World mourns Pope John Paul II

• CASTRO RIPS BUSH | 10:50 p.m. ET

Cuban President Fidel Castro eulogized Pope John Paul as a fierce critic of savage capitalism during a speech Thursday night and said it was hypocritical of President Bush to attend his funeral.

Castro said it was true Pope John Paul II opposed communism, but that in his later years he became a fierce critic of capitalism’s abuses and in particular U.S. imperialism. The pope visited Cuba in 1998.

“Now they have gone to cry before the cadaver of John Paul II, who so opposed the war, who so opposed the imperialist order, who so often condemned consumerism and this brutal war in Iraq,” Castro said during his televised address.

“How far will this hypocrisy go? In my judgment (Bush’s presence) is an outrage to the memory of John Paul II,” he said.

Castro’s government surprised many by declaring three days of mourning and granting ample state-run media coverage to the Roman Catholic Church’s activities after the Pope’s death.

• CLERGY SEX ABUSE INQUIRY ON HOLD | 5:40 p.m. ET

Important business at the Vatican related to the clergy sex abuse crisis in the American church is on hold during the transition to a new papacy.

Church law that broadened the bishops’ power to discipline predatory priests was under review when Pope John Paul II died, and a Vatican agency had been deciding the fate of some accused clergy. Details of the cases are not known, but they likely include priests who say they are innocent.

The bishops emphasized that church policy remains in effect in the United States, and the cases of priests and the church law review will be taken up again when the next pope is in place within weeks.

But the Rev. Robert Silva, president of the National Federation of Priests’ Councils based in Chicago, said the wait was difficult for clergy whose future was in jeopardy.

“I think they’ll be concerned about further delay if they have a case before the tribunal there,” said Silva, whose organization represents about one-third of the 43,000 American priests. “But the canons are in place, the tribunals are in place and I think it will work.”

• GATHERING OF THE POWERFUL | 3 p.m. ET

The funeral of Pope John Paul II on Friday is shaping up to be the biggest gathering of the powerful in modern times, including four kings, five queens, at least 70 presidents and prime ministers and more than 14 leaders of other religions, in addition to an expected 2 million faithful.

President Bush, who will be the first sitting U.S. president to attend a papal funeral, heads the delegation from the United States. Britain’s Prince Charles postponed his wedding for a day in order to attend.

Among those notably absent will be Russia's Patriarch Alexiy II — who repeatedly refused to meet the pope — and a representative from China, which does not have ties with the Vatican. Taipei, however, will be represented by President Chen Shui-bian.


• JOHN PAUL: FEW WORLDLY GOODS | 2:00 p.m. ET

The last will and testament of Pope John Paul II was released and translated, offering insight into the physical suffering of the late pontiff, who weighed resigning in his last few years.

His will was largely a spiritual reflection, but accounted for his very few personal possessions.

"I leave no property behind me of which it is necessary to dispose," John Paul wrote.

"Regarding those items of daily use of which I made use, I ask that they be distributed as may appear opportune. My personal notes are to be burned. ... Regarding the funeral, I repeat the same disposition given by the Holy Father Paul VI. ... Burial in the bare earth, not in a tomb."

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