Sick pope: no improvement for Francis in sight

With Pope Francis, even after twelve days in the hospital, there is no fundamental improvement in sight. “The clinical condition of the Holy Father is still critical, but stable,” said the Vatican in the evening. Since the weekend, the 88-year-old has had no further misfortune of shortness of breath. The blood values ​​also remained stable.

The head of 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide has been treated in the Gemelli Hospital in Rome since the middle of the month. In the meantime, it is in a clinic as long as never before. He is prayed around the world. On St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican, there was another rosary on the program in the evening. The concerns are particularly great in his homeland of Argentina.

Again computer tomography

Francis suffers from severe pneumonia with various pathogens, which has covered both lungs. On Tuesday, he therefore underwent computer tomography. Then it was said from the Vatican, the forecast remained “behavior”. The doctors did not comment on the problems with the kidneys. In previous messages there was talk of a “beginning renal failure”, which had alerted many.

One of the few visitors was now the number two of the Vatican to the Argentinian, who has been in office since 2013, Cardinal State Secretary Pietro Parolin. The 70 -year -old Italian is already traded as one of the possible successors.

Up and down in medical bulletins

The medical bulletins, which the Vatican spreads out of the hospital every day, now show up and down. After great shortness of breath at the weekend, the signals are a little more confident again. Papstspeaker Matteo Bruni reported a quiet night without further seizures. Francis “rested well all night”. In the evening it was also said that the Pope had also started the work again.

However, nobody has great hopes for an early return to the Vatican. In the meantime, the Pope has been gone from the power center of the Catholic Church as long as never before: on his longest stay in the clinic after an intestinal operation in 2021, he was able to go back on the twelfth day. So far there is currently no time horizon. All dates have been canceled. The doctors prescribed absolute calm to him.

Strictly shielded on the tenth floor

Actually, only the closest employees to Francis in the strictly shielded tenth floor of the university clinic are allowed. According to Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni last week, he also received Cardinal Parolin on Monday. According to the Vatican, the conversation also dealt with sacred and beatifications – an obvious indication that the Pope can work despite all the problems.

The head of the church has had an infection of the airways since the time before Christmas. The second oldest Pope in history did not initially wanted to go to the hospital. The pneumonia was then diagnosed in the clinic, which many had already suspected. At the weekend he had an acute respiratory crisis, which is why he got additional oxygen through a hose through his nose in high dose.

Further speculation about resignation

The Argentinian has been at the head of the Catholic Church since March 2013. His German predecessor Benedict XVI. Back then, completely surprisingly resigned because he no longer felt grown up to the office. There has long been speculation about resignation – even if the Vatican tries to prevent this.

In the middle of St. Peter’s Square under the direction of Slandins, more than two dozen other cardinals took part in the middle of thousands of believers. From the hospital, the Pontifex had previously thanked the many messages of support.

Great concerns in Argentina

Catholics in Argentina take particularly large part. In the capital of Buenos Aires there was a fair in the open air. One participant said: “I pray for the recovery of Pope Francis. We hope that he will soon be better and that he will come to us.” Since his election to the Pope, the Argentine has never been back in his homeland. Another woman said: “He did a lot for us. We pray for him.”