The Vatican has indicated that Pope John Paul II has no plans to visit Ireland in the foreseeable future and his itinerary to August 2005 does not include this country.
His itinerary includes Lourdes in August, and possibly Mexico in September and Poland next June. He may also attend the World Youth Day at Cologne in August 2005, but all trips depend on his health.
The Vatican response followed speculation yesterday as it emerged that the Irish bishops had decided to extend an invitation to the Pope to visit Ireland once more - they have invited him on every visit by them to Rome during the 25 years since Pope John Paul was in Ireland. The current invitation has yet to be received in Rome. The Bishop of Meath, Dr Michael Smith, said he hoped the Pope might visit Northern Ireland.
The DUP Mid-Ulster Assembly member, the Rev William McCrea, said he would oppose any visit to Northern Ireland by Pope John Paul because his church's teaching was that he was the "anti-Christ, the evil one".
The Free Presbyterian minister said he made no apologies for his belief because when he was ordained he signed up to the Westminster Confessions of Faith, which so described the Pope, and which was rooted in Scripture. Mr McCrea said it would be a matter for the Free Presbyterian Church, which is led by the DUP leader, the Rev Ian Paisley, to decide whether to mount protests to any visit by the Pope to the North.
Dr Paisley and 100 other members of his church recently protested when the new Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, Dr Ken Newell, invited the Catholic Primate, Archbishop Seán Brady, to the church's general assembly in Belfast. "I honestly think we are once again seeing an attempt to appease the republican community in Northern Ireland. It is another part of the appeasement process," he added.