ROGERS — What began as a trip to Italy that was planned months in advance turned out to be a special time for four Arkansans with the announcement of the beatification of Pope John Paul II May 1.
Ann and Pat Morrison of Rogers and Bonnie and Mike Limbird of Little Rock found themselves celebrating with more than a million other people at the Vatican during the days surrounding this event.
When it came time to celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary, the Morrisons decided that spending it with their friends, the Limbirds, sounded like a good idea. The friendship started as neighbors in Little Rock nearly 40 years ago and they had remained close since the Morrisons moved to Rogers.
“A trip was planned because we wanted to take a trip together and Italy was a place we all wanted to visit,” Ann Morrison said. “We planned the trip just for the four of us last fall before the date of the beatification had been set.”
On their trip April 20 to May 4, the couples saw the universal love and admiration people in the crowds felt for Pope John Paul II. Banners from countries around the world waved as signals of affection from those in St. Peter’s Square who attended the beatification Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI.
“Italian people told us many times that he was the most loved pope that they had seen in a long time,” said Pat Morrison, a parishioner at St. Vincent de Paul Church. “He was very popular with the individual person. He kissed babies, he loved to talk to people. He was just very personable toward everyone.”
Speaking of what she witnessed, Ann Morrison, also a member of St. Vincent de Paul Church, said, “The one thing I saw throughout Italy and in all the churches we visited was the common thread of their faith. I felt everyone who was there was feeling that in some way or another.
With more than a million people in St. Peter’s Square and surrounding streets, the parade of people never stopped. It was especially true for the procession that filed past Blessed John Paul’s casket, as it sat in front of the main altar at St. Peter’s Basilica following the beatification Mass. An estimated 250,000 people filed past or knelt in prayer near the casket in those first 13 hours.
“We knew that they were allowing people to process around the casket and they said they would keep it open until everyone had done so. There were so many people praying there — many kneeling on the floor,” Ann Morrison said.
Bonnie Limbird, who is not Catholic, said, “The atmosphere throughout Rome was both humbling and inspiring. Seeing such vast numbers of individuals with quiet purpose and faith joining together — regardless of nationality, language and culture — was quite impressive,” she said.
Mike Limbird, Bonnie’s husband and a member of Our Lady of Holy Souls Church in Little Rock, agreed.
“The most extraordinary part of the beatification for me was the massive numbers of people and ages that were present. Any number of different nations were represented with these very large groups from Poland,” he said.
In the days leading up to the beatification, the couples visited other Italian cities, including Florence, Venice, Assisi and Siena.
The evening before the beatification an all-night prayer vigil was held at the Circus Maximus, the site of an ancient Roman racetrack where an estimated 200,000 people gathered.
In the days following the beatification, the two couples experienced the history of the Vatican through its art and architecture. Touring the Sistine Chapel and St Peter’s Basilica, Bonnie Limbird said, “Our visit gave us an appreciation of a history with incredible depth. While we live in a way-too-fast world, much of what we saw and heard allowed us to step back in time and gain the sense of a different pace.”
