Michael Jackson is the perfect call for this job

Weird clothes, a cloistered existence, and an obsession with young men. He'll fit in splendidly at the Vatican.

Will Michael Jackson be singing prayers written by Pope John Paul II, below? Could be, says the Rev. Giuseppe Moscati of Edizioni Musicali Terzo Millennio, a company that specializes in church music and organizes events at the Vatican, Reuters reported yesterday. He said his company had rights to 24 of the Pope's prayers and hoped to have international artists set them to music. "We have been contacted by people close to Michael Jackson who have expressed interest, and we are thinking about it," Father Moscati said. The priest, who dismissed recent controversy surrounding Mr. Jackson by noting that "he has been cleared of all charges" of child molestation, went on to say: "As a celebrity he is perhaps a bit remote from the teachings contained in the Pope's prayers. But if he can help us put together a group of singers that fulfill the criteria of the project, then we'll study the proposal." The Rev. Ciro Benedettini, a Vatican deputy spokesman, said the Vatican was not involved in the venture.

And no doubt the Pope was a fan.