Even though Pope John Paul II has been in fragile health for months, Monsignor Vince Krische has made no plans for the pontiff’s passing.

That began to change Thursday, after media reports that John Paul had received the sacrament of the anointing of the sick — a ritual that was formerly known as “last rites.”

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“We’ll probably have more people at Mass tonight,” Krische, director of the St. Lawrence Catholic Campus Center, said late Thursday afternoon. “What we need to do is begin making plans for what we’ll do — we haven’t done that yet.”

Krische took a six-month sabbatical last year that included a stay in Rome, where he was part of a six-person group that had a private audience with the pope in November.

“My thought is he’s been suffering for some time,” Krische said. “If it’s time for him, I would rejoice with him and for him if he were to move forward now.”

He said that John Paul’s 26-year reign would be long remembered.

“His legacy will be just tremendous,” Krische said. “That legacy is going to continue to live on — he’s addressed all the major issues; he’s really been a true world leader, advocating for human beings.”