ATLANTA — Roman Catholic bishops from across the South were expected to attend Thursday’s funeral of retired Archbishop John Francis Donoghue of Atlanta.
A funeral Mass was held at 11 a.m. Thursday at the Cathedral of Christ the King in Buckhead.
The Rev. Frank McNamee, rector at Cathedral of Christ the King, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the service would reflect the life and legacy of “a very simple man.” McNamee said the cathedral has seating for 600, and a nearby parish hall has additional seating for 400.
Donoghue headed the Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta from 1993 until 2004 and led the Charlotte, N.C., diocese before that.
Donoghue was buried in Arlington Cemetery in Sandy Springs.
He died Nov. 11 after a recent illness. He was 83.
Pope: Yes to adult stem cells, no to embryonic

VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI has reaffirmed his opposition to embryonic stem cell research, saying it’s morally wrong to destroy an embryo no matter how beneficial the resulting treatment is.
Benedict made the comments Saturday to participants of a Vatican conference on adult stem cells convened under an unusual new partnership between the Vatican’s culture office and a small U.S. biotech firm, NeoStem Inc.
Church teaching holds that life begins at conception. As a result, the Vatican opposes embryonic stem cell research because embryos are destroyed in the process. It supports research using adult stem cells.
Benedict said: “The destruction of even one human life can never be justified in terms of the benefit that it might conceivably bring to another.”