Beauty in Beatification

So I was randomly up around 3am this morning and happened to catch a live broadcast on MSNBC of the large Catholic Mass ceremony taking place at the Vatican. It was different than the many that are held there in that it was also a celebration of the Beatification process of making previous pontiff Pope John Paul II a Saint. It was an extremely large ceremony as people strectched far into the streets of Rome long away from the actual center of Vatican City. Even in spite of my slightly lethargic and sleep deprived state it was quite a sight to behold. There were visitors from all over the world, all of whom wanted to take part in the ceremony out of their love and admiration for the late religious leader. It was very cinematic, people held up banners, chanted phrases of their support, waved their flags of origin all against the backdrop of the tight corridors of Roman architecture. While I am not personally a Catholic ( I am Protestant) the process of a public mass in Vatican City has always been an object of interest for the sheer grandiose of it all. This event certainly was no exception and was at the least a re-affirmation of why I believe in Christianity in the first place. Very inspiring event indeed.