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Praying for Papa Dolan

The odds of his landing the top job are long, but New Yorkers are still rooting for Timothy Cardinal Dolan to become the next head of the Roman Catholic Church.

“I think the rest of the world would love Cardinal Dolan as much as New York does. I think he’d be great as pope,” Janette Cabral, 62, of Queens said outside St. Patrick’s Cathedral yesterday after learning that Pope Benedict XVI will resign at the end of the month. “To be a pope, you have to be a leader, and that’s exactly what he is.”

Dolan — who as president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is the most prominent Catholic in America — came to New York from Milwaukee in 2009 and quickly drew a fan base among the faithful.

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He is considered by many in the church to be the world’s most important English-speaking cardinal.

“If you ask me, Catholics need another Pope John Paul II, and Cardinal Dolan could be the man to do it,” said John Ibarra, 44, of the Lower East Side.

“He’s already done so much for New York state and city — imagine what he could do with the rest of the world?”

“He’s a great man, I can’t think of any other Catholic figure to take the pope’s place.”

The outgoing, outspoken cardinal briefly joked about the position yesterday.

“Is that why you’re kneeling?” he quipped to a reporter who asked him if he thought he might be named Benedict’s successor.

Turning serious, Dolan said it’s the furthest thing from his mind.

“That would be highly improbable,” he said. “I don’t think — and I hope I’m not being naive — but I don’t think there would be many cardinals who would think about that chance.

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“That’s just way too out of the realm of probability,” he added.

Dolan also joked that he was “still writing thank-you notes” from his elevation to cardinal last year. He was appointed archbishop of New York by Benedict.

Most Vatican watchers agree that the chances of an American being named pope are slim to none.

But Dolan’s special bond with Benedict, and his widely applauded speech at the cardinal convocation in Rome in 2011, could make him a contender.

“For the first time, an American will get taken seriously as a possibility,” said John Allen, Vatican specialist for the National Catholic Reporter.

Oddsmakers at the betting Web site Paddy Power yesterday put Dolan’s chances at 25-1, ahead of several European cardinals, but trailing odds-on favorite Peter Cardinal Turkson of Ghana, at 3-1.

When the papal conclave meets in March, the United States will have 11 electors, the second-largest voting bloc to Italy’s 28.

Asked during an appearance on the “Today” show yesterday if he’d vote for himself, Dolan deadpanned, “Crazy people cannot enter the conclave.”

Dolan said he hoped the conclave would look for someone with qualities similar to Pope Benedict, including a deep theological knowledge and a knowledge of the world, as well as the ability to speak several languages.

Despite his wild popularity, Dolan has his share of detractors.

The Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests noted Dolan headed a Milwaukee diocese dogged by sex scandals.

“While posturing shamelessly as a reformer, he is every bit as deceptive as most of his colleagues on abuse,” said network spokesman David Clohessy.