A larger than normal crowd was on hand at the Mass.

The Rev. Tom Gross, the Diocesan administrator, canceled his day off and instead led hundreds of Roman Catholics in prayer.

People gathered at early services to offer up special prayers for the pontiff, who served as spiritual leader of 1 billion Roman Catholics worldwide. About 225,000 Catholics live in Hawai'i.

Jennifer Ngo, a 24-year-old downtown worker, usually attends St. John Church in Mililani. But she was drawn to the cathedral yesterday to pray and light a candle for the pope who she said "smiles like an angel, despite all he's lost."

Ngo and others in her generation said the pope nurtured a special connection with young worshippers.

"He's on the level of us," she said.

Troy Martinez, a college student who lives in 'Aiea, echoed her sentiment. When Martinez lived in California in 1993, he and many students from his church traveled to Colorado for World Youth Day, an event that attracted more than 600,000 young Catholics. Yesterday, he found it hard to believe the pope was dying, even when his mother woke him with the news.

Pleas for prayer

Jennifer Ngo, who works downtown, said she was drawn to the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace to pray and light a candle for the pope. Bruce Asato • The Honolulu Advertiser

Soon after, at St. John Vianney Church, the Rev. Khanh Pham-Nguyen opened his early morning Mass yesterday, asking for a moment of silence for the man he called the cornerstone of the current Roman Catholic Church.

Barbara Montgomery was among those at the Enchanted Lake church; she had heard the Vatican's plea for prayers and hopped into her car to attend the 8 a.m. Mass.

"I made a special trip," Montgomery said.

On the other side of the island, prayers were said in Moses Takemoto's daily prayer group at St. Patrick's Church in Kaimuki.

As congregants gathered at 8:30 a.m., rumors spread that the pope had died. Takemoto learned later that the news was premature.

"We prayed extra today," said the 68-year-old Takemoto. "Some of them were really shocked about it. They were very surprised. We had been praying every day. I guess it is God's calling."

Classrooms and administrative offices at Catholic schools statewide were tuned to the news so that students and staff could follow the developments. One Maui school held a special prayer service for the pope before its usual Friday liturgy.

In Kahului, Christ The King School Principal Bernadette San Nicolas said witnessing the recent events has provided students many "teachable moments."

"It shows them just how extended our Catholic community is, how many people are outside in St. Peter's Square, what is the Vatican, and how powerful prayer can be," she said.

The Rev. John Berger of Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace said parishioners yesterday were "prayerful and somber."

"What can be the mood in the face of someone dying?" he said.

People had come and gone all morning. Some left photographs of the pontiff at the church.

Berger and Gross celebrated a special Mass at the cathedral, during which prayers of intercession were offered for the ailing pope.

The scriptural readings centered on St. Peter, the first pope. "We know that Pope John Paul II is the successor of Peter," Gross told the congregants, recalling that John Paul II was a fisherman and reminding them to "bring others to the Lord."

"We've seen John Paul II going throughout the world and influencing people to the good," Gross said.

After Mass, people wrestled with their conflicting feelings of wishing the pope well, but also wanting a peaceful death.

"I'm praying he has a good transition," David Hanlon said. "He's served long and hard."

Joe Villanueva Jr. and his nephew, Kawika, said extra prayers for the pope.

"He's been my inspiration," Villanueva said. "He's taught me how to be more compassionate, caring."

Catholics have been preparing for the pope's death for many weeks as his health worsened. Still, that didn't make the final hours any easier for some.

"It comes along like a birth — you don't know when," Berger said. "You have to let God be God. When it happens, it's still surprising. Nobody can be ready for death."