File photo of Pope John Paul II walking by the 'Hill of Crosses' on his way to celebrate an outdoor mass in Siauliai on September 7, 1993 during his first trip to the countries of the former Soviet Union. Thousands of crosses were erected by Lithuanians in defiance of the communist Soviet regime. Pope John Paul II, the Pole who headed the Roman Catholic Church for 26 years and played a key role in the fall of communism in Europe, died on Saturday evening, the Vatican announced. He was 84. REUTERS/Tom Szlukovenyi/FILE