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Pope John Paul II: 1920 - 2005

Bay area greets news with sadness

By WAVENEY ANN MOORE and CRAIG PITTMAN
Published April 3, 2005

	[Times photo: Bob Croslin]
	Members of the Mercy of God Polish Mission, which meets at St. Paul Catholic Church in St. Petersburg, gathered for a Vigil Mass Saturday to mark the death of Pope John Paul II. The pope was born in Poland.

The calls started pouring into WBVM-FM 90.5 Saturday afternoon. Listeners from all over the Tampa Bay area dialed the station's 800-line to express their sadness over the death of Pope John Paul II and recount how he had touched their lives.

Camille from Zephyrhills remembered how she and a group of teenagers had seen him in Denver. The crowd chanted "John Paul II, we love you!" over and over, until he told them, "And John Paul II loves you!"

A Protestant pastor called from Sarasota to praise his ecumenical spirit. And Violetta from Tampa, who was born in Poland, said in a shaky voice, "I'm glad he has his rest."

"I'm sad for us the pope has left us pilgrims behind," said Jean from Clearwater. "But there's a part of me that just rejoices for him. His journey is over."

At St. Leo Abbey, church services were going on when a monk came in and rang the bells, alerting everyone that the pontiff was dead. The prior, Father David Steinwachs, said he suddenly found himself "at the point of tears," and called for a moment of silence.

Television beamed images of mourning into the Lane Glo bowling alley in Port Richey, where Al Chiamese, 83, spent the afternoon with his son and grandson.

"I feel terrible about it," said Chiamese, a Catholic and retired butcher from the Bronx. "It hurts to see a guy like that go. That's all I can tell you."

Chiamese's grandson Eric, 17, threw a gutter ball, then said he looks forward to what happens next.

"Now that they have to elect a new pope it could make the church have to modernize more," Eric said. "A lot of young people feel like the church is outdated."

Just 45 minutes after the Vatican formally announced the news, hundreds of devout retirees filled the pews for the 4 p.m. Mass at St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Catholic Church in Spring Hill.

"He's been good to all kinds of people," said Albina D'Angelo, 69.

Ahmed Bedier, director of the Central Florida office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said Muslims will always remember this pontiff as being the first leader of the Catholic Church to set foot in a mosque.

"People will be saddened, not just Catholics, but people of all faiths," he said.

Meanwhile Rabbi Jacob Luski of Congregation B'nai Israel of St. Petersburg recalled how the pontiff opened up diplomatic relations with Israel.

"Pope John Paul II challenged the Catholic world to deal with 2,000 years of history to search for a meaningful understanding of Judaism and the Jewish people," he said.

As the last streams of daylight poured through the stained glass windows at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Tampa, the Rev. Don Saunders talked about how this pontiff changed the world. The service ended with Hymn 455, the Song of Farewell.

"This was a man who united the world," said parishioner Jorge Pedreros, who came with 12 other members of his family.

"It's very hard to let go," said retiree Rose Springer. "Well, soon we'll get another pope, and I only hope he is just as good as this pope."

At St. Paul Catholic Church in St. Petersburg, prayers were offered for the pope and for the College of Cardinals that will pick his successor. Later, members of the Mercy of God Polish Mission, which meets at St. Paul's, gathered for Mass.

Stanley Bryk, who came from Poland in 1964, had a hard time talking about his feelings.

"I can't express myself," he said. "I'm so proud, because he is such a good Holy Father. He's father not just for Polish people, for the world. He was a very, very good, holy man."

Times staff writers Eddy Ramirez, Jamie Thompson, Steve Thompson and Abhi Raghunathan contributed to this story.

[Last modified April 3, 2005, 00:11:06]