Ailing pope sits out mass again

The Pope sat on his throne for most of the Palm Sunday mass

VATICAN CITY -- For the second time in less than a week Pope John Paul II, suffering from an arthritic knee, has attended but not celebrated major Holy Week masses.

On Thursday morning, a mass in St Peter's Basilica was said for him by Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos and in the evening he was substituted by his secretary of state, Cardinal Angelo Sodano.

In both cases, the 81-year-old pontiff appeared alert but weak, and remained seated to deliver his sermons. The Vatican says he has difficulty walking because of an arthritic right knee.

In the evening, two cardinals stood in for him to wash and kiss the feet of 12 priests in a gesture commemorating Christ's gesture of humility to his apostles the night before he died.

Four days earlier, breaking his tradition, John Paul gave up his place at the altar for Palm Sunday mass, the ceremony that opens Holy Week, the most important week in the Church's calendar.

It was the first time he had done so in his 23-year papacy.

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John Paul, as he has for the past couple of years, navigated the vast space of the basilica on Thursday morning by standing on a raised platform which was then wheeled by ushers down the central aisle, The Associated Press reported.

Appearing unsure of his balance, the pope gripped a protective bar on the platform after each time he raised his right hand to bless the crowd.

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There has been concern as to how the pope will cope with the workload during Holy Week. On Friday night there is a prayer service at the Colosseum to commemorate Jesus' suffering before his crucifixion.

Then he marks Easter with a Saturday night vigil service in St. Peter's Basilica and leads mass in St. Peter's Square on Easter Sunday.

Vatican officials said they would decide on a case by case basis between Thursday and Easter Sunday at which ceremonies the pope would be the main celebrant.

Pain in his right knee has forced the head of the Catholic church to cancel several engagements in the past few weeks.

Celebrating full mass means the pope has to stand for up to two hours.

During Thursday morning's ceremony, hundreds of priests in simple white cassocks renewed the vows they made when they joined the priesthood.

Last week, John Paul broke his silence on the sexual abuse scandals involving priests that have rocked dioceses in the U.S. and elsewhere. He said the "grave scandal" had cast a "dark shadow of suspicion" on other priests who are serving the Church well.

The Thursday morning ceremony had just ended when the latest high-level resignation came in the current scandal. The archbishop of Poznan in John Paul's native Poland said that the pope had accepted his resignation following newspaper allegations that he made homosexuals advances on young clerics.

John Paul in his homily invited prayers for "our brothers who didn't meet their commitments that came with priestly ordination or who are going through a period of difficulty and crisis."

While thanking God for the gift of the priesthood, John Paul said, "we cannot help but confess our infedelities."