Pope John Paul Ii: 1925-2005; Poles Lead Emotional Pilgrimage to Rome; Faithful Fill Streets Mourning Loss of Beloved Pope

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Rome The vanguard of an estimated 2 million pilgrim Poles who were coming to honor Pope John Paul II added emotion and color to the crowded sidewalks and streets around Vatican City on Thursday as groups streamed by carrying their nation's distinctive red and white flags.

Drawn by faith and fueled partly by patriotism and love, they were striking symbols amid a growing international response that has had unprepared Rome officials scrambling to cope before this morning's papal funeral Mass.

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Pope John Paul Ii: 1925-2005; Poles Lead Emotional Pilgrimage to Rome; Faithful Fill Streets Mourning Loss of Beloved Pope

"We all loved him, it's true," said Jaroslaw Przytula, 34, a lawyer who flew in from Poland with his wife and 12-year-old son. "We wanted to be with him a last time."

Recalling the day that Karol Wojtyla was elected pope, he gestured toward his son and added, "I was his age when my moth...

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