Negative Take on Pope's Health

From the Fort Wayne New Sentinel:



Returning Wednesday from a 12-day trip to the Vatican, Bishop John D'Arcy acknowledged he noticed a difference in the health of Pope John Paul II since he had last seen him in 1998.

For the bishop, this fourth trip to the Holy City was one marked with realism and emotion.



"I said to myself, 'That's probably the last time I'll see him alive,"' D'Arcy said. "It was emotional. But I'm just glad my time as bishop overlapped with him."



D'Arcy, bishop of the Fort Wayne-South Bend Diocese, made the "ad limina" visit, as is expected of bishops every five years, health permitting. No visits were taken during 2000.



For D'Arcy, this trip wasn't like the others.