Ailing Pope Cuts Back Schedule

Pope John Paul on Friday heard the confessions of ordinary Catholics in St. Peter's Basilica, continuing a Good Friday tradition despite health problems that have forced him to reduce his Holy Week activities.

The pontiff, who will be 82 in May and suffers from symptoms of Parkinson's disease, has been ceding his place to other prelates at the main altar during ceremonies and is expected to continue this solution through Easter Sunday.

The Vatican also says the pope has been suffering from an arthritic right knee that has made it painful for him to walk.

Nevertheless, the pontiff appeared to be in relatively good form. He was taken into the basilica standing on a wheeled platform so he would not have to walk.

He entered a confessional box and stayed there for about an hour, hearing the confessions of five men and four women picked at random from faithful inside Christendom's largest church.

On Saturday, the Pope is due to preside at an Easter Vigil Service in St. Peter's Basilica and on Sunday he is due to oversee an Easter Sunday mass and deliver his "Urbi et Orbi" (to the city and the world) blessing and message.

Since last Sunday, the Pope has been forced to ask cardinals to stand in for him as the main celebrant at some Holy Week services so that he would not have to walk or stand.

Symptoms of Parkinson's were evident Thursday. The pope's hands trembled badly as he clasped them, and his speech was often slurred. He also seemed unsure of his balance, gripping the rail of his cart when raising his hand in blessing.

For the first time in his 23-year papacy, John Paul let Cardinal Angelo Sodano and Cardinal Roger Etchegaray perform the ritual washing and kissing of the feet of priests, a Holy Thursday ritual symbolizing humility.

Just a year ago, the pope was able to move down a line of a dozen seated, white-robed priests, pouring water on each man's right foot from a golden pitcher, wiping them dry and bringing the feet to his lips.

Holy Week is a grueling time for John Paul, with a packed schedule of public appearances.

The Good Friday procession, which symbolizes Jesus' path to his crucifixion, has been modified in deference to John Paul's age and health. He used to carry a wooden cross for the entire half-mile procession, but stopped last year.

Marco Politi, a papal biographer writing Friday in the Rome newspaper La Repubblica, said John Paul's aides are wondering how he will cope with the stairs to get on and off an airplane. Ahead of him are trips scheduled in May to Bulgaria, in July to Canada, Mexico and Guatemala and in August to Poland.

Politi also wrote that the Vatican has resisted suggestions that John Paul use a wheelchair.