The Vatican's No. 2, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, spent more than two decades as a key behind-the-scenes churchman before the pontiff's poor health drew him increasingly into the public spotlight.

The 77-year-old Italian, a seasoned diplomat whom the pope appointed Vatican secretary of state in 1991, is the prelate who steps in at the Holy See in John Paul's temporary absence while hospitalized. His name also figures among the "papabili," as the possible top contenders to be the next pontiff are called in Italian.
 

Sodano's powers are limited to the overall operations of the Vatican. Only the pope can issue statements on doctrine or name new bishops.
Six months after John Paul appointed him secretary of state, a post roughly equivalent to that of Vatican premier, the pope gave Sodano the red hat of cardinal.

Sodano is from the province of Asti in Piedmont, a northern region whose people pride themselves on their practical, down-to-business ways.

He began his life as a priest more than a half-century ago in Asti, but his reputation came not in the parish halls but in embassy offices and diplomatic receptions. He was named the apostolic nuncio in Santiago, Chile, a little less than a year before John Paul was elected pontiff in 1978.

Sodano served in the conservative, predominantly Catholic country during the leadership of Gen. Augusto Pinochet, the head of a military junta. As nuncio, Sodano helped prepare the pope's pilgrimage to Chile in 1987.

It was one of John Paul's more notable overseas trips, and commentators were divided over whether it might have been seen as bolstering Pinochet.

On the flight from Rome to South America, John Paul denounced Pinochet's rule as totalitarian.

During the visit, he appeared with the general on a balcony of the presidential palace. The trip also included a papal Mass marred by security forces unleashing tear gas.

When Sodano left Chile in 1988 to become foreign affairs minister at the Vatican, he left behind some who considered him too close to Pinochet. Many in Chile also believe Sodano worked for the release of Pinochet when he was arrested in London in 1998.

A high-stakes test of Sodano's diplomatic skills was the Christmas holiday 1989 drama at the Holy See's mission in Panama City. Gen. Manuel Antonio Noriega, the ousted Panamanian strongman, took refuge in the Vatican Embassy there in a bid to avoid ending up in the hands of U.S. authorities who wanted him tried on drug trafficking charges.

Sodano dealt with U.S. diplomats in negotiations behind the scenes, and after 10 days, Noriega surrendered to U.S. forces.

As secretary of state, Sodano attended the funeral of Mother Teresa in 1997 and of former President Reagan last year.

Recently he has taken on more of a public religious role, celebrating Masses that are too taxing for the ailing pontiff. Last year, he was one of two cardinals performing the Holy Thursday feet-washing ritual, symbolizing humility, at a ceremony presided over by the pontiff.

 
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