Cardinal urges care over canonisation

THE only Irish representative in next week’s conclave to elect a new pontiff has warned against a fast-track canonisation for Pope John Paul II.

Cardinal Desmond Connell said there was a danger the canonisation process could become over-emotional if it was launched immediately in the wake of the Pope’s death.

In an interview with The Voice Today newspaper, he revealed that the late Pope had been hoping to revisit Ireland in a determined bid to reverse the drift away from the Catholic Church. The conclave of 115 cardinals sits next Monday to elect the next Pope.