FUTURE popes will have to retire at a fixed age, under secret plans being discussed by Catholic cardinals, ending a tradition of service until death that has lasted 2000 years.
According to senior church sources, cardinals have discussed among themselves the need to choose a future pontiff who is open to a retirement age, probably 80.
They do not want a repeat of the past few years, when the ill-health of Pope John Paul II, now 84, has forced him to take an increasingly light role in directing the church, responsible for the spiritual welfare of 1.1 billion believers.
The church has in effect been run by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the ultra-conservative head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. But Cardinal Ratzinger, whose nickname is John Paul III, is considered too old, at 77, to succeed him.
Also at the heart of every decision is Joaquin Navarro-Valls, the celibate Opus Dei member and qualified doctor who is the Pope's media officer and most trusted adviser.
John Paul II was elected in 1978, making him the third longest serving pontiff in history. He has survived an assassination attempt, a tumour and several other health scares, but Catholic officials believe he could be at the "beginning of the end".
They confirmed that the pontiff's Parkinson's disease, an illness that inexorably leads to paralysis of the throat muscles, was causing repeated restrictions of his throat, creating breathing difficulties that were being exacerbated by flu.
The Pope has spent a second night in Gemelli Hospital, but a Vatican source said the acute phase of his respiratory illness was over and that he could be out of the hospital in a matter of days. There was no direct information from any of the team of doctors treating the Pope.
Instead, Navarro-Valls, who trained as a doctor and psychiatrist before becoming a journalist, issued a terse statement saying the Pope was responding well to treatment but would remain in the hospital for some time.
The pontiff's gradual decline has taken its toll on the church. "Although the Pope by his suffering has given witness, everyone knows that in terms of hands-on operation, he has not been hands-on for quite a bit now - for 18 months to two years," a senior source said.
There are 184 cardinals in the church worldwide, but those aged over 80 are not eligible to sit in the conclave, or church executive, leaving an electorate of 120.
The conclave will not have the power to set a retirement age, but the source said the conclave could be managed to ensure a retirement age was imposed in future.
The cardinals meet regularly in Rome, where they discuss future policies with fellow cardinals.
"There is a large body of opinion among the cardinals that there should be a retirement age of 80 for the next pope," the source said.
Popes can abdicate, but hardly ever do. When the Pope's health went into serious decline there was speculation in Rome he might invoke Article 332 of the Code of Canon Law and retire early, to Poland.
But the Pope believed it was up to God to decide when his papacy should end.
The last pope to resign was Gregory XII, who quit in 1415 to end an era of schism. Celestine V lasted a few months when he was elected at the age of 79, and abdicated in 1294. He was arrested by his successor and died in prison.