PHOTO: EAST NEWS/AFP PHOTO Pope John Paul II blesses the Christ on the cross 28 April 1989 during an open-air mass in Antanarivo at the beginning of a 10-day Africa tour. The pontiff visited Madagascar, La R??union, Zambia and Malawi from 28 April to 06 May. It was his 41st International Pastoral visit.

Pope John Paul II is shown during an outdoor mass in the Netherlands on May 14, 1984. (AP Photo)

** FILE ** Pope John Paul II appears for the first time after surgery at the window of the Gemelli Hospital in Rome in this July 26, 1992 file photo. Pope John Paul II, the Polish pontiff who led the Roman Catholic Church for more than a quarter century and became history's most-traveled pope, has died at 84, the Vatican announced in an e-mail Saturday, April 2, 2005. (AP Photo/Massimo Sambucetti, File)

PHOTO: EAST NEWS PIELGRZYMKA JANA PAWLA II DO ZIEMI SWIETEJ: PAPIEZ PODCZAS MSZY W BAZYLICE ZWIASTOWANIA W NAZARECIE. Pope John Paul II holds his staff 25 March 2000 during mass at the Basilica of the Annunciation. The pontiff appealed to Christians worldwide to defend the family and respect the dignity of man on the feast of Annunciation, marking the announcement by the angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary that she would give birth to Christ. (ELECTRONIC IMAGE)

PHOTO: EAST NEWS PIELGRZYMKA JANA PAWLA II DO ZIEMI SWIETEJ, KORAZIM Pope John Paul II touches the feet of Christ during mass 24 March 2000 in Korazim by the Sea of Galilee at the foot of the Mount of Beatitudes, where Jesus is thought to have preached the Sermon. Continuing his emotional pilgrimage to the sites of Christ's life and death, the pontiff delivered a deeply religious homily, beseeching the young to heed Christ's words of peace. (ELECTRONIC IMAGE)

PHOTO: EAST NEWS/AFP A dove takes flight over Pope John Paul II after it was released at the conclusion of his Mass at Manila's Luneta Park 15 January. Papal officials said the crowd was the largest ever to see the 74-year-old pontiff. (COLOR KEY: Hat has red trim.) AFP PHOTO

PHOTO: EAST NEWS/AFP Pope John Paul II closes the Holy Door of Saint Peter's Basilica 06 January 2001, symbolically ending the Jubilee 2000 celebrations which coincided with the Catholic Holy Year. The Door will remain sealed by a brick wall until 2025 when Catholics are expected to celebrate their next Holy Year.

PHOTO: EAST NEWS/AFP PHOTO Pope John Paul II salutes some 50.000 faithful 23 March in Kubwa, near the Nigerian capital of Abuja, as a nigerian soldier looks on. The pontiff launched another forceful defence of human rights, on the final day of a three-day pastoral visit. He also lectured Roman Catholics in Africa's most populous nation, facing severe challenges on both the democratic and the AIDS fronts, on the importance of family values and the "inviolability" of life.

PHOTO: EAST NEWS/AFP Pope John Paul II celebrates a Divine Liturgy with beatifications in Lviv, 27 June 2001, on the last day of his five-day visit in Ukraine. One million Catholics gathered at the racecourse here as Pope John Paul II beatified 28 martyrs during the final mass of his controversial visit to the former Soviet Republic. AFP PHOTO POOL GABRIEL BOUYS

Pope John Paul II leans on his pastoral staff during his visit to the San Mattia parish church in the outskirts of Rome, Sunday March 14, 1999. (AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito)

PHOTO: EAST NEWS/AFP (FILES) Pope John Paul II is seen in this file picture taken 29 April 1989 in Antanarivo as he reaches out to young well-wishers prior a mass at Youth stadium in capital of Madagascar.

FOTO: EAST NEWS/LASKI DIFFUSION KAROL WOJTYLA, 1946 30th anniversary of pontificate of Pope John Paul II. Karol Wojtyla was elected and intronisated on 16 October 1978.

PHOTO: EAST NEWS/WOJTEK LASKI Papiez Jan Pawel II 30th anniversary of pontificate of Pope John Paul II. Karol Wojtyla was elected and intronisated on 16 October 1978.

PHOTO:EAST NEWS/WOJTEK LASKI Podroz apostolska papieza Jana Pawla II do Austrii. Msza na Placu Bohaterow (Heldenplatz). Wieden, wrzesien 1983 N/Z: Jan Pawel II. Austria 1983 John Paul II visits Austria 30th anniversary of pontificate of Pope John Paul II. Karol Wojtyla was elected and intronisated on 16 October 1978.

PHOTO:EAST NEWS/WOJTEK LASKI Podroz apostolska papieza Jana Pawla II do Austrii. Msza na Placu Bohaterow (Heldenplatz). Wieden, wrzesien 1983 N/Z: Jan Pawel II. Austria 1983 John Paul II visits Austria

PHOTO: CATHOLIC PRESS/EAST NEWS RELIKWIA PAPIEZA JANA PAWLA II ZOSTALA PRZEKAZANA PRZEZ KARDYNALA STANISLAWA DZIWISZA CHOREMU ROBERTOWI KUBICY. KROPLA KRWI PAPIEZA I FRAGMENT JEGO SZATY SA ZAMKNIETE W OZODBNYM MEDALIONIE.

PHOTO: EAST NEWS/AFP PHOTO Pope John Paul II looks on in the Kalwaria Zebrzydowska sanctuary as he celebrates a mass 19 August 2002. The Pope wraps up a bittersweet journey home, returning to the Vatican knowing that age and illness may prevent him from ever setting foot in his beloved Poland again.

PHOTO: EAST NEWS/AFP PHOTO An undated and unlocated portrait of Jean Paul II.

PHOTO: EAST NEWS/AFP Pope John Paul II during the dedicated ceremony in the church of Lagiewniki in Krakow August 17, 2002. The Pope looks tired, his head slumping, as incense burns on the altar during a mass in which the 82-year-old Pontiff dedicated a new church in Krakow, the city where he spent most of his life before he was elected Pope in 1978.

PHOTO: EAST NEWS/AFP Pope John Paul II sits on his chair during the blessing ceremony of the church ofLagiewniki in Krakow 17 August 2002. The 82-year-old pontiff, who faces a daily battle against the effects of Parkinson's disease and arthritis has become increasingly frail in recent months, is making his ninth papal visit to his home country of Poland spending four days in and around Krakow, where he was archbishop before his surprise election as pope in 1978.