World Mourns John Paul II

Mourners flooded the streets of Warsaw early Sunday, carrying flowers and lighting candles for Pope John Paul II in an outpouring of grief and admiration that was repeated around the world.

People from every continent and of many religions found something in the life of the pope to praise — the way he inspired resistance to communism in his Polish homeland, tried to build bridges between faiths, or championed the cause of the poor.

World leaders echoed the tributes of the ordinary people whose lives the pope touched during 26 years as head of the Roman Catholic Church.

Feelings were intense in Poland, where the Church of St. Anne in the heart of the Polish capital could not hold all those wanting to pay their respects to John Paul. Several thousand knelt outside in prayer.

"These are tears of joy," said seamstress Iolanta Szarkowiec as she wept. "The pope did all he could for Poland. He brought God back to communist Poland, and then the feeling of freedom."

On the Indonesian island of Nias — devastated by last week's magnitude 8.7 earthquake that killed hundreds of people — a priest led special prayers at Santa Maria Cathedral. Nias and other islands off the coast of tsunami-ravaged Sumatra are among the few Christian-majority areas in Indonesia, the world's biggest Muslim nation.

"Physically, he has gone, but his spirit still lives on among Catholics around the world," said Father Michael To.

Bells tolled in churches everywhere when the pope's death Saturday night was announced. In Paris, the bells of Notre Dame Cathedral sounded 84 times — once for each year of the pontiff's life.

Catholic New Yorkers stood in line in heavy rains outside St. Patrick's Cathedral for the chance to say goodbye to their spiritual leader, reports CBS News Correspondent Trish Regan.

"We have lost a great and courageous man and dedicated priest, a wise and holy man," said Cardinal Edward Egan.

For many, the loss is intensely personal. Mia Lancaster said he always reminder her of her grandfather.

"My grandfather and I had such long discussions about the pope even back then and he was there for us for 26 and a half years," Lancaster said. "It's very hard to move on; it's very difficult."

In Canada, Marc Cardinal Ouellet, archbishop of Quebec, spoke haltingly while tears ran down his cheeks. "We all feel like orphans at this moment," he said.

At Vienna's St. Stephen's Cathedral, worshippers dropped to their knees and wept when news of the death was announced.

In China, where worship is allowed only in government-sanctioned churches, believers sang hymns and prayed in Beijing's Southern Cathedral at Xuan Wu Men.

"God has called him to rest in his arms," the Rev. Sun Shangen said of the pope. "Today let's keep him in our thoughts during our prayers."

The Beijing government, which cut off ties with the Vatican shortly after the officially atheist communist party took power in 1949, made no official comment.

The Dalai Lama, in a message of condolence issued by his office in exile in the Himalayan resort town of Dharmsala, north India, said "Pope John Paul II was a man I held in high regard. His experience in Poland, then a communist country, and my own difficulties with communists, gave us a common ground."

In India's eastern city of Calcutta, nuns of the Missionaries of Charity, founded by Mother Teresa, grieved in hushed prayers Sunday. Clad in customary white and blue bordered saris, some of the nuns wept as they knelt, heads bowed, wiping away tears.

World leaders paid tribute to the pope's legacy.

"Pope John Paul II wrote history," German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said. "Through his work, and through his impressive personality he changed our world."

In Washington, President Bush said: "the world has lost a champion of human freedom, and a good and faithful servant of God has been called home."

French President Jacques Chirac said history "will retain the imprint and the memory of this exceptional sovereign pontiff," while British Prime Minister Tony Blair said John Paul "never wavered, never flinched, in the struggle for what he thought was good and right."

Patriarch Alexy II, leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, said John Paul "personally, and his works and ideas, have had a strong impact on the world."

Tensions increased between the Russian Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches after the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 and communist restrictions on religion faded. The Russian Orthodox leadership accused Catholics of poaching converts, and the dispute blocked a papal visit to Russia, a long-held wish of the pontiff.

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, the spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians, praised Pope John Paul II's efforts to reach a reconciliation between the two churches.

"Pope John Paul II envisioned the restoration of the unity of the Christians and he worked for its realization," Bartholomew said in a statement.

In Colombia, President Alvaro Uribe declared a period of national mourning and ordered flags across the country to fly at half staff. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva declared seven days of national mourning.

Even in communist Cuba, Fidel Castro's Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque expressed "profound sorrow" and fondly recall the pope's visit to the island seven years ago.

Praise for John Paul II transcended religious boundaries.

Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas said the pope will be remembered "as a distinguished religious figure, who devoted his life to defending the values of peace, freedom and equality."

Palestinian militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad also expressed their sorrow.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon praised John Paul for working to bring about a historic reconciliation between Jews and Catholics.

"Pope John Paul II was a man of peace, a friend of the Jewish nation," said Sharon.