Pope John Paul II beatified

Nick Squires in the Vatican City

An estimated 1.5 million people packed into St Peter's Square to watch Pope Benedict XVI declare his Polish predecessor "blessed" in a display of religious pomp watched on television and the internet by millions around the world.

Pope Benedict XVI approved the beatification, the fastest in modern times, after Vatican experts ruled that the "miraculous" recovery of a French nun from Parkinson's disease was attributable to his intercession from beyond the grave.

The search is now on for a second miracle which, after scrutiny by doctors and Vatican theologians, would enable the Polish pontiff to be canonised.

The Pope's millions of admirers remember him for his charisma, his survival of an assassination attempt in 1981 and his pivotal role in challenging Communism during the Cold War.

In an apparent reference to John Paul's bold defiance of Communist regimes and his support for the Polish Solidarity movement, Pope Benedict XVI said his predecessor "turned back with the strength of a titan ... a tide which appeared irreversible."

In another tribute, Cardinal Agostino Vallini, the vicar general of the diocese of Rome, told the massed crowds that John Paul was "feared by those who regarded him as an adversary."

The first non-Italian Pope in 455 years when he was elected in 1978, John Paul II brought new vitality to the Vatican but alienated many Roman Catholics with his conservative social views on homosexuality, birth control, euthanasia and Aids.

However, yesterday there were uncomfortable questions about John Paul's alleged failure to tackle the issue of paedophile priests, a scandal that has exploded under Pope Benedict XVI 's six-year papacy.

An association of sex abuse victims, the Survivors' Network of those Abused by Priests, criticised the "hasty" push towards sainthood and said "most of the widely documented clergy sex crimes and cover-ups" took place under the late Pope's watch.

A group of 70 Belgians who claim they were sexually abused by Catholic clergy announced that they would take legal action against the Vatican for "culpable negligence" in failing to protect them from predatory priests.

The Belgian Catholic Church was shaken last year by the revelation of nearly 500 cases of abuse by priests since the 1950s, including 13 known suicides among victims.

The Most Rev Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, said it was right that John Paul II was beatified despite the clerical sex abuse scandal.

The leader of Catholics in England and Wales said it was not a "medal for good management service" but a declaration of the Polish Pope's closeness to God. "It is not to say he did not make mistakes, saints make loads of mistakes but they are close to God."

The ceremony, which began under grey skies but ended in a blaze of sunshine, was attended by cardinals, the representatives of five royal families, including the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, and 16 heads of state.

They included Robert Mugabe, the leader of Zimbabwe, who despite being subject to international travel bans was given special permission by the European Union to fly to Rome to attend.

A Vatican spokesman said Mr Mugabe could not be prevented from attending the ceremony because the Holy See has diplomatic relations with Zimbabwe.

The beatification was seen as an opportunity to repair the Church's image and raise morale among rank and file Catholics.

Pilgrims from around the world, including a huge contingent of Poles from the late Pope's homeland, waved flags and cheered throughout the ceremony, with some breaking down in tears of joy.

"John Paul was a wonderful man and it's a privilege to be here," said Anne Honiball, 48, a nursing home administrator from Worthing, who carried a small Union Jack flag.

"We missed the royal wedding but we are Catholics and this was a bit more important, I suppose," said Mrs Honibal.

A huge tapestry of a smiling John Paul II was unveiled at the front of St Peter's Basilica as Pope Benedict XVI received a silver reliquary holding a vial of the late Pope's blood. It will remain in the Vatican and become an object of veneration for the faithful.

Hundreds of thousands of Catholics filed into St Peter's at the end of the ceremony to pay their respects to John Paul's wooden coffin, which was watched over by Swiss Guards wearing their distinctive harlequin uniforms and plumed helmets.

The Catholic Church is pushing hard for the former Pope to be canonised, although there is no set timetable and it is likely to take several years. Telegraph