VATICAN: Pope John Paul II is to go ahead with a scheduled tour of Latin America and Canada in the coming months, one of his spokesmen said yesterday, despite increasing signs of concern about his health from top Vatican officials.
"The pontiff has personally approved the schedule, which is now set. No one has told the organisers that these visits could be cancelled," said Mr Giovanni Boccardo, who organises the Pope's travel arrangements.
The 82-year-old Pope is due to take part in World Youth Day ceremonies in Toronto on July 23rd. A two-day visit to Mexico is scheduled to start on July 29th, while he is expected in Guatemala on July 31st and August 1st.
But Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the Vatican Secretary of State, stressed the Latin American leg of the pontiff's visit had not yet been "officially" announced and the decision remained "open". "I believe that the pontiff will be able to go to Canada because it is a limited engagement in the city of Toronto. As for the rest, that will depend on him, on how he feels," he told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. "These are personal decisions that we all respect, admiring his heroism. These decisions demand a very important effort on his part."
Following an interview yesterday with the Pope, the Swedish ambassador to the Vatican said the pontiff hoped to visit Sweden next June for the 700th birthday celebration of Saint Brigitte, but expressed concerns for his health.
"For reasons of his state of health, he cannot say anything for certain," Mr Fredrik Vahlqvist said. Debate about the more recent trips planned for this summer was fuelled on Sunday when Vatican spokesman Dr Joaquin Navarro Valls first suggested the Latin American visit was not certain.
But he later clarified his comment, saying there was "no change to the planned travel schedule."
Vatican officials have issued contradictory but concerned remarks recently, including last Thursday's suggestion by two cardinals of possible retirement. The Pope suffers from severe Parkinson's disease and arthritis.