiments. "He was the best pope we ever had," said Del Bello. "He was a pope to the world, bringing people together of all faiths."
Wcela greeted people as they filed out into the cold noontime rain that fell during the service. "We lost a great man, but the church will continue. He made a great contribution to who we all are."
Speaking for the people of her native Krakow, Agnieszka, fighting back tears, said, "For us he was not only the Holy Father, but also a father and a brother."
Esther McKenna contributed to this story. Comments about it? RVCeditor@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 285.
