Pope always ready to die, says Bishop Magee

Pope John Paul II has “always been ready to die” and is signalling the time has come by refusing to be taken to hospital, his former private secretary the Bishop of Cloyne said today.

Bishop John Magee, who served as the Pope’s private secretary from 1978 to 1982 and as master of pontifical ceremonies until 1987, said the pontiff’s willingness to suffer and the certainty of resurrection meant he had no fear of death.