Churchmen's comments on qualities next Pontiff needs

The cardinals of the Catholic Church will gather in a conclave in the Sistine Chapel later this month to pick a successor to Pope John Paul. Here are recent comments from some of the cardinals about the qualities the next pontiff should have:

Cardinal Bernard Agre (Ivory Coast): "We are going to the conclave and we will vote. There is no propaganda or electoral campaign. We are open about it whether it's an American or Asian, a European or an African as long as he is capable of doing the work."

(Might it be an African Pope?): "Psychologically and spiritually the West isn't ready to welcome a black pope. There is no exclusion to speak of but it is people's mentality. It will take time for people to get used to that.

"It (i.e. an African pope) would be quite a revolution but it would be a great challenge for the black pope, for the church and for the world's media."

Cardinal Jozef Glemp (Poland): "There have been only a few situations when there was an obvious cadidate. This is not the situation now, as it wasn't the last time.

"I have no intention of saying that he must come from this continent or that country. No, the Pope will be he who most loves Christ, loves the Church - these were the fundamental criteria that Christ set out to St Peter."

Cardinal Jose da Cruz Policarpo (Portugal): "The Church is 2,000 years old and has a long experience of its place in history. So I think that the responsibility at this moment is to continue to respond to the new things that time will bring....

"It's necessary that the Church continue. Now, yesterday an international news agency put out commentary that I found interesting, saying that for a future pope it's going to be very difficult not to continue on this Pope's (John Paul) path, but it's going to be even harder to keep on it. Now, I think that the way to get out of this dilemma is not to have this concern. The person that's elected - to be genuine, to be really himself. The main coordinates, those are going to be maintained, they come from the Second Vatican Council."

Cardinal Edmund Szoka (United States): "I think we're obviously looking for a person who is very capable, a person of great intelligence, probably one who has had a great deal of experiences and different ministeries and one who is a leader....

"Our obligation as cardinals, and we take an oath to this effect when we vote, is that we have voted for the person we think best suited to be pope.... There are no restrictions to that of nationality or ethnic identity or anything else. It's the person we consider best suited."

Cardinal Adrianus Simonis (The Netherlands): "It has to be a really faithful person, really a man of the church... I hope that he has some skills in government and in communication."

Cardinal Roger Mahony (United States): "Right now we're really trying to get a fix on what is the status of the church everywhere and I think that's a very important first step.

"I have not had one discussion (about a successor) nor heard anyone that has. That's truthful, because we're not looking at that right now and I think that would be foolish to do that. Because we need to see where are we, where the church is today. We've got a big tension. We have the vibrancy of the Church in the southern hemisphere with the malaise in the northern hemisphere, especially Europe. What's this reality? How are we going to deal with this?..."

(Asked whether he thought Pope John Paul would have liked the crowds): "Oh, he would love it. He would love it, because he always wanted to connect with the people as a good pastor."

Cardinal Godfried Danneels (Belgium): "The pope could come from anywhere. Colour, race and where he is coming from, are not important. You have to choose the best. Whoever thought of a Pole during the last election?

"This is not an election of the president of a republic. This is really a matter of conscience. Everyone knows very well at heart that a lot is at stake here, much more than interest groups of both left and right."

"The last conclave lasted two, three days and I think that is the normal length, I suspect."

Cardinal Zenon Grocholewski (Poland): "I think this is going to be a difficult conclave. There are no people emerging yet who already are 'papabile'."

(On German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger): "This is a very strong personality, of great intelligence, faith and openness. The problem is his advanced age." (On Nigerian Cardinal Francis Arinze): "He enjoys large popularity and has charm. He speaks in a simple, lucid way. But what I'm saying is that it is difficult to tell who can be a candidate. I believe that all of us, who will go into the conclave will listen to our conscience to choose the best one."

"I rule out any national factions. The only criterion will be to elect a person fit for the new age. This won't play a role whether he is from Africa, Italy or America ... Being 'transitional' will not be a criterion - absolutely no."

Cardinal Peter A. Turkson (Ghana): "I don't know who I'll be voting for, but it's possible for an African pope to be chosen... "The Church needs a leader who'll be as true to its teachings as possible even if it's the minority view."