Pope Benedict prays JPII will help him build on spiritual gifts

Published: 2008-04-02

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI prayed that Pope John Paul II would intercede for him with God, helping him to gather and build on the spiritual gifts that Pope John Paul gave to the church. The Vatican police said almost 40,000 people joined Pope Benedict April 2 in St. Peter's Square for a Mass marking the third anniversary of Pope John Paul's death. "We pray that from heaven he will continue to intercede for each one of us, and in a special way for me, whom providence has called to harvest his invaluable spiritual heritage," the pope said in his homily. "May the church, following his teaching and example, continue his evangelizing mission faithfully and without compromise, tirelessly spreading the merciful love of Christ, the source of true peace for the whole world," he said. The concelebrants included Polish Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz of Krakow, who had served as Pope John Paul's secretary for almost 40 years. At an April 1 conference dedicated to the memory of Pope John Paul, Cardinal Dziwisz said he continues to receive hundreds of letters from people who have asked for Pope John Paul's intercession and he, himself, continues to pray for his former boss' assistance.

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