The Vatican has revealed the five main events that will surround the beatification of Pope John Paul II this May, which it said promised to be “a great ecclesial event.” A communique published today stated that a vigil of preparation will take place Saturday, April 30, from 8 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. in the Circus Maximus of Rome. The event will be organized by the diocese of Rome, and Cardinal Agostino Vallini, Benedict XVI’s vicar for Rome, will preside. The Pope will follow the event through a video link. The beatification Mass will begin Sunday, May 1, at 10 a.m., and take place in St. Peter’s Square. Benedict XVI will preside at the Mass.
“Participation will not be regulated by individual tickets,” the note added. “However, access to the Square and adjacent areas will be under the supervision of the Public Security.”
After the beatification Mass, the remains of the new blessed will be exposed for veneration in St. Peter’s Basilica, before the Altar of the Confession. The Vatican note said that all the faithful will be given the opportunity to venerate the remains of the Pope, which will “continue until the flow of faithful is exhausted.”
On Monday, May 2, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican secretary of state, will preside at a Mass of Thanksgiving in St. Peter’s Square at 10:30 a.m. The Vatican stated that the remains of John Paul II will then be transferred to the Chapel of Saint Sebastian in St. Peter’s Basilica, and that the event will “take place privately.”
As the event nears, the Vatican added, “the particulars of the different stages will be made known successively by the offices concerned.”
VATICAN CITY, FEB. 18, 2011 (Zenit.org)