“On Saturday the Pope will leave the Gemelli hospital. I have just spoken to him, he is recovering and so he will be able to preside over all the rites of Holy Week ”. This was announced by surprise this Friday by the Dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re.
What do the doctors say? Silence continues from them. Only the Press Office of the Holy See gives the news with short press releases that minimize the information on the characteristics of the serious episode of health suffered by Jorge Bergoglio the day before yesterday, Wednesday, and which began while he presided over the general audience in the Plaza de San Pedro.
The information leaked by Vatican experts in “hospital sources” and contacts in the Vatican, where confusion also reigns, indicate an infection that some specify as “pulmonary” and others as bronchitis which has caused a fever and is being treated with antibiotics. official version.
The indications according to which the Pope suffered from cardiac fibrillation, quite common in the elderly, which is popularly known as “palpitations” and must be treated to avoid clots, are also increasingly insistent.
When Francis returned ill from the general audience, the Vatican doctors observed with alarm his very tired state and with chest pains and advised him to immediately enter the Gemelli polyclinic of the Catholic University, to undergo in-depth checks.
The results established with a CT scan (tomography) that the heart was not damaged and that there was a “respiratory infection”. The climate today has changed. The news that the Pope will leave the Gemelli Polyclinic was given by an authoritative figure like Cardinal Re after speaking with Francis.
But in general, the doctors who publicly commented on the Pope’s health episode on Wednesday argue that absolute rest is necessary to guarantee the patient’s recovery.
We need to see what the Pope says and does, certainly concerned about the problem of a worsening of his health in the most important liturgical moment of the year, Easter.
Card. Re said that “he will be able to preside over all the rites of Holy Week” after speaking with Francis.
Since April of last year, due to his right knee ailments, the Pope presides over important rites sitting down and the celebration at the altar is carried out by a cardinal or a bishop.
In the Vatican, a program has been organized for the celebrations of Holy Week, designating the cardinals who will hold the celebrations. If the Pope participates, he will preside over the ritual seated, as happens today in similar ceremonies. For Bergoglio and his knee problems, movement on the altar is impossible. Now, after Wednesday’s health shock, the situation is even more fragile.
Argentine cardinal Leonardo Sandri is in charge of celebrating the ceremonies for Palm Sunday, the day after tomorrow in St. Peter’s Square: “There are so many cardinals that we can help the Pope celebrate”.
Cardinal Re has said he will celebrate Easter. It was already the same dean of the college of cardinals who officiated at the funeral of pope emeritus Benedict XVI, Joseph Ratzinger, the current Francis.
Giovanni Battista Re said the Pope would read the document on Easter Sunday and from the main balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica he would give the Urbi et Orbi blessing to the city of Rome and the world before the assembled crowd.
The uncertainties about the future are growing and conservatives and traditionalists make their opposition to the pontiff felt. They are likely to choose the state of health as a battlefield, to demonstrate that the situation is irreversible.
Supporters of the Latin Mass have intensified their protests over the restrictive measures decided by the Pope. On social media, the most conservative groups are instilling macabre doubts about Francisco’s health.
Although Jorge Bergoglio finds it difficult to accept his current physical fragility, the times for an orderly physical recovery require a lot of rest. Francisco needs a diet because he has gained a lot of weight due to his knee problems and his taste for good food. At 86 he has to control his ailments and slow down his work, which is exhausting for anyone.
The cancellation of the upcoming Wednesday General Audience has not yet been announced. At the end of April he must go to Hungary for a Eucharistic congress. In August he has to travel to Portugal.
Vatican correspondent
Source: Clarin
Mary Ortiz is a seasoned journalist with a passion for world events. As a writer for News Rebeat, she brings a fresh perspective to the latest global happenings and provides in-depth coverage that offers a deeper understanding of the world around us.