N.E. mourns a man of charisma, courage

New Englanders bid a solemn, poignant farewell yesterday to Pope John Paul II, the vibrant young pontiff who smiled at them through raindrops at the dawn of his papacy and moved them to tears at its twilight after his long, dignified fight against infirmity.

Within an hour of his death, Catholics streamed up the steps of rain-splashed churches to salute his historic, 26-year reign and to wonder how his successor might affect their faith and its teachings.

''He was truly a blessing to the world," Gerardo Espinoza, 49, of Brighton said after praying for the pope at St. Anthony Shrine in downtown Boston. ''It's amazing to see what happens when someone becomes an instrument of God."

As mournful Masses began, the faithful -- many choked with emotion -- carried umbrellas and solemn remembrances of a genial Polish pope whose transformative legacy, they said, would be his charisma, courage, and conservatism.

''This pope brought everyone back to realize just what their faith was all about," said Leo Barry, 58, of Braintree. ''He's going to be very hard to follow."

Bells tolled and forsythia wreaths were draped in black at St. Stanislaus in Chelsea, as parishioners at the Polish-American church dabbed their eyes and prayed for John Paul, a man who shared their rich ethnic heritage.

''Growing up in the communist system, you don't expect a Polish person could be pope. We cried because we were overjoyed then," said Jerzy Markiewicz, 54, who moved from Poland to the United States when he was 12. ''We cry now because we are so sad."

For many New Englanders, the vivid image of a young John Paul arriving like a movie star at Logan International Airport 26 years ago and celebrating a rain-soaked Mass on Boston Common has never faded.

''I saw him in 1979 on the Boston Common in the pouring rain when he was a young, vigorous pope who was just so much different from any pope I had known as a child," said Steve Abany, 55, of Beacon Hill. ''Our hopes were raised so much."

Abany praised him as a man of faith, a powerful world figure, and an inspirational spiritual leader.

''But some of his hard-line dogmatic teachings and the future of the church are very much a worry to me," Abany said. ''Many of the cardinals that he's appointed are very conservative and my fear is that the next pope is going to be very conservative, which will probably play well in the Third World. But I don't know how it's going to play in the American church. And that's my worry."

As the news of the 84-year-old pontiff's death drifted across St. Peter's Square and dashed around the globe, many Catholics said that if the new pontiff needs guidance about where to lead the world's 1 billion Catholics, he should look no further than the template established by John Paul.

''I hope they, indeed, elect someone just as conservative and just as wise as he," Ellen Murray, 80, of Newton Center said after saying a prayer for John Paul. ''He stood for what Jesus stood for. He's conservative and he believes in the magisterium of the church. In spite of all the modern philosophy, he hasn't swayed from the traditional philosophy."

Chris DeMilo, 36, of Belmont spent four years as a teacher and consultant in Eastern Europe in the late 1990s, where, he said, he gained fresh perspective about how John Paul is viewed by those who grew up in the grip of totalitarianism.

''Some here have the image of this pope as conservative," said DeMilo. ''In Eastern Europe, this guy was a radical, a rebel. It brings a tear to my eye that he would be leaving us."

Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino called the pope a steadfast defender of social justice, who as a young man bravely fought the evils of Nazism. US Senator John F. Kerry credited him with leading the church during one of its most challenging eras.

''He was a devout and beloved spiritual leader for the church who inspired people of all faiths and brought us closer to the great goal of peace on earth," said US Senator Edward M. Kennedy in a statement. ''Even in his last days when he could not speak, he was still a strong moral voice heeded across the globe."

Leaders of other denominations hailed Pope John Paul II for strengthening relations with members of all faiths.

Bishop M. Thomas Shaw of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, who met with the pope several years ago, called him a man of transparent holiness.

''I was impressed by how much he knew about Anglican life and religious life in the Anglican Communion," Shaw said. ''The world will miss his passion and faithful prayers for peace and for justice for the poor. We give thanks for his example of steadfastness in faith and pray for his eternal rest."

At Boston's Cathedral of the Holy Cross yesterday, handfuls of people stopped by to pray for John Paul. After driving from his Weston home, Paul Jakubowski brought his sons, Ned, 9, and Cal, 6, to pray in the grand church for a few minutes yesterday morning. Jakubowski and his sons walked up the stone steps to the side entrance. Inside, they walked past the hundreds of dark, carved wooden pews to the back of the church, admiring the elaborate stained-glass windows.

''I'm not a believer, but I've been inspired by the pope," said Jakubowski, 42. ''We came in [to Boston] because the cathedral is so great. I said a little prayer."

In his Chelsea rectory, the Rev. Andrew Grelak vividly remembered 35 years ago, when he was studying for the priesthood in Warsaw, and a visiting cardinal, a man then known as Karol Wojtyla, strolled through his seminary.

While other dignitaries walked with a seriousness of purpose, Grelak said, Cardinal Wojtyla seemed to relish the students' company, taking time to chat with them.

''He was connecting with every person he met, laughing," said Grelak, 59, pastor of St. Stanislaus.

''Almost immediately he was friendly with everybody. You are not feeling a distance," said Grelak, his accent still rich with his native Polish.

Wojtyla's later elevation to the papacy was a ''miracle" for the Polish people, who waited five centuries for a leader from a Slavic country to ascend to the papacy, Grelak said.

''Whatever he did is an example of humility, service, and love," Grelak said. ''I always thought he was a man of God, no matter his nationality."

Emily Sweeney of the Globe staff and Globe correspondents Heather Allen and Kay Lazar contributed to this report. Thomas Farragher can be reached at farragher@globe.com