Pope Francis increases physical therapy, condition remains ‘guarded,’ Vatican says
Pope Francis is reportedly intensifying his physical therapy regimen, despite remaining in a “guarded” state, as per the Vatican. He is undergoing high-flow oxygen therapy during the day and non-invasive ventilation at night at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital in his third week of treatment. The Vatican stated that the 88-year-old pontiff’s condition is still complex, although he is stable.
Typically, Pope Francis would lead an Ash Wednesday mass at the Vatican to mark the beginning of Lent. However, this year, he was unable to do so. Instead, he participated in the blessing of the Holy Ashes ceremony and received the Eucharist. Cardinal Angelo De Donatis read the pope’s homily at Rome’s Santa Sabrina Basilica on his behalf, according to the Vatican.
In the homily, the pope emphasized the importance of the ashes and the act of receiving them, stating, “We bow our heads to receive the ashes as if to look at ourselves and within ourselves. Indeed, the ashes serve as a reminder that our lives are fragile and fleeting: we are dust, from dust we were created, and to dust we shall return.”
Furthermore, the pope called for a spiritual renewal and a return to God with sincerity in his homily, encouraging Catholics to place Him at the center of their lives.
During his hospitalization, Pope Francis had a conversation with Father Gabriel Romanelli, the parish priest of the Holy Family Parish in Gaza. This interaction occurred shortly after the pope mentioned the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict in his initial written message following his admission to the hospital. He requested prayers “for [those] martyred Ukraine, Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Myanmar, Sudan, and Kivu.”
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