ROME (AP) — Pope Francis, aged 88, was recently hospitalized in critical condition due to double pneumonia. Despite his health challenges, he was well enough to meet with the Vatican secretary of state to approve new decrees for saints and call a formal meeting to set dates for their canonization, the Vatican announced on Tuesday.
The audience, which took place on Monday, indicated that the Vatican's operations are continuing forward. Pope Francis, despite his hospitalization and a guarded prognosis, approved decrees for five individuals for beatification and two for canonization during a meeting with Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Archbishop Edgar Pena Parra, the Vatican’s chief of staff.
This was the first known meeting between the pope and Cardinal Parolin since the pope's hospitalization on February 14. During this audience, Pope Francis decided to convene a consistory concerning future canonizations, a regular occurrence when he is at the Vatican.
Alongside these developments, the Vatican announced new appointments, including a handful of bishops for Brazil and a new archbishop for Vancouver. Additionally, the law for the Vatican City State has been modified to create a new hierarchy.
On Tuesday morning, the Vatican reported that Pope Francis had a restful night. Although he remains in critical condition, doctors noted a "slight improvement" in some laboratory results. Pope Francis has resumed work from his hospital room, even managing to call a parish in Gaza City, which he has been in contact with since the conflict began there.
Having had part of one lung removed as a young man, Francis's condition is precarious due to his age and pre-existing lung disease. However, recent updates indicate no further respiratory crises since Saturday, with a slight reduction in supplemental oxygen. A slight kidney insufficiency detected earlier is currently not causing alarm.
As night fell, thousands gathered in St. Peter’s Square for a nightly prayer vigil. This ritual evoked memories of the 2005 vigils for St. John Paul II. Attendees prayed for Pope Francis's recovery, emphasizing his mission of peace and empathy for migrants. Cardinal Pietro Parolin led the prayers, expressing hope for the pope’s swift recovery.
The vigil will continue with Cardinal Antonio Tagle presiding on Tuesday night. Despite rumors spread by critics, many of Pope Francis's allies remain hopeful for his recovery, recalling his consistent request for prayers from the faithful.
At the Gemelli hospital, where the pope is being treated, ordinary Romans and visitors have been praying for his recovery. Hoang Phuc Nguyen, who traveled from Canada for a pilgrimage, visited the hospital to offer prayers, reflecting on the pope's teachings over the past 12 years.
In a sign of ongoing Vatican activity, the Holy See released the pope’s prayer intentions for Lent. Pope Francis urged the faithful to maintain hope and empathize with the challenges faced by migrants and the less fortunate. He signed this document on February 6, a week before his hospitalization.
“It is hard to think of the biblical exodus without also thinking of those of our brothers and sisters who in our own day are fleeing situations of misery and violence in search of a better life,” Francis wrote, encouraging a Lenten exercise of comparing one’s life with that of a migrant to better understand and empathize.
