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Cardinals draw lots
14/04/2005 21:03 - (SA)
Nicole Winfield
Vatican City - Cardinals drew lots on Thursday for rooms at the Vatican hotel where they'll be staying during the conclave and heard a speech on the problems of the church and who might be best to lead it as they continued preparations for Monday's vote.
The preacher of the papal household, the Reverend Raniero Cantalamessa, delivered the speech during a pre-conclave meeting, the 10th that the College of Cardinals has had since Pope John Paul II died April 2, said a statement from Vatican spokesperson Joaquin Navarro-Valls.
The text of the speech wasn't released. Navarro-Valls said only that the meditation concerned "the problems of the church and the enlightened choice of the new pontiff".
In other business, the cardinals drew lots for room assignments at the Domus Sanctae Marthae, the hotel John Paul had built to house the papal electors to spare them the discomfort of the Apostolic Palace, where cardinals were housed in previous conclaves.
Some of the rooms have stunning views of St Peter's dome, and all are located within the tall walls of Vatican City.
The cardinals had selected Cantalamessa to deliver the meditation, one of two the 115 red-hatted princes of the church will hear before they begin to vote. The other one will be delivered on Monday by Czech Cardinal Tomas Spidlik, who is 85 and not one of the papal electors.
Cantalamessa had a prominent role during Holy Week, when John Paul was unable to attend services because of his increasingly frail health. He delivered the homily during an afternoon meditation service on Good Friday, ending it with a prayer that the pope recover quickly.
"Come back soon, Holy Father," he said. "Easter isn't Easter without you."
The cardinals met as pilgrims continued to pay their respects before Pope John Paul II's tomb, located in the renovated grotto underneath St. Peter's Basilica, and to snap up "vacant see" stamps at the Vatican post office - which are good only until the cardinals elect a new pope.
The cardinals have been holding daily meetings to map out details of the conclave and also discuss the needs of the church in the future. While their deliberations are supposed to be secret, some details have been leaking out in the Italian media, which is rife with speculation about who is emerging as a potential papal candidate.
Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, responsible for maintaining a hard-line on conservative doctrinal orthodoxy during John Paul's reign, remained a favourite, but others were emerging too, news reports said Thursday.
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