Pope hints he will continue

The pope again looked frail when he appeared for a service on Sunday

VATICAN CITY -- The pope has given one of the broadest hints yet that he intends to defy his critics and, despite his growing frailty, stay on in the papacy.

After struggling to lead a long ceremony in St. Peter's Square, John Paul II said on Sunday that he draws comfort from "the assurance of special prayers" for him to continue.

His words seemed a deliberate attempt in his own words to answer those -- including some cardinals -- who are raising the possibility that his frail health will force him to resign.

The pope's faltering appearance at an audience with 6,000 children to celebrate his 82nd birthday on Saturday renewed speculation he may be on the verge of announcing his retirement due to illness.

On Sunday, a day after he turned 82, John Paul appeared almost exhausted during a two-and-a-half hour ceremony to raise five religious workers to sainthood.

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His head trembled as he said prayers before Communion on the steps of St. Peter's Basilica, and his words, during the Mass and while reading the homily, were slurred and often unintelligible.

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His head slumping to his right, his facial muscles stiff, his breathing heavy and his voice quivering, the pope appeared in discomfort.

He sat through much of the ceremony, during which he created Brazil's first saint, Mother Paulina, a woman of Italian origin who moved to Brazil in the 19th century and died in 1942 after founding an order of nuns to help orphans, children of former slaves and the elderly in the Sao Paulo area.

The pope's homily was punctuated by deep breaths.

The slurred speech, tremors and difficulty in walking are all symptoms of Parkinson's disease, making it extremely difficult for John Paul to fulfil the demands of long services.

Thousands in Brazil watched Sunday's ceremony on huge TV screens

At the start of the ceremony, an African churchman, Bernardin Gantin, dean of the college of cardinals, told the pope that "it wasn't too late to say `Happy Birthday' to you" and to express, on behalf of all cardinals, "our joy, our deep affection, our filial gratitude" for leading the Church.

At the end of the service, John Paul thanked Gantin and all those offering good wishes.

"In particular, I am comforted by the assurance of special prayers for my person and for carrying out the Petrine service, entrusted to me by the Lord," the pope said in a trembling voice. Petrine refers to the papacy.

John Paul then asked all to join him in prayers to help him go on with his mission.

While tens of thousands of people in the square huddled under umbrellas or covered themselves with their national flags, John Paul was protected by a canopy from the rain which began falling after he arrived in the square.

Doctors have been after the pope for years to slow down, but until recent months, he has largely ignored their advice. In recent months he cancelled several public appointments and ceded some of his ceremonial duties during Holy Week to other prelates.

On Saturday, at an audience where he was serenaded with "Happy Birthday" by a youth band, he had an aide read most of his speech.

The pope has found it increasingly difficult to get through long services

He appeared to be conserving energy on Saturday for a gruelling five-day trip beginning on Wednesday to Azerbaijan and Bulgaria, the first this year of several pilgrimages abroad.

Two cardinals, a few days earlier in public comments, said they thought the pope would resign if his health deteriorated to the point that he could no longer guide the church.

But John Paul for the past few years has at times asked the faithful for spiritual support to help him go on, "God willing," as he often added.

This year the pontiff has often sounded short of breath during speeches, and during Easter week services earlier this spring he was forced to let other prelates carry out some of the ceremonial duties.

At the end of Saturday's appearance, John Paul stepped gingerly onto a platform that aides then wheeled to take him out of the auditorium.