After months of worsening health, Pope John Paul II died Saturday at his Vatican apartment overlooking St. Peter's Square, where thousands of people stood vigil. The 264th pontiff was remembered as a charismatic leader and one of the most influential and controversial popes in the last 100 years.

Already suffering from Parkinson's disease and other ailments in 2000, Pope John Paul II wondered if he should be the pope to bring the church into the 21st century, according to his will released today. John Paul also asked that his personal notes be burned.