Pope Benedict To Devote Papacy To The Teachings Of John Paul II

Pope Benedict has indicated in his first wide-ranging interview on Sunday, that his papacy would not be a maverick one but instead aimed at ensuring that the teachings of his predecessor John Paul II are understood and assimilated.

In the long interview broadcast on Polish television, Pope Benedict also said that he hoped to visit Poland, his predecessor's homeland, next June.

In the interview, the Pope said clearly that he planned to issue far fewer documents than John Paul, who wrote 14 encyclicals and dozens of other major documents.

The issuing of encyclicals, pastoral letters and other writings are the main methods popes traditionally use to make major decisions that affect the life of the Church and its 1.1 billion members.

He said he still felt a spiritual affinity with John Paul, whom he has put on the fast track to sainthood.

"The Pope is always close to me through his writings: I hear him and I see him speaking, so I can keep up a continuous dialogue with him," he said, in words that indicated that he sometimes felt he was still living in the shadow of a giant.

Benedict, who worked with John Paul for more than 20 years, said he had opened up the Church to the world by championing moral values and that he had made "an essential contribution" to the collapse of communism in Poland in 1989.

In several emotional parts of the interview he recalled several of his last meetings with the sick Pope, who died on April 2 after leading the Church for more than 26 years.

He confirmed that he has "every intention" of visiting John Paul's Poland next June. "It's early yet, but perhaps next June, God willing, I could come to Poland," he said.

Benedict has so far made only one foreign trip -- to his native Germany in August.