Pope Francis’ condition continued to be stable with further slight improvements, the Vatican press office said yesterday. Source: OSV News.
The Pope’s doctors at Rome’s Gemelli hospital did not issue a medical bulletin yesterday, the day after they had announced his continued stability and incremental improvement had led them to lift their “guarded” prognosis, although they insisted he continued to need hospitalisation.
The Vatican press office said the 88-year-old Pope Francis had again watched by video the morning and evening talks of Capuchin Father Roberto Pasolini, preacher of the papal household, who is leading the Lenten retreat at the Vatican for cardinals and senior members of the Roman Curia.
It is not a two-way video connection, so participants have not seen the Pope, but Fr Pasolini began his morning talk by greeting the Pope and praying that his retreat meditations on eternal life might be additional “medicine” to help the Pope recover.
The nightly recitation of the Rosary for Pope Francis’ health became part of the Lenten retreat beginning March 10. The cardinals and other retreat participants recite it at about 6pm local time (4am AEDT) inside the Vatican audience hall where they are meeting.
Members of the public are invited to join them by watching on video screens in St. Peter’s Square. Cardinal Kurt Koch, prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, led the prayer yesterday.
The cardinal began with a reading of Jesus’ words to Peter in St. John’s Gospel, “When you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.”
“How can we not recognise in these words what our Holy Father, the successor of Peter, is experiencing and suffering?” the cardinal asked. “Certainly, the situations are different, but the experience of serious illness is a great challenge.”
Cardinal Koch prayed that the Pope always would sense God’s nearness to him and asked that “Mary, Mother of Hope,” would intercede to restore him to health.
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Pope’s condition continues to improve; he is following Lenten retreat (By Cindy Wooden, OSV News)
