6th April 2005
Friday, December 25th, 2009
Mass turnout at Warsaw's national mass
Over 300,000 people yesterday participated in the national mass in Piłsudski Square in Warsaw to mourn the death of Pope John Paul II.
People from all over the country brought thousands of candles and flowers and formed them into a cross facing the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The mass was conducted by Cardinal Józef Glemp. Among those who participated, were the President, the Prime Minister, Sejm and Senate Speakers and Warsaw city authorities. The faithful brought banners bearing phrases such as, "We are not afraid," "Totus Tuus" and also "You'll never walk alone" - a slogan known from football stadiums brought by the reconciled fans of the two competing Warsaw football clubs, Legia and Polonia. The Cardinal put forward an idea of creating a crypt with a symbolic sarcophagus of John Paul II in the Opatrzności Bożej Cathedral in Wilanów. In related news, the government declared that state offices will be closed on Friday, the day of the Pope's funeral and appealed for all shops to be closed as well. The Warsaw Stock Exchange also declared it would not open. (Rzeczpospolita, p. A1; Gazeta Wyborcza, p. 3) A.F.
From Warsaw Business Journal
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