THE VATICAN: The late Pope John Paul's closest and most-trusted associate said in an interview published at the weekend he may not follow the late pontiff's wish to have his personal documents burnt.
In his testament, Polish-born John Paul II asked Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz, his long-time secretary, to oversee the burning of personal documents he had left behind.
"First of all, everything has to be checked," Archbishop Dziwisz was quoted as saying on Poland's public radio.
"Secondly, nothing deserves to be burnt, but (it does deserve) to be saved and preserved for posterity," he said, according to Polish Radio's website.
The radio reported that Archbishop Dziwisz, named the new Archbishop of Krakow by Pope Benedict on Friday, felt his devotion to John Paul and his teachings outweighed his responsibility to follow the late pontiff's request.
It said Archbishop Dziwisz had also written 27 volumes of his own diary about John Paul and may publish them.
Dziwisz (66) began working with Karol Wojtyla in the 1960s, when the future pope was himself archbishop of Krakow. In 1981, when John Paul was shot, Dziwisz held him in his arms as he was rushed from St Peter's Square to hospital. He has published a book about the assassination attempt.