Metro Catholics pray for pontiff
Parishioners have mixed emotions as they attend masses at area churches.
Many of Metro Detroit's faithful, including Mack Betts at St. Aloysius Catholic Church in Detroit, prayed for the pope at morning masses.
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Therese Norris of Farmington Hills teared up this morning thinking of the Church without John Paul II as its leader. For her family, the pope is a particularly special figure because of a face-to-face meeting that took place in October 1998.
While in Rome to see her brother's ordination as a priest, the pope passed by in St. Peter's Square and noticed Norris with her then five-month-old son, Philip, in her arms.
"The Holy Father spotted him," she said. "He came over and engaged Philip for a few minutes. Philip pulled his nose. The father kissed him.
"It was a very grace-filled, very overwhelming moment."
The idea of that same man dying and that same face no longer being the face of the church was almost too much for her to think about.
"I'm anticipating this great sense of loss," she said. "I feel there will be a void there. But at the same time, I feel this is the culmination of the pope's work on Earth."
Dick Bradley and many other Catholics steeled themselves for the worst when they turned on their televisions Friday morning to check the news reports on Pope John Paul II's failing health.
They viewed the news reports with mixed emotions - sadness because it appeared he was dying and some joy because they believe he is going to God.
"He was a wonderful leader and an inspiration to all of us," said Bradley of Bloomfield Township. "He's had a long and fruitful life and his goal is to move to a better place. While we're sad that his life is coming to an end, we also are at peace and happy for him that he is moving to a better place."
Pope John Paul was a catalyst for change in the world, especially in Eastern Europe, and "a wonderful ambassador to the youth," said Bradley, a member of St. Hugo of the Hills Catholic Church.
The pope had a tremendous effect on young people, Bradley said, recalling how the pontiff reserved a day to meet with youth in Montreal in the mid-1980s.
"It was electric to see how the kids responded to him when he arrived at the stadium. The kids were all standing and chanting John Paul two, we love you. It was just electric."
Bradley said he is praying for the pope just as he did when the pontiff was shot.
In Woodhaven, Pauline Solano, a member of Our Lady of the Woods parish, turned on her television at 6 a.m. to check on the pope.
"My prayers are with him. I know he's been failing. It's so very sad. But he's going to God."
Solano's daughter, Marisa Solano Sanchez, got to see the pope at the World Youth Day in Toronto in 2002, she said. And her 15-year-old son, Robert Sanchez, had hoped to see Pope Paul II at this year's World Youth Day in Germany, she said.
"He's been the pope so long that for the kids, he is the only pope that they've known."
Solano, a breast cancer survivor, said he inspired people with his caring and faith.
"In our time of need, it is our faith that sustains us because we know that God cares and He is with us always."
At 6:30 a.m., as he prepared for his day, Father Michael Bugarin was still optimistic.
"He's been pope for 26 years, the third-longest-reigning pope we've had," said the pastor of St. Joan of Arc in St. Clair Shores. "With any luck, he'll make it to number two."
As the regulars filed in to St. Aloysius Church on Washington Boulevard in Detroit for the 7:45 a.m. service, many shared the same thought: for the man who has done so much for the church, a peaceful end would be best.
Patricia Donovan, 66, attends the early service five days a week. But recent days have been different as she has kept an eye on news reports updating the pope's health.
"I'm not upset because I believe everyone is in God's hands," she said. "Everyone's time comes."
The pontiff is a part of Maria Sanders' prayers every day. Those prayers have taken on particular importance this week as the word from Rome has gotten less and less optimistic.
"It's a shame," Sanders said. "He's just such a nice man."
Detroit resident Angela Cerne saw the pope on a trip to Rome in 1983 and described it as a "thrilling" experience. One of the reasons she believes John Paul II has come to be so loved is his willingness to get out and be seen all over the world.
"He has been to so many countries," she said.
"People sometimes need something to be able to touch in order to believe."
Bugarin agreed. He described the pope as having opened the doors of the church to the world.
"There's no doubt he will go down in history as John Paul the Great," he said. "He's the most traveled pope in history and has met with more world leaders than anyone else."
You can reach Jim Lynch at (313) 222-2751 or jlynch@detnews.com.
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