Pope says God wants him to stay

[goobergunch]

VATICAN CITY -- Marking 25 years as pontiff, Pope John Paul II told followers that God was asking him to continue leading the Roman Catholic Church despite his frail health.

"He (God), while knowing my human fragility, encourages me to respond with faith ... and he invites me to assume the responsibilities that he himself has entrusted to me," the 83-year-old pope said in a homily before tens of thousands of pilgrims in St. Peter's Square Thursday night.

The pope, who suffers from Parkinson's disease and is unable to walk without assistance, delivered the homily during Mass at the Vatican.

Appearing frail and speaking with a wavering voice, the pope told his followers, "A good shepherd stays with his flock" -- a line thought by analysts to be a direct reference to the question of whether he might resign.

more...http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/europe/10/16/pope.anniversary/index.html