Pope Considered Resigning In 2000

Pope John Paul II suggested in his last will and testament that he considered the possibility of resigning in 2000, at a time when he was already ailing and when the Roman Catholic Church began its new millennium.

The document, which the Vatican released Thursday, also said he had left no material property and had asked that all his personal notes be burned. It mentioned only two living people: his personal secretary and the chief rabbi of Rome who welcomed him to Rome's synagogue in 1986.

The pope in 1982 also had considered the possibility of a funeral in Poland, asking that the opinion of his fellow countrymen be taken into account by the cardinals. Three years later, however, he said the cardinals had no obligation to sound out the Poles but could do so.

The pope, who died Saturday at age 84, will be buried under St. Peter's Basilica on Friday after a funeral in the square.

John Paul wrote the testament over the course of his 26-year pontificate, starting in 1979, the year after he was elected. The last entry was in 2000. It was written in his native Polish and translated by the Vatican into Italian.

Each entry was written during Lent, a period of reflection during the church calendar that precedes Easter.

Writing in 2000, when the effects of his Parkinson's disease were already apparent, the pope suggested the time was one of apparent torment for him, mentioning the 1981 attempt on his life. He called his survival a "miracle."

Now that he had reached 80, he said it was time to ask himself about a biblical phrase referring to Simeon who, after blessing Christ when he was a child, said "now Master you may let your servant go."

John Paul said he hoped the Lord "would help me to recognize how long I must continue this service to which he called me the day of 16 October, 1978."

But he appeared to answer his doubts by leaving it to God, who he said had saved him after the 1981 assassination attempt, to "re-call him when He saw fit."

He also prayed at the time that he would have the "necessary strength" to continue his mission as long as he was serving as pope.

John Paul mentioned only two living people in his will. They were his personal secretary, Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz, who he thanked profusely for his years of service. And in recalling various Christian and non-Christians for thanks, he singled out "the rabbi of Rome" — a reference to the former chief rabbi of Rome, Elio Toaff, who hosted John Paul during the pontiff's historic visit to Rome's central synagogue in 1986.

It was the first time a pope had ever visited a synagogue. Toaff paid his respects at John Paul's body on Monday, raising his arm in a gesture of tribute.

A Toaff spokesman said Thursday the 89-year-old rabbi is "pleasantly surprised" and "honored" by the mention.

The testament also included John Paul's wish to be "buried in the ground," a request the Vatican is honoring with his burial beneath St. Peter's Basilica.

John Paul called for the modernizing reforms of the Second Vatican Council to continue, calling them "the great gift."

"I am convinced that still, it will be given to the new generations to draw on the richness that this council of the 20th century has granted us," he wrote.

John Paul left it to Dziwisz to dispose of any personal goods.

"I'm not leaving behind any property of which it should be necessary to take care of," he wrote. "Everyday items can be given out as it is seen opportune. Personal notes should be burned."

"I ask that Don Stanislaw watch over this, whom I thank for the cooperation and understanding help for so many years," the late pontiff wrote.

"All the other thank yous I leave in my heart before God himself, because it's hard to express them."