A Light That Left Us Amazed

In Rome, Cardinals bury a Pope and ponder his successor

He went in the cold Roman dusk to take his place among the Popes buried in the crypt of St. Peter's, to lie between his two namesakes, John XXIII and Paul VI. As the plain cypress coffin was borne through the portals of the great basilica, the huge, tearful crowd standing in the rainswept square burst into applause. At the Requiem Mass that preceded the burial, it rained intermittently. As if to counteract the rain clouds, in his funeral address 85-year-old Carlo Cardinal Confalonieri compared Pope John Paul to "a meteor that unexpectedly lights up the heavens and then disappears, leaving us amazed and astonished ... One month was enough for him to win our hearts;... it is not the length which characterizes the life of a pontificate, but rather the spirit that fills it."

As mourners listened, Confalonieri mentioned as well the devotion of nearly a million people who had waited in the square to pay their last respects. It was an allusion to the extraordinary outburst of popular feeling for John Paul, both in Rome and around the world, that will have a special impact upon the difficult decision of the assembled Cardinals who next week must choose his successor.

John Paul had died so abruptly that he left no funeral instructions, but the Cardinals quickly decided upon the style of simple, stately rites that had been held for Pope Paul VI eight weeks ago. They kept to an open-air Mass in St. Peter's Square, despite the virtual certainty of rain, so as not to disappoint the more than 50,000 people who, rain or shine, desired to attend. At one point during the Requiem, a downpour drenched the solitary coffin, and aides rushed up with umbrellas to shield the 90 white-mitered Cardinals.

With the funeral over, Rome entered the nine-day mourning period, or novendiali, and the assembled Cardinals continued with daily meetings to prepare for the Oct. 14 conclave. This time most of the housekeeping details had a strong air of dej`a vu about them. But there were some new problems.

One was the slightly ghoulish fuss raised over the suddenness of John Paul's death. As is the case when any world figure dies unexpectedly, rumors of foul play inevitably circulated and were not easily stilled, especially after Milan's respected Corriere della Sera called for an autopsy. The situation did not improve when it was learned that, contrary to the Vatican's first description of John Paul's last moments, what the Pope may have been reading when he died of a heart attack was not Thomas a Kempis' Imitation of Christ but a document written by Pope Paul VI.

Vatican sources later let it be known that the document was a gloomy report on the state-of-the-church in a certain nation that could only have shocked John Paul. Besides, earlier on the day of his death, a Cardinal living in Rome had apparently rebuffed John Paul by refusing to accept appointment as the new Pope's successor as Patriarch of Venice. Such reports suggested that John Paul may quite literally have been shocked to death. Other Vatican sources say that John Paul was overwhelmed by the complexity of the Vatican Curia and that the resulting strain contributed to his sudden death.

As to a papal autopsy, the Cardinals feel that Pope Paul VI's 1975 decree on procedures to be followed when a Pope dies implicitly rules it out. Presumably, the Cardinals reason, in the 20th century autopsies are undignified and unnecessary. That was not always true in the papacy's more turbulent past. As recently as the 19th century, a Roman nobleman, Prince Don Agostino Chigi, reported that an autopsy was performed on the body of Pius VIII in 1830 after his sudden death at 69.

Such discussion only added to the pressures on the assembled Cardinals to consider both health and age more significant in their decision than either had been before. In Rome, a Cardinal was overheard reporting, "I'm over 70. But I feel great. I've got a good pulse, and blood pressure of 135."

Health and age were clearly linked. At first it seemed the need for a robust Pope might eliminate the previous rule of thumb that made 60 an absolute minimum age for a new Pope. But this idea receded as the week progressed, partly because tradition is not easily abandoned in the church, and because the Cardinals are only too aware of the unpredictability of human life and death. (It was recalled that Leo XIII was notably frail but lived to be 93. When a well-wisher said to him, "May you live to be 100," he replied: "Why do you want to set limits on Divine Providence?") Even so, the health factor swiftly eliminated one attractive candidate, Brazil's Aloisio Lorscheider, 54, who had just spent two or three days in a hospital intensive-care unit for what was reported to be a third flare-up of heart trouble in three months. Aides later said he was simply suffering from exhaustion. Lorscheider, who underwent heart surgery two years ago, was well enough to make the trip to Rome, however, and will play an important role in the large, if ideologically divided, Latin American group of electors.

Concern about age may dim entirely the already faint prospects of England's eloquently spiritual George Basil Hume, 55, although Hume's palpable star quality--his strong point--could prove more important than either age or health. Said the African Curialist, Bernardin Gantin, "All the Cardinals have seen and lived the charisma of John Paul. Those great crowds of people will be present at this conclave." Remarked a leading Italian Jesuit: "Better than a medical test, they should give each papabile [candidate] a TV test."

The search for charisma, plus the near-universal insistence on a "pastoral" Pope, concentrates continued attention upon Corrado Ursi, 70, a popular shepherd in Naples whose easygoing air and ample girth inspire repeated comparison to Pope John XXIII. Close behind him in the early discussions is Salvatore Pappalardo, 60, also an effective pastor in Sicily.

Pappalardo formerly worked for the Vatican Curia and, like the front runner among current Curialists, Sergio Pignedoli, 68, may be afflicted with the "Curia curse." Resentment of the Vatican bu-[reaucracy was evident in the choice of "John Paul, a total outsider. This could overshadow the fact that Pignedoli ranks with Ursi in personal warmth and popularity and has had solid pastoral experience. Strangely, Pappalardo and Pignedoli will probably also be hurt by their lack of support among the 29 Curial votes.

The Curia factor and the search for pastoral skill and charisma make the outlook more uncertain for the most capable of the Italians, Giovanni Benelli, 57, the quintessential Vatican bureaucrat who assumed pastoral duties in the See of Florence only last year. For various reasons the other Italian possibilities--Baggio, Poletti, Poma, Siri--face even longer odds.

One Italian Cardinal in the Curia said confidently last week that his countrymen "do not carry a particular political coloration and are therefore acceptable to everybody." But if the Cardinals cannot reach the required vote of two-thirds plus one, the conclave could conceivably look beyond Italy. Spain's Arnau Narciso Jubany is known to want a "foreign Pope," such as Johannes Willebrands, 68, of The Netherlands. Some Cardinals are touting Curialists Eduardo Pironio, 57, of Argentina and Villot, 72, of France.

Last week speculation also ran to names rarely heard before: Paulo Evaristo Arns, 57, Brazil's brave champion of human rights; Joseph Cordeiro, 60, of Pakistan, who exudes saintly simplicity and concern for the poor; and Poland's Karol Wojtyla, 58, who is a strong leader in a hostile environment--and speaks fluent Italian.

As John Paul's election proves, prediction is hazardous. During the week, the Cardinals took up a small physical matter that may be significant, a proposal to move the conclave from the uncomfortable Apostolic Palace to more commodious quarters, such as the huge Propaganda Fide College, where missionary priests are trained. Some Cardinals found the palace constricting last time because of discomfort, isolation and the heat. Opponents of the shift pointed out that the stifling August weather is now gone and all the materials are at hand to prepare the familiar quarters. Besides, remarked St. Louis' John Carberry, "some of the Cardinals from Africa live in no better conditions back in their archdioceses." So the proposal was quashed. The balloting, which begins Sunday, Oct. 15, will be in the Sistine Chapel, as it has been since 1878. That provoked Genoa's Giuseppe Siri to forecast a quick decision. "After three days, we shall all go mad," he said. "You have to be in there to understand the closed atmosphere."

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