- Title: VATICAN: DAWN BREAKS OVER VATICAN AS POPE JOHN PAUL II NEARS DEATH.
- Date: 2nd April 2005
- Summary: (BN5) VATICAN CITY, VATICAN (APRIL 2, 2005) (REUTERS) ++NIGHT VIEWS++ 1. GV: ST PETER'S SQUARE AT NIGHT 0.06 2. CU: WINDOWS OF POPE'S APARTMENT (LIGHT IN LIVING QUARTERS, DARK IN BEDROOM) 0.12 3. LV/GV: NIGHT AND DAWN SHOTS OF ST. PETER'S SQUARE WITH SLEEPING WELL-WISHERS AND PILGRIMS (10 SHOTS) 1.56 +++DAY VIEWS+++ 4. GV/MV/CU: NEWSPAPER STAND; NEWSPAPER HEADLINES ABOUT POPE'S DECLINING HEALTH (5 SHOTS) 2.32 5. GV/CU: MEMENTO STAND (4 SHOTS) 3.05 6. (SOUNDBITE) (Italian) NUN SAYING: "Now is the time for the heritage. The void will be huge but the heritage that follows will be larger and because we have faith in resurrection, God will give him a new mission, which he will fulfil like he did with the first one, even better than the first one, because the force of resurrection means his presence will always be alive." 3.32 7. (SOUNDBITE) (Italian) NUN SAYING: "Let the will of God be done, I don't know what else I could say, we were always taught to accept the will of God and this time it is God's will being done to him as well." 3.56 8. SIDE CU: MEDIA (2 SHOTS) 4.08 9. LV/GV/MV: PEOPLE WALKING TOWARDS VATICAN (4 SHOTS) 4.40 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 17th April 2005 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: VATICAN
- Reuters ID: LVAR3GW06OQAFV8AQJYWEHBOQ87
- Story Text: As dawn breaks over the Vatican, dozens of Catholics
maintain their vigil in St Peter's Square for the gravely
ill Pope John Paul.
As Roman Catholics around the world waited and
prayed as Pope John Paul slid towards death on Saturday
(April 2), thousands of the faithful held an emotional
vigil in St Peter's Square deep into the night after
Vatican officials said the 84-year-old Pope's health was
fading fast.
"Stay with us. Don't leave us," the crowds chanted,
many people weeped uncontrollably as they gazed up at the
Papal apartments, where just two lights blazed.
But senior churchmen made clear that death was close at
hand and Italian news agencies quoted medical sources as
saying the Pope had lost consciousness.
In its latest bulletin on Friday evening, the Vatican
said John Paul's heart and kidneys were failing, his
breathing was shallow and his blood pressure had dropped to
dangerously low
Police estimated that as many as 70,000 people were in
the vast, floodlit square as Saturday dawned, to be near
the man who enjoyed the third-longest papacy in history and
was a key world figure of the late 20th century.
After daybreak, small groups sat in circles in the
square, reading from prayer books and reciting the rosary.
Newspapers ran large photos of the Polish Pope, whom
Italians considered one of their own.
Headlines like "Goodbye, Old Pope," and "Thank You,
Wojtyla" filled the front pages.
Those outside the Vatican appeared resigned to the
likelihood that the Pope will not recover from his illness.
"Let the will of God be done," said one nun. "I don't
know what else I could say, we were always taught to accept
the will of God and this time it is God's will being done
to him as well."
The Vatican said it would hold a briefing on the Pope's
health at 0930 GMT.
Once fit and athletic, the Pope has suffered a series of
health dramas, including a near-fatal shooting in 1981 by a
Turkish gunman. He suffered from Parkinson's Disease in
recent years and was twice rushed to hospital in February
with breathing crises.
He failed to recover from throat surgery aimed at
helping him breathe and on Thursday (March 31) developed a
high fever caused by a urinary infection. He told aides he
did not want to return to hospital and received the holy
sacrament reserved for the dying.
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