When a cross travelled from Vatican to Mumbai

Fr George Athaide, parish priest of St Pius X Church in Mulund West spreads incense over the relic of Pope John Paul II, as parishioners look on. Pics/Sayyed Sameer Abedi

For a mid-week afternoon, St Pius X Church in Mulund West is unusually buzzing. A couple of florists are seen sitting below the eaves of the church, making bouquets - deep red and white gerberas, interspersed with yellow, along with long stems of white chrysanthemums. The bouquets will adorn a table in front of the altar, where the relic of late Pope John Paul II will arrive half-an-hour later.

As the minute hand moves, the mood gets more expectant. Ushers run in and out, while the choir sings hymns to fill the silence. By 3.30 pm, the parishioners start to trickle in, eager to choose the best vantage point to view the relic. In a matter of minutes, the church is packed to the brim.

Pope John Paul II was the longest-serving pope - from 1978 till he died in 2005 - in the history of the Roman Catholic church. Canonised as a saint in 2014 by Pope Francis, his relic - a 3x1 piece from a wooden cross that he used - has been on view across the country since April this year, as part of the Jago Yatra. The relic was displayed at churches in the Northeast, before it was taken to Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Delhi, and Gujarat. In Mumbai, the relic has been on display since July 19. The church in Mulund was chosen for the second day of the tour.

Around 4.15 pm, a representative of Jesus Youth, the Indian wing of the international organisation, conducting the tour, steps out of a grey car with the relic, contained in a gleaming silver and gold cross. The parish priest Fr George Athaide welcomes the relic with a prayer and spreads incense over it. The priest, along with a procession of altar servers trailing him, move into the church, as the choir sings the opening hymn: "Day and night, night and day, let incense arise..."

When the congregation settles, Fr Athaide begins by talking about the history of the relic. "Traditionally, the Pope celebrates the Good Friday mass at the Colosseum in Rome. In 2005, Pope John Paul had taken ill, and was unable to do so," he shares, "Instead, he watched the televised ceremony, holding a wooden cross and prayed. It was the last time he would attend a mass; he died shortly after that." A portion of that particular cross was encased in the silver cross.

After a short prayer, the parishioners queue up to venerate the relic, bowing down and kissing it. The veneration continued till 6 pm. After St Pius, the relic was taken to Infant Jesus Church in Ghatkopar, from where it has been travelling to churches and institutions in Airoli, Sion, Bandra and Colaba. The final viewing will happen today at Don Bosco Institute of Technology, Kurla, at 1.30 pm.

From Mumbai, the yatra will head southwards towards Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Speaking with mid-day, Arnold Pinto, the Mumbai coordinator of the Jago Yatra, says, "With the tour, we are hoping to revive people's faith and get followers to return to the church."