Camille Naredo

A balloon with an image of Pope Francis is pictured outside the Gemelli University Hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized with pneumonia, in Rome on March 03, 2025. Filippo Monteforte, AFP

A balloon with an image of Pope Francis is pictured outside the Gemelli University Hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized with pneumonia, in Rome on March 03, 2025. Pope Francis suffered two new breathing attacks on March 3, 2025, the Vatican said, as the 88-year-old pontiff struggles to recover from pneumonia.  "Today, the Holy Father experienced two episodes of acute respiratory failure, caused by a significant accumulation of endobronchial mucus and consequent bronchospasm," it said in a statement. (Photo by Filippo MONTEFORTE / AFP)

Article (news)

Pope Francis

Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1741190712540AFP__20250212__36XL8H2__v2__HighRes__VaticanReligionPopeAudience.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Pope Francis attends the weekly general audience on February 12, 2025 at Paul-VI hall in The Vatican. Filippo Monteforte, AFP"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Pope Francis attends the weekly general audience on February 12, 2025 at Paul-VI hall in The Vatican. <em>Filippo Monteforte, AFP</em></span></span></span></div><p>VATICAN CITY, Holy See -- St Peter&#x27;s Square is bustling, but behind the Vatican&#x27;s walls, activities have slowed  as the Catholic Church grapples with the uncertainty caused by the absence of Pope Francis.</p><p>Tourists take photos in the spring sunshine and streams of pilgrims marking the Catholic &quot;Holy Year&quot; head to the basilica, while journalists from around the world file reports on the 88-year-old&#x27;s health.</p><p>Inside the tiny Vatican city state, however, departments running the pope&#x27;s notoriously packed daily schedules lie quiet.</p><p>&quot;We are at minimum service,&quot; Corporal Eliah Cinotti, spokesman for the Swiss Guard, which handles the pope&#x27;s security, told AFP.</p><p>&quot;Extraordinary services -- masses, audiences, receptions of ambassadors and heads of state -- are in free fall,&quot; he said, with cardinals stepping in to lead some masses, but most events cancelled.</p><p>&quot;It&#x27;s a period of dormancy&quot; that recalls &quot;the end of Covid, when everything was running at a slow pace&quot;, he added, referring to the coronavirus pandemic.</p><p>Activity within the Roman Curia -- the government of the Holy See, which oversees the Church&#x27;s global activities -- has not been as affected.</p><p>Though Francis&#x27;s portrait hangs on the walls of the dicasteries, or ministries, the work is not directly dependent on the Argentine pope.</p><p>But the severity of his condition, and his doctors&#x27; unwillingness to give a medical prognosis, make it difficult to make medium-term plans.</p><p>The pontiff has not appeared in public since February 14, when he was admitted to the Gemelli hospital in Rome with breathing difficulties, which developed into double pneumonia.</p><p>The window of the Apostolic Palace from which he recites the weekly Angelus prayer has remained closed for three Sundays in a row -- a first since his election as head of the world&#x27;s nearly 1.4 billion Catholics in 2013.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/3/5/pope-francis-rested-well-overnight-vatican-1553">READ: Ailing pope &#x27;rested well&#x27; but misses start of Lent</a></div><div><strong>- Day by day -</strong></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1741190740365AFP__20250303__36Z96D2__v3__Preview__TopshotItalyVaticanPopeHealth.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="A balloon with an image of Pope Francis is pictured outside the Gemelli University Hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized with pneumonia, in Rome on March 03, 2025. Filippo Monteforte, AFP"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">A balloon with an image of Pope Francis is pictured outside the Gemelli University Hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized with pneumonia, in Rome on March 03, 2025. <em>Filippo Monteforte, AFP</em></span></span></span></div><p>Instead, the days are marked by two medical bulletins issued by the Vatican in a rare effort at transparency. One in the morning describes how Francis&#x27;s night went, followed by a more detailed evening update.</p><p>In the press room just off St Peter&#x27;s Square, reporters used to tackling the subtitles of church law are fast becoming experts in medical terms instead.</p><p>The Vatican has been through periods like this before. Between May and August 1981, Pope John Paul II spent 77 days at the Gemelli after an assassination attempt.</p><p>But the longer it goes on, the more Francis&#x27;s hospitalization -- already the longest of his papacy -- weighs on morale.</p><p>&quot;There is a slowdown due to the fact that we do not know what tomorrow will bring. We live day-by-day, we do not take holidays,&quot; said a Vatican source who wished to remain anonymous.</p><p>&quot;There are times when we are very afraid, others when we say to ourselves &#x27;he is getting back on track&#x27;. It is a rollercoaster, and it is very stressful,&quot; the source said.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/3/4/what-we-know-about-the-health-of-pope-francis-0936">READ: What we know about the health of Pope Francis</a></div><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/3/4/pope-francis-condition-stable-no-new-respiratory-crisis-says-vatican-1050">READ: Pope Francis’ condition ‘stable,’ no new respiratory crisis, says Vatican</a></div><div><strong>- Crisis mode -</strong></div><div><script data-wid="auto" type="text/javascript" src="https://content.viralize.tv/display/?zid=AAEyze-tm4MR6kEa&amp;cid=ABVEA5EldOfJONhz"></script></div><p>Francis&#x27;s health woes have long fueled speculation he might one day resign and his critical illness has prompted some to prepare for the next conclave -- the meeting of cardinals which votes in a new pope.</p><p>But in an absolute monarchy, venturing to discuss the future while the pope is still alive is taboo.</p><p>&quot;It would be considered inappropriate,&quot; an anonymous official from the Secretariat of State said. &quot;The truth is that no one knows anything.&quot;</p><p>Italian Vatican expert Marco Politi agreed &quot;it is a strange situation&quot;.</p><p>&quot;This is not the time for the cardinals to meet in secret, to plan the future,&quot; he said, because it would undermine the &quot;elegance of the great Catholic hierarchy&quot;.</p><p>And yet, as the faithful pray every evening in St Peter&#x27;s Square, behind the scenes preparations are inevitably being made for all possible eventualities.</p><p>&quot;We are in crisis mode,&quot; said a diplomatic source from a European embassy to the Holy See, admitting that he had &quot;updated the files for the conclave&quot;.</p><p>Francis has sent signals that he remains in charge, receiving aids and working from his hospital suite on the days he feels well enough.</p><p>But Ash Wednesday celebrations, marking the beginning of the religious season of Lent, will take place without him.</p><p>And no-one knows whether he will be present at Easter, the biggest event in the Catholic calendar, in 40 days time.</p><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div>

<p>Inside the tiny Vatican city state, departments running the pope's notoriously packed daily schedules lie quiet.</p>

Inside the tiny Vatican city state, departments running the pope's notoriously packed daily schedules lie quiet.

Pope's illness spreads doubt at Vatican

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Pope's illness spreads doubt at Vatican

Agence France-Presse,

Clément Melki

Published Mar 06, 2025 06:12 AM PHT

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Pope Francis

Vatican

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