Vatican: Pope Francis in hospital

Shortly before Easter, concerns about Pope Francis are growing. After the 86-year-old was suddenly taken to hospital on Wednesday, believers around the world prayed for the head of the Catholic Church. Due to a respiratory infection, the Pope has to stay in the Gemelli Hospital in Rome for the time being – the Holy See initially did not want to predict how long. Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni spoke of only “a few days”.

It is therefore unclear whether Francis could celebrate the upcoming Palm Sunday and then Holy Week and Easter – the most important days in the year of the Catholic Church – in the Vatican. The pope’s appointments and audiences for Thursday and Friday have already been cancelled, according to the media. According to Bruni, the Pope needs inpatient treatment in the hospital these days. However, infection with the coronavirus was ruled out.

health problems for a long time

According to consistent media reports, the Argentine also had problems with his heart, which he felt, among other things, after the public on Wednesday. Then his personal medical supervisor, Massimiliano Strabetti, decided to go to the hospital. In addition to diagnosing a respiratory infection, the tests did not yield any alarming results, the media said.

“Pope Francis has been moved by the many messages he has received and is grateful for the closeness and prayers,” Bruni said. For example, a number of Christians wished the Pope a speedy recovery on social networks. US President Joe Biden, who is Catholic, called for prayers for Francis at a reception at the White House on Wednesday night (local time). Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, asked the faithful in a Twitter post to pray for the “speedy recovery” of the Holy Pope.

A group of journalists and camera crews gathered at the Agostino Gemelli clinic on Wednesday. In that hospital, in a very large room on the 10th floor, Pope John Paul II was treated several times, and there is a large statue of the Pope of Poland in the front yard.

“Save your strength a little bit.”

The pope’s physical ailments fueled speculation that the head of the church might resign. At the end of July last year, he announced his desire to travel less due to his health problems. He must “save his strength a little” or “consider in some other way the possibility of stepping aside”.

But in February of this year, Francis announced that resigning “is not in my plan at the moment.” He is scheduled to visit Hungary next month and meet Prime Minister Viktor Orban there.

(AFP / Favor, DPA)