THE VATICAN:"I'd better stop now because I've got to go to lunch with the Pope at one o'clock." Thus did the newly-elevated Cardinal Keith O'Brien - the Antrim-born Archbishop of Edinburgh - cut short an impromptu press conference in St Peter's Square yesterday.
Cardinal O'Brien was one of 30 new cardinals appointed by Pope John Paul II at a consistory held on the steps of St Peter's Basilica.
After the ceremony Cardinal O'Brien, like many of his newly-elevated colleagues, was surrounded by a little posse of friends, relatives, well-wishers and reporters.
He was asked to sign autographs and pose for photos, while his Scottish background was sharply underlined by the sound of bagpiper Robert Fairburn, an Edinburgh-based policeman.
Lest anyone had failed to get the point, the cardinal himself then obligingly posed for the TV cameras with the Scottish flag, the saltire, wrapped round somebody's walking stick.
Earlier, and not for the first time in recent weeks, the all too obviously frail state of Pope John Paul's health had prompted concern among those who attended the two-hour ceremony. For the second time in three days, following the beatification of Mother Teresa of Calcutta on Sunday, the Pope did not read his homily, delegating that task to Archbishop Leonardo Sandri, the Vatican's "Interior Minister".
During the ceremony itself, the Pope made a small break with tradition by handing the new cardinals their birettas rather than placing the red hat directly on their heads. Furthermore, when he did speak, reading the introductory section of the service and bestowing his apostolic blessing at the end, his voice sounded, as often these days, tired and shaky.
Asked about the Pope's obvious ill-health, Cardinal O'Brien commented: "He's certainly very frail and that's why he needs some of his cardinals to assist him. He could, as it were, leave it completely to others but he wants to be with us and he knows that he inspires us not just by what he says but also by what he does, by his prayer with us.
"I think everybody has a wonderful respect for Pope John Paul II. He has always spoken about the dignity of the human person from the first moment of conception to the last moment of natural death. I see him living out his teaching in his own person at this present time, the way he summons up these wonderful reserves of energy to conduct a ceremony like this, having celebrated his silver jubilee just a few days ago and presided over the beatification of Mother Teresa two days ago."
The growing influence of the developing world within the College of Cardinals would seem to be underlined by the new appointments from Brazil, Ghana, Guatemala, India, Nigeria, Sudan and Vietnam. Yet that consideration must be weighed against the fact that the major share of the new appointments went to Europe, with new cardinals being named for Belgium, Croatia, the Czech Republic, France, Hungary, Italy (six), Poland, Scotland and Switzerland, while new cardinals were also nominated for Australia, Canada and the US.
Yesterday's nominations bring the number of cardinals to 194, with 135 aged under 80 and therefore currently eligible to vote in a conclave for the election of the next pope. Of the "elector cardinals", 23 are Italian, 66 European, 14 from North America, 24 from Latin America, 13 from Asia, 13 from Africa and five from Australasia.
The identity of a 31st new cardinal, named in pectore by the Pope last month, was not revealed during yesterday's ceremony and is likely to remain secret until such time as the Vatican believes the announcement of his appointment will not cause political problems in his homeland.