Carlo Maria Martini | Liberal cardinal, 85

VATICAN CITY - Italian Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini, 85, a rare liberal within the highly conservative Catholic Church hierarchy who was nevertheless considered a papal contender in the last conclave, died Friday.

Cardinal Martini, a Jesuit and former archbishop of the Archdiocese of Milan, had been battling Parkinson's disease. His death at a Jesuit institute in Gallarate was announced by the Milan archdiocese.

Cardinal Martini frequently voiced openness to discuss divisive issues for the church, such as priestly celibacy, homosexuality, and using condoms to fight HIV transmission. While not at odds with church teaching, his views showed his progressive bent. He was an intellectual and a noted biblical scholar, yet he had a warm and personable style and seemed to connect with his flock like few high-ranking prelates.

Despite his liberal views in a College of Cardinals that grew increasingly conservative under Pope John Paul II, he was considered "papabile," or having the qualities of a pope, going into the 2005 conclave that brought the former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI, to the papacy.

Benedict was told Thursday that Martini's death was near, and on Friday issued a heartfelt letter of condolence, praising his "dear brother" for serving the church generously and faithfully for so long. He cited Cardinal Martini's tenure as rector of the Jesuit's Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and of the Pontifical Biblical Institute as well as his "diligent and sage" leadership of Milan's Catholic faithful.

Cardinal Martini was well-liked by Italians, many of whom got to know him through Corriere della Sera, a leading daily which for three years ran a popular column, "Letters to Cardinal Martini," in which he would answer readers' questions on a range of topics.

  A funeral was scheduled for Monday in Milan's cathedral, where bells tolled on Friday afternoon upon word of Cardinal Martini's death. - AP