Blessed John Paul II, "Bless us!"

His departure from the written text did not show up on more well-known blogs and may not yet have been added to official translations of Pope Benedict's homily for the Beatification Mass of Blessed Pope John Paul II, but the quoted phrase in the title of this post reports the last words of Benedict's encomium on that occasion as heard by the one who writes to you here.

More photos from the big day in Rome on Sunday last.
Priests gather near the Basilica in preparation for Sunday's Mass while banners fly among the hundreds of thousands fortunate enough to find a place in the square, most of them Poles who camped out over night to reserve their positions. A group of Polish pilgrims in red capes show with Castel San Angelo in the background show their unity in faith. Our kind Roman hosts kept pilgrims well supplied with water throughout the day as this collection of trash prepared for pickup demonstrates. The moment arrives when JPII is declared best by the Holy Father in the liturgy and the veil over his portrait on the central loggia of Saint Peter's Basilica is slowly pulled back. As if smiling upon the pilgrims from heaven, where much more is expected of one who can intercede directly with God, Blessed John Paul's beneficent visage is once again revealed larger than life very close to where he often used to speak to the world in person.