Thousands flock to Papal mass

Many pilgrims from the pope's native Poland attended the mass

LVIV, Ukraine -- Hundreds of thousands of people have gathered in western Ukraine to hear Pope John Paul II deliver a message on forgiveness and hope.

An estimated crowd of 600,000 swarmed into the Hippodrome mass site at Lviv to see the pope on his five-day journey to the 10-year old country.

"May pardon, given and received, spread like a healing balm in every heart," the pope said.

"May the purification of historical memories lead everyone to work for the triumph of what unites over what divides, in order to build a future of mutual respect, fraternal co-operation and true solidarity."

Tens of thousands of pilgrims from the pope's native Poland also attended the mass, waving red-and-white Polish flags.

"We just had to come see him in Lviv, which has so many links to Poland," 39-year-old lawyer Krzysztof Wojtalewicz told the Associated Press. "People have come from all over Poland to see him here."

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The visit to Lviv, Ukraine's stronghold of Catholicism, came four days after 3,000 followers of the Orthodox sect took to the streets in Kiev to protest the pope's visit there, bearing Orthodox icons, crosses and shouting anti-papal slogans.

Tension between the major two religious factions in the Ukraine- the Orthodoxy and the Eastern Rite Catholic (also often known as Greek Catholic or Uniate) has existed since 1054, when a schism divided Christianity between the two churches.

Relations strained further when Josef Stalin turned the Lviv Greek Catholic Church property, the largest in Ukraine, over to the Orthodox Church in 1946, forcing priests and worshippers underground and leading to the persecution of those who continued to practice Catholicism openly.

The Greek Catholics, who follow Orthodox-style rites but are loyal to the Vatican, re-established their church in 1991.

Since Ukraine's independence, their relations with the mainstream Orthodox Church have been marred by clashes over church property. Aides say that the pope still has hopes to heal the divide between the two factions.

In Tuesday's ceremony, the 81-year-old pontiff was beatifying two members of the clergy who died in the 1920s. The ceremony is the penultimate step towards becoming a saint.

He was also meeting pilgrims who have made special journeys to see him, such as Zhao Bin from Jinan Province in China, whose boyfriend soaked her in gasoline and set her on fire, causing her to suffer severe body burns.

"It's an honour to be blessed by the pope," the 25-year-old said through an interpreter. Hope For Tomorrow, the New York-based foundation that provided her with free plastic surgery, also planned her trip to see the pope.

Observers say the visit will be a chance for the pope to put behind him the first difficult leg of his trip in Kiev, where the leader of the largest of three rival Orthodox Churches snubbed him by boycotting a meeting of all Ukraine's religious groups.

He started his trip Saturday with an apology for past Catholic wrongs and an assurance that he was not seeking converts.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.