VATICAN CITY -- It's a day of celebrations and congratulations for Pope John Paul II, who is commemorating 25 years as pope.

The pontiff, a native of Poland, will preside at an anniversary mass this evening. Dignitaries including Polish Solidarity leader Lech Walesa and the Polish president are slated to attend.

The Russian president has sent official congratulations and confirmed he will meet with John Paul next month in Rome.

A German cardinal said the pope has agreed to attend the 2005 World Youth Day “if God gives him the strength.”

As for support for the pope, a recent poll suggests that 90 percent of American Catholics approve of the way he has set a moral example, argued for human rights and encouraged democracy.

But two-thirds of respondents in the ABC-Washington Post poll say they oppose the church's ban on contraception and married priests.