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Tuesday, April 05, 2005
'I'm too ill, too old' to be Pope: Cardinal Vidal
CEBU CITY -- A day before leaving for Rome for Pope John Paul II's funeral and the election of a new pope, Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal stated in general terms Monday his preference: a good shepherd who knows how to lead his flock, especially in these modern times.
The cardinal also recognized that the papacy is a big responsibility on the shoulders of anyone who will be replacing John Paul.
Although eligible for the post, Vidal is not keen on becoming the next pope. He said in an ABS-CBN report that he is "sickly" and that he is already old.
Vidal, 74, is among the 117 cardinals who are qualified to join the conclave to elect the successor of John Paul. He is the only voting member of the College of Cardinals from the Philippines. Cardinals Jaime Sin and Jose Sanchez are retired.
Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales has yet to be named cardinal. John Paul failed to do so before he died last Sunday dawn (local time).
Pope John Paul II's funeral will be held on Friday (4 p.m. local time), and his remains will be interred in the grotto of St. Peter's Basilica where popes throughout the ages have been laid to rest, the Vatican said Monday.
Chief spokesman Joa-quin Navarro-Valls made the announcement after the College of Cardinals held two meetings over the course of two and half hours in its first gatherings ahead of a secret vote later this month to elect a successor to John Paul.
John Paul's body is now on public display in St. Peter's Basilica. The pope died Saturday (Sunday dawn in the Philippines) of septic shock and cardio-circulatory collapse, but had been struggling with declining health for many years. He was 84. He served as leader of more than one billion Catholics for 26 years.
Navarro-Valls said John Paul would "almost surely" be buried in the tomb where Pope John XXIII lay before he was brought up onto the main floor of the basilica.
That pope, who died in 1963, was moved after his 2000 beatification because so many pilgrims wanted to visit his tomb, and the grotto is in a cramped underground space.
In the first meeting Monday, the cardinals took an oath of secrecy. In the second one, they made their decisions on the funeral rites, Navarro-Valls said. There were 65 cardinals attending.
John Paul will be buried immediately after the funeral, he said.
Archbishop Josef Clemens, secretary of the Vatican office for lay people and a former aide to top Vatican cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, said not all the cardinal electors had arrived in Rome in time to attend Monday's first session.
Cardinal Vidal missed the session as he opted to officiate the mass in celebration of Bishop Antonio Rañola's golden sacerdotal anniversary at the Archdiocesan shrine of Blessed Pedro Calungsod.
As the world mourns for the pope's death, Vidal asked Cebuanos to also celebrate Rañola's golden jubilee in the priesthood. "No doubt, our joy today is overshadowed by the loss of our pope," he said.
"One life comes to an end, another reaches its apex. One priest goes back to his creator. Another looks back to 50 years of service. Though we mourn, we also celebrate," said Vidal in his homily Monday.
Vidal is scheduled to leave tonight for Rome to join the other cardinals. But before that, he is set to celebrate a requiem mass this morning in honor of the pope at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral.
He remembers the pope to evoke a holiness that touches a lot of people. "He was not only intellectually brilliant and profound. People from afar, even if he (pope) is just passing by, would feel something, his personal holiness."
There had been speculation that the pope might have left orders to be buried in his native Poland, but Navarro-Valls said John Paul "did not show any such wish."
Poles have hoped the heart of the pope-the first non-Italian pope in 455 years-might may be placed in Wavel Cathedral in Krakow, where Polish saints and royalty are buried. Asked if this was ruled out by burial in St. Peter's, Navarro-Valls did not directly reply, saying he was merely transmitting information on decisions taken by the cardinals Monday morning.
Under Vatican tradition, Friday is the latest the funeral could have been held. Up to two million pilgrims are expected to converge in Rome for the 10 a.m. (4 p.m. local time) service.
"It will be a moment without precedent," Rome Mayor Walter Veltroni told Repubblica Radio. "Rome will grind to a halt to guarantee the full development of the demonstration of love for the pontificate, guaranteeing the maximum security for all the heads of state who will arrive to pay homage to the pope."
The meeting at the Bologna Hall of the Vatican's Apostolic Palace was the first gathering of the world's Roman Catholic cardinals since the pontiff's death. After taking the oath, they were to open any final documents John Paul may have prepared for them.
Navarro-Valls made no mention of a date for the papal election, or conclave, implying that no such decision had been taken. By church law, the conclave must take place within two weeks of the burial. (JGA/AP)
(April 5, 2005 issue)
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