Pope Francis continues his recovery from double pneumonia at Rome’s Gemelli hospital with the Vatican expected to issue the traditional Sunday Angelus prayer as a written text for the fifth straight week.
The pope typically delivers the Angelus from a window overlooking St. Peter’s Square to the gathered faithful, who have grown more numerous due to the Jubilee year that Francis inaugurated in December.
Along with a stop at St. Peter’s to seek indulgences by walking through the basilica’s Holy Door, pilgrims are now also adding a stop at Gemelli, a 15-minute train ride from the Vatican.
Doctors this week said the 88-year-old pontiff was no longer in critical, life-threatening condition, but have continued to emphasize that his condition remained complex due to his age, lack of mobility and the loss of part of a lung as a young man.
Still, they are issuing fewer medical bulletins as the pontiff has been on an upward trajectory. An X-ray this week confirmed that the infection was clearing.
Francis has not been seen publicly since he was admitted to the hospital Feb. 14 after a bout of bronchitis that made it difficult for him to speak. Doctors soon added a diagnosis of double pneumonia and a polymicrobial (bacterial, viral and fungal) infection.
The first three weeks of his hospitalization were marked by a rollercoaster of setbacks, including respiratory crises, mild kidney failure and a severe coughing fit.
Doctors in the most recent medical update on Saturday said they were working to reduce the pope’s nighttime reliance on the non-invasive ventilation mask, which will allow his lungs to work more.
Doctors underlined that while the pope’s condition is stable, he still requires hospitalization for both physical and respiratory therapy, which are "showing further gradual improvements,” the Vatican said Saturday in the first medical update in three days.
The next update won’t be issued until the middle of next week, the Vatican said.
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