Polish break dancers give pope a show in the Vatican

Published: 2004-01-26

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Spending part of his Sunday with young people, Pope John Paul II applauded break dancers from his native Poland and helped Italian youths launch doves of peace from his apartment window. The break dancers performed Jan. 25 before a seated pontiff in the Vatican's sumptuous Clementine Hall, with some spinning on their heads on the marble floor to the pope's apparent delight. They jumped and twisted to the sound of rhythmic music that blared through the hall from a boombox. The pope raised his hands in approval after each dancer finished, and told the group afterward: "I bless you from my heart for this creative and difficult work." He told the youths that creativity was important in all art, and that artistic talent was a gift of God that should be developed and not wasted.

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