A Vatican flag waves over the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica. / Credit: Bohumil Petrik/CNA

Vatican City, Mar 3, 2025 / 11:50 am (CNA).

Pope Francis addressed what he called a “planetary crisis” that is adversely affecting the world in multiple ways in a message Monday to the general assembly of the Pontifical Academy for Life.

“The term ‘polycrisis’ evokes the dramatic nature of the historical juncture we are currently witnessing, in which wars, climate changes, energy problems, epidemics, the migratory phenomenon, and technological innovation converge,” the pope said in his message, dated Feb. 26 from Rome’s Gemelli Hospital.

“The intertwining of these critical issues, which currently touch on various dimensions of life, lead us to ask ourselves about the destiny of the world and our understanding of it,” the pope said.

The Vatican academy is holding a meeting of scientists, theologians, and historians March 3-4 at the Augustinianum Conference Center near the Vatican on the theme “The End of the World? Crises, Responsibilities, Hopes.”

Academics from across the scientific and theological fields, including Nobel laureates, planetologists, physicists, biologists, paleoanthropologists, theologians, and historians, are attending the Pontifical Academy for Life’s plenary meeting this week.

In a presentation of the conference to journalists March 3, academy president Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia explained that “we felt the urgency to save the common human.”

“The frontier before us is a planetary frontier,” it affects all people, he said. With the meeting, the archbishop added, they desire “to design a future of hope for all without leaving anyone behind.”

“It’s obvious we cannot be indifferent,” Paglia said.

Pope Francis in his message said the first step in the face of the world’s “polycrisis” is to examine “with greater attention our representation of the world and the cosmos.”

“If we do not do this, and we do not seriously analyze our profound resistance to change, both as people and as a society, we will continue to do what we have always done with other crises,” he said, including the COVID-19 pandemic, which he said was “squandered” as an opportunity to transform consciences and social practices.

The pope also warned against “endorsing utilitarian deregulation and global neoliberalism means imposing the law of the strongest as the only rule; and it is a law that dehumanizes.”

Francis also lamented the “progressive irrelevance of international bodies, which are also undermined by shortsighted attitudes, concerned with protecting particular and national interests.”

He said people of goodwill must continue to be committed to more effective world organizations so that “a multilateralism is promoted that does not depend on changing political circumstances or the interests of the few.”

The pope said hope is of fundamental importance. “It does not consist of waiting with resignation but of striving with zeal toward true life, which leads well beyond the narrow individual perimeter,” he said.

Hope, Francis said, quoting Pope Benedict XVI’s encyclical Spe Salvi, “is linked to a lived union with a ‘people,’ and for each individual it can only be attained within this ‘we.’”

The chapel at Gemelli Hosptial in Rome bears the name and contains a relic of another pope who knew these corridors well: St. John Paul II. The Polish pontiff was hospitalized here multiple times, including after an assassination attempt in 1981. / Credit: Courtney Mares/CNA

CNA Newsroom, Mar 3, 2025 / 06:44 am (CNA).

Pope Francis spent a restful night at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital and has begun his daily treatments after waking Monday morning, having breakfast with coffee and reading newspapers as part of his normal routine, according to Vatican sources.

The pope’s condition remains stable, with Vatican sources reporting that his bilateral pneumonia is neither worsening nor causing immediate concern. No special examinations beyond routine daily tests are currently scheduled.

Recovery for the 88-year-old Holy Father “will certainly not be imminent,” Vatican officials cautioned, indicating a potentially extended hospital stay as the pope continues to receive medical care.

Regarding the upcoming spiritual exercises scheduled for next Sunday, Vatican sources stated that no decisions have been made about how the pope might participate in these Lenten observances.

The faithful will gather in St. Peter’s Square this evening to pray for the pope’s recovery. Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, will lead the recitation of the holy rosary at 9 p.m.

Marco Mancini contributed to this report.

Cardinal Fernando Vérgez Alzaga, LC. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Rome Newsroom, Mar 2, 2025 / 09:00 am (CNA).

Cardinal Fernando Vérgez Alzaga, LC, president of the Governorate of Vatican City State and president of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State, celebrated his 80th birthday on Saturday, March 1, marking his departure from these crucial Vatican positions.

Sister Raffaella Petrini now succeeds him in both roles, continuing a path of Vatican governance that has seen significant developments under Pope Francis.

Vérgez, a member of the Legion of Christ, was ordained a priest in Rome on Nov. 26, 1969. He holds advanced degrees in philosophy and theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University and a diploma in archival studies.

His Vatican service began in 1972 when he entered the Curia as secretary to prefect Cardinal Eduardo Francisco Pironio at the Congregation for Religious and Secular Institutes. He remained there until the cardinal’s death. He later worked with Pironio at the Pontifical Council for the Laity.

In 2004, Vérgez moved to the administration of the patrimony of the Apostolic See, and in 2008 became director of Vatican City State’s telecommunications department.

Pope Francis appointed him secretary-general of the Vatican City State Governorate on Aug. 30, 2013. Following his episcopal consecration by Pope Francis on Oct. 15, 2013, as titular bishop of Villamagna di Proconsolare, he continued his rise through Vatican administration.

On Sept. 8, 2021, Francis named him president of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and the Governorate of Vatican City State. He formally assumed positions on Oct. 1, 2021, succeeding Cardinal Giuseppe Bertello.

Pope Francis created him a cardinal of the holy Roman Church during the consistory of Aug. 27, 2022, assigning him the deaconry of Santa Maria della Mercede and Sant’Adriano at Villa Albani. On March 7, 2023, the pontiff appointed him to the Council of Cardinals.

The cardinal departs from his leadership roles on his 80th birthday, following the Vatican tradition of leadership transitions at this milestone age.

This story was first published by ACI Stampa, CNA’s Italian-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Left: Banners at Rome’s Gemelli University Hospital. Right: Pope Francis waves from a wheelchair, Feb. 13, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

CNA Newsroom, Mar 2, 2025 / 07:30 am (CNA).

Pope Francis expressed heartfelt gratitude on Sunday for the prayers and support he has received during his hospitalization while offering his own prayers for those suffering around the world.

Vatican sources reported that the 88-year-old pontiff met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin on the morning of March 2, in his hospital room. The secretary of state was accompanied by Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra, the substitute for general affairs of the Secretariat of State.

The Vatican officials visited the pope following his restful night, during which he reportedly slept well. According to the same sources, Pope Francis woke up Sunday morning, had coffee, read the newspapers, and continued his prescribed treatments.

Feeling ‘carried by all God’s people’

In his Sunday message released by the Vatican’s press office, Pope Francis said: “I would like to thank you for the prayers, which rise up to the Lord from the hearts of so many faithful from many parts of the world.”

The pontiff continued: “I feel all your affection and closeness and, at this particular time, I feel as if I am ‘carried’ and supported by all God’s people.”

The message accompanied the text for the Angelus prayer, which the pope was unable to deliver publicly for the third consecutive time due to his ongoing health issues. Francis has been receiving treatment at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital since Feb. 14.

Faith forged in fragility

In his Sunday message, Francis reflected on the day’s Gospel reading (Luke 6:39-45), particularly Jesus’ words about removing the “wooden beam from your eye” before attempting to remove the “splinter in your brother’s eye.”

The pope emphasized the importance of fraternal correction rooted in charity rather than condemnation. “I feel in my heart the ‘blessing’ that is hidden within frailty, because it is precisely in these moments that we learn even more to trust in the Lord,” the pope wrote. “At the same time, I thank God for giving me the opportunity to share in body and spirit the condition of so many sick and suffering people.”

Prayers in times of war

The pontiff also turned his thoughts to areas of conflict around the world, saying: “I pray for you too. And I pray above all for peace. From here, war appears even more absurd. Let us pray for tormented Ukraine, Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Myanmar, Sudan, and Kivu.”

A medical update on the pope’s condition is expected Sunday evening. Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, the papal almoner, will lead a rosary for the pope’s health Sunday evening at 9 p.m. local time in St. Peter’s Square.

Hot cross buns. / Credit: zi3000/Shutterstock

Rome Newsroom, Mar 2, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Though many Catholics may associate the liturgical season of Lent more with the practice of fasting and abstaining from food, many families around the world use the 40-day season to prepare specific homemade delicacies to remind them of the life of Jesus Christ as he made his way to the cross.  

Mexico

Capirotada, which is similar to a bread pudding, is a treat served by many Mexican families on the Fridays of Lent. Though recipes may vary from one family to the next, the traditional sweet and savory ingredients carry rich religious symbolism linked to Jesus’ crucifixion.

Bread rolls used in the dish represent the body of Christ; honey or piloncillo syrup, made from cane sugar, is meant to symbolize the blood of Christ; whole cloves are used to represent the nails of the crucifixion; cinnamon sticks are used to symbolize the wooden cross of Christ; and the melted cheese coating the pudding represents the shroud used for Jesus’ burial.

Capirotada. Credit: German Zuazo Mendoza/Shutterstock

Aguas fresca — a drink made with still water, fresh fruits of your choice, sugar, oats, and other cereals, seeds, and floral teas — are prepared and served by families to passersby in Oaxaca on Good Friday. Though not solely a Lenten beverage, this Good Friday tradition is an opportunity for Oaxaca families to quench the thirst of Jesus on his way to Jerusalem — just like the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well (cf. Jn 4:4-42) — by serving a fellow neighbor.

Aguas frescas. Credit: The Image Party/ShutterstockEcuador     

Fanesca, a soup eaten during Lent and Holy Week made with cod and 12 kinds of beans and legumes, is said to represent Jesus Christ and the Twelve Apostles at the Last Supper.  

The dish’s religious significance dates back to the 16th century and is believed to be connected to a monastery in Quito, Ecuador, during the Spanish colonization of the Americas.

Some families take advantage to make this lunch dish together — preparing the fish and shelling the many beans and legumes — with a spirit of prayer, contemplating the Last Supper in the upper room just hours before Jesus began his passion in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Fanesca. Credit: Fabian Ponce Garcia/ShutterstockMalta 

Kwareżimal, which derives its name from the Latin word “Quadragesima,” meaning the “40 days of Lent,” are sweet cakes made with almond paste, honey, and orange rind.

This Lenten sweet treat is also given to children who want to embark upon a one-day, 14-church pilgrimage to remember Jesus’ 14 Stations of the Cross.

Kwarezimal. Credit: Muesse, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Qaghaq tal-appostli or “Apostles’ Rings” are sweet, savory, unleavened circular bread loaves topped with almonds and sesame seeds eaten on Holy Thursday. 

The treat is associated with the events of Holy Thursday when Jesus made his apostles priests and instituted the Eucharist and the celebration of the Mass. 

Qaghaq tal-appostli or “Apostles’ Rings.”. Credit: Kikku33, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia CommonsLebanon

Zenkoul, a dish of bulgur wheat balls (or pumpkin balls) combined with chickpeas, rice, garlic, onion, and pomegranate molasses, is eaten by Lebanese families during Lent and Good Friday.  

Some families add vinegar to their Zenkoul instead of lemon juice to remind them when Jesus told the Roman soldiers “I thirst” (cf. Jn 19:28) before dying on the cross and fulfilling the prophecy “for my thirst they gave me vinegar” (cf. Ps 69:22).

Iraq

Christ’s Feast is a traditional dish shared and eaten together in Iraqi villages on Good Friday. Made with habbiyeh wheat, several types of grains, and a variety of beans and legumes, the most distinctive ingredient of the dish is “akoub,” a prickly plant that grows abundantly during spring.

By combining all the ingredients with a little water, Christ’s Feast is turned into a soup and cooked slowly until it is ready to be mashed and served to families on Good Friday.  

For some Iraqi Christians, the difficulty in preparing the dish — particularly removing the thorns of the akoub — is a form of participating in Jesus’ passion. The prickly plant is also said to symbolize the crown of thorns placed on Jesus’ head before he was condemned to death by Pontius Pilate.

Germany, Luxembourg, France, and Belgium

Pretzels, the iconic bread twist simply made with salt, yeast, flour, and water linked to several parts of Europe, are believed to have been invented specifically as a Lenten food by an Italian monk in the early Middle Ages, according to a Vatican Library document.

With the purpose of helping Catholics to live the penitential season with prayer and simplicity, the treat’s shape resembles hands in prayer, forming three holes representing the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 

Soft pretzel. Credit: Marie C Fields/ShutterstockUnited Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand 

Hot cross buns are believed to have first been distributed to poor English Catholics on a Good Friday between the 12th and 14th centuries. Today, the sweet-spiced buns are eaten in England and in Commonwealth countries such as Australia and New Zealand during Lent and Holy Week.

While some historic accounts suggest the buns — traditionally made with flour, eggs, yeast, currents, and cardamom — have ancient pagan origins, other records hint that medieval monks Christianized the recipe by baking the buns with distinct crosses to represent the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and using different spices to symbolize his burial.

Hot cross buns. Credit: zi3000/Shutterstock

A statue of St. John Paul II is seen in front of the entrance to Rome's Gemelli hospital on Feb. 22, 2025, where Pope Francis continues to receive treatment for respiratory issues. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

CNA Newsroom, Mar 1, 2025 / 13:30 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis’ clinical condition remains stable after Friday’s bronchospasm episode that caused vomiting and sudden respiratory deterioration, according to a Holy See Press Office statement released Saturday evening.

The 88-year-old pontiff has been alternating between noninvasive mechanical ventilation and high-flow oxygen therapy, the Vatican communiqué stated.

Medical updates indicate the Holy Father remains fever-free with no signs of infection in his blood work. His vital signs, including blood pressure and heart rate, continue to be stable. The statement also highlighted that Pope Francis has maintained a healthy appetite and is actively participating in breathing exercises prescribed by his medical team.

Vatican officials confirmed the pope has not experienced further bronchospasm episodes. He remains “alert and oriented” and received the Eucharist Saturday afternoon, after which he dedicated time to prayer.

The statement concluded by noting that “the prognosis remains reserved,” suggesting doctors are still cautious about the pope’s recovery timeline.

The Holy See Press Office confirmed earlier today that, as with the previous two Sundays, the text of the Angelus will be distributed in written form tomorrow rather than delivered by the pope in person.

According to Vatican sources, the pontiff’s breathing is improving, though his overall condition remains complex. The situation regarding his pneumonia is described as stable.

Francis prayed for approximately 20 minutes in the chapel near his room on the 10th floor of Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, where he is receiving treatment. The pope reportedly remains in good spirits and has been informed of the many prayers being offered for him.

Further medical details may become available tomorrow, Vatican sources indicated.

Marco Mancini contributed to this report.

The original statue of Our Lady of Fátima during a previous jubilee year visit to the Vatican. / Credit: Dicastery for Evangelization

ACI Prensa Staff, Mar 1, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

On the occasion of the Jubilee of Marian Spirituality, scheduled for Oct. 11–12, the original statue of Our Lady of Fátima will be taken to Rome.

The famous image of Our Lady, known to the faithful throughout the world and a symbol of “hope that does not disappoint,” will be present among the pilgrims who participate in the Mass in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, Oct. 12, at 10:30 a.m. local time to “further enrich this moment of prayer and reflection.”

This will be the fourth time the statue has left the shrine at Fátima to be taken to Rome, as it only happens at the express request of the pope. The first time was in 1984, on the occasion of the Extraordinary Jubilee of the Redemption, when on March 25 Pope John Paul II consecrated the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

The second was during the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000 and the third was in October 2013 on the occasion of the Year of Faith with Pope Francis.

The Dicastery for Evangelization said in a statement that access to St. Peter’s Square for the Eucharistic celebration will be free and no ticket will be required. Registration to participate in the jubilee event is already open on the jubilee website and will end on Aug. 10.

“The presence of the beloved original statue of Our Lady of Fátima will allow everyone to experience the closeness of the Virgin Mary,” said Archbishop Rino Fisichella, the pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization.

“It is one of the most significant Marian images for Christians throughout the world, who, as the Holy Father points out in the bull of indiction of the jubilee Spes Non Confundit, venerate her as ‘the most affectionate of mothers, who never abandons her children.’ At Fátima, Our Lady told the three little shepherds the same thing that she continues to assure each of us: ‘I will never leave you. My Immaculate Heart will be your refuge and the path that will lead you to God,’” the prelate said.

“This statue leaves the shrine at Cova da Iria in a totally exceptional manner and only at the request of the popes,” said Father Carlos Cabecinhas, the rector of Fátima shrine.

“In this time of the jubilee, Our Lady of Fátima is the woman of Easter joy, even in the painful times that the world is experiencing. Once again, the ‘lady dressed in white’ will be a pilgrim of hope and, in Rome, she will be with the ‘bishop dressed in white,’ as the little shepherds of Fátima affectionately called the Holy Father,” he said.

The sculpture, a work of the Portuguese artist José Ferreira Thedim, was made in 1920 and is normally located in the Chapel of the Apparitions of the Fátima Shrine.

There, between May and October 1917, the Virgin appeared six times to the shepherd children Lucia dos Santos, 10, Jacinta Marto, 7, and Francisco Marto, 9.

The statue is 41 inches tall and was carved from Brazilian cedar following the descriptions given by the three shepherd children. It was solemnly crowned on May 13, 1946, and the bullet that wounded St. John Paul II in the 1981 assassination attempt on his life in St. Peter’s Square was later embedded in the crown.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

The chapel at Gemelli Hosptial in Rome bears the name and contains a relic of another pope who knew these corridors well: St. John Paul II. The Polish pontiff was hospitalized here multiple times, including after an assassination attempt in 1981. / Credit: Courtney Mares/CNA

Vatican City, Feb 28, 2025 / 14:58 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis began noninvasive ventilation on Friday after experiencing a respiratory crisis that led to a “sudden worsening” of his condition, the Vatican said.

According to a Feb. 28 medical bulletin from the Holy See, after a morning spent in prayer, receiving the Eucharist, and doing respiratory physiotherapy, Pope Francis experienced in the early afternoon “an isolated crisis of bronchospasm” — a tightening of the muscles that line the airways in the lungs, causing wheezing and coughing.

The incident led to “an episode of vomiting with inhalation” aggravating his breathing, the Holy See said.

After his airways were suctioned, the pope was put on a noninvasive mechanical ventilator “with a good response on gas exchange,” the communication said, adding that Pope Francis remained “alert and oriented” and cooperative throughout the procedures.

Friday marked two weeks in the hospital for the 88-year-old Pope Francis, who is suffering from double pneumonia, bronchitis, and other chronic respiratory conditions.

In the two weeks since Pope Francis was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli Hospital on Feb. 14, doctors have continuously refrained from giving a prognosis, emphasizing that the situation is “complex.”

The Holy See Press Office had said on Thursday that the pope’s health was “improving” under oxygen and respiratory physiotherapy treatment. He continues to do work from the hospital.

null / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Feb 28, 2025 / 13:20 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis on Friday urged liturgists to accompany bishops and the faithful communities of their dioceses with humility and discretion.

In a Feb. 28 message sent from Gemelli Hospital to liturgy professors and students of the Anselmianum — a pontifical university in Rome associated with the Order of St. Benedict — the Holy Father said dioceses should “foster a liturgical style that expresses the following of Jesus, avoiding unnecessary pageantry or prominence” in celebrations.

The Anselmianum, also known as the the Pontifical Athenaeum of Sant’Anselmo, held a five-day course in Rome from Feb. 24-28 for men and women responsible for episcopal liturgical celebrations.

“I am pleased to note that you have once again accepted the invitation formulated in the apostolic letter Desiderio Desideravi,” the Holy Father said in his message written from Gemelli Hospital.  

“Worship is the work of the whole assembly,” the pontiff said. “The encounter between doctrine and pastoral care is not an optional technique but a constitutive aspect of the liturgy, which must always be incarnated, inculturated, expressing the faith of the Church.” 

In his message, the pope said a liturgist “is not just a teacher of theology” but has a distinct mission to accompany both the bishop and the community of his or her own diocese through liturgical action. 

“While humbly teaching the liturgical art, he must guide all those who celebrate, keeping the ritual rhythm and accompanying the faithful in the sacramental event,” he said. 

“Thus assisted, the pastor can gently lead the entire diocesan community in the offering of self to the Father, in imitation of Christ the Lord,” he continued.

The pope also invited Anselmianum students to follow the humble example of St. Benedict by discreetly carrying out their duties “without boasting” about results or successes.

“I encourage you to transmit these attitudes to the ministers, lectors, and cantors, according to the words of Psalm 115 quoted in the prologue of the Benedictine Rule: ‘Not to us, Lord, not to us give the glory, but to your name alone’ (cf. Nos. 29-30),” he said.

Pointing to the holy life of St. Teresa of Ávila, a doctor of the Church, the pope said liturgists must not neglect their life of prayer when carrying out their diocesan ministries.

“Care for the liturgy is first and foremost care for prayer,” he said. “May this great master of spiritual life be an example to you.”

At the conclusion of his message, the pope shared: “I hope that every one of you will always have at heart the people of God, whom you accompany in worship with wisdom and love. And do not forget to pray for me.”

null / Credi: cinemavision/Shutterstock

Vatican City, Feb 28, 2025 / 12:50 pm (CNA).

The Vatican’s department for the interpretation of Church law has advised against publishing accusations damaging to someone’s reputation, such as abuse accusations, without legitimate and proportional reasons, especially if the person is deceased and therefore cannot defend his or her good name.

In a recently published letter, the Dicastery for Legislative Texts referenced Canon 220 of the Code of Canon Law, which prohibits slander and defamation, in arguing that “alleged reasons of transparency or reparation” or a “generic ‘right to information’” are not enough to justify the publication of unproven criminal allegations.

The letter to an unidentified monsignor responded to a question about “bona fama defuncti,” Latin for “good reputation of the deceased.” Dated Sept. 5, 2024, it was published on the dicastery’s website in a section with legal clarifications.

While the letter did not mention a specific crime or set of crimes, it did reference a statement of Pope Francis from a February 2019 Vatican meeting on the protection of minors from sexual abuse in the Church, that “it is necessary to prevent the publication of lists of the accused, even by dioceses, before the prior investigation and final conviction.”

It is a common practice of dioceses or independent abuse commissions to publish reports of credible accusations of sexual abuse listing the names of the accused priests and religious, including some who are deceased.

The dicastery disagreed with this approach, stating “the answer can only be negative with respect to the disclosability of hidden news concerning anyone, all the more so when it concerns deceased persons.”

The dicastery’s website said the letter does “not possess the formal value of an authentic interpretation” but answers individual questions about the application of canon law “deemed to be of general interest.”

The letter, signed by the dicastery’s prefect, Archbishop Filippo Iannone, OCarm, and secretary, Bishop Juan Ignacio Arrieta, said two highly-regarded canonical experts were consulted for the response.

Since Canon 220 of the Code of Canon law says “no one is permitted to harm illegitimately the good reputation which a person possesses,” the letter quoted, it means “in some cases the injury to good name may be legitimate, for example, to avoid any danger or threat to persons or the community.”

“Consequently,” it continued, “it would not be legitimate at all when such a risk is reasonably to be excluded, as in the case of alleged deceased criminals, where there can be neither legitimate nor proportionate reason for the injury to reputation.”

The Dicastery for Legislative Texts cited two principles of law: a person’s presumed innocence until judicially proven otherwise and “retroactivity,” which says someone cannot be convicted or charged for conduct that was not formally a crime at the time it was committed.

In the latter case, the letter said an example would be “so-called omissions of general duties of vigilance.”

The dicastery emphasized that these legal principles cannot be easily overridden to put in the public domain information, however credible, that would be to the “concrete detriment and existential harm of those personally affected, all the more so if it is inaccurate, or even unfounded or false, or completely useless such as that which concerns deceased persons.”

People pray at the statue of John Paul II outside Gemelli Hospital in Rome, where Pope Francis is hospitalized with pneumonia, on Feb. 27, 2025. / Credit: DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP via Getty Images

Vatican City, Feb 27, 2025 / 15:40 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis showed more signs of recovery on Thursday, but more time is needed to determine his medical prognosis. 

“Due to the complexity of the clinical picture, further days of clinical stability are needed to clarify the prognosis,” the Vatican said Thursday.

The Holy See Press Office confirmed the pope’s health is “improving” as he continues to undergo high-flow oxygen therapy, using a mask, as well as respiratory physiotherapy sessions.

The Vatican said the Holy Father dedicated time Thursday afternoon to “prayer in the chapel of his private apartment on the 10th floor [of Gemelli Hospital], where he received the Eucharist. He then engaged in work activities.”

Though the Holy Father’s pneumonia symptoms have not changed since Wednesday, his current medical condition is no longer considered “critical,” according to Vatican sources.  

As Catholics worldwide continue to pray for the pope’s recovery, Cardinal Baldassare Reina, vicar general for the Diocese of Rome, offered Mass in the Church of San Marcello al Corso on Thursday for the “gift of health” for the Holy Father.

The Church of San Marcello al Corso houses a 15th-century wooden crucifix venerated by Romans as miraculous, which has been used in processions during the Church’s jubilee years in the 17th, 20th, and 21st centuries.

In 2020, Pope Francis brought the San Marcello crucifix to St. Peter’s Square to bless the world and to pray for an end to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pope Francis attends the general audience at the Vatican on Feb. 12, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News

CNA Newsroom, Feb 27, 2025 / 07:30 am (CNA).

Pope Francis slept well overnight and his condition continues to improve as he undergoes treatment for a complex respiratory infection at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, the Vatican announced Thursday morning.

The 88-year-old pontiff continues oxygen therapy “with high flow rates” and has begun physiotherapy treatment for his respiratory passages.

While the pope’s condition shows signs of improvement, Vatican officials emphasized that “the prognosis remains cautious” as his hospitalization extends into its 13th day.

Pope’s consolation to grieving mother

The Vatican, meanwhile, has revealed a moving letter the Holy Father wrote shortly before his hospitalization.

In the letter, set to appear in the monthly magazine Piazza San Pietro, Pope Francis responded to a grieving Roman mother who lost her 21-year-old son.

“Jesus, who weeps with us, will sow in our hearts all the answers we seek,” the pope wrote to Cinzia, whose son Fabrizio went out one evening in October 2019 and never returned home.

Meanwhile, the prayer vigils for the pontiff’s recovery continue.

According to a Thursday announcement from the Secretariat of State of the Holy See, the holy rosary will be prayed again this evening at 9 p.m. in St. Peter’s Square, with Cardinal Baldassare Reina, the vicar general for the Diocese of Rome, presiding over the prayer service.

The Vatican also confirmed that “due to the pope’s continued hospitalization, the jubilee audience scheduled for Saturday, March 1, has been canceled.”

Father Gabriel Romanelli, pastor of Holy Family Parish in Gaza, leads Eucharistic adoration at the parish in December 2024. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Gabriel Romanelli

Vatican City, Feb 26, 2025 / 15:35 pm (CNA).

Father Gabriel Romanelli, IVE, the pastor of Holy Family Parish, the only Catholic parish in the Gaza Strip, was able to speak with Pope Francis on Tuesday despite the fact that the pontiff remains hospitalized in critical condition with bilateral pneumonia.

After the phone call, the parish priest shared how the entire community rejoiced “to hear his voice.”

“As he did every day from the beginning of this terrible war, Pope Francis has called us once again to show his closeness, to pray for us, and to give us his blessing,” Romanelli said in a video message posted on the website of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

“As the Parish of the Holy Family of Gaza, which belongs to the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, we rejoice to hear his voice,” he added. 

At the beginning of the war between Hamas and Israel, the parish complex was converted into an improvised shelter where 500 people now live.

The majority who live there are Christians, Orthodox, Protestant, and Catholic, but they have also taken in more than 50 Muslim children with disabilities along with their families.

For Romanelli, Pope Francis’ daily call, which was only interrupted last Saturday when he suffered a prolonged respiratory crisis that forced him to wear an oxygen mask, “is always comforting.”

Especially “knowing that despite his delicate state of health, he continues to think and pray for everyone, for peace in Gaza,” he said in the video recorded in English. He also thanked the pontiff for his “constant prayers.”

“It gives us great joy even in the midst of so many trials,” Romanelli said, adding that “we follow all the information about the pope’s health, like all of you, from the official channels of the Holy See.”

Finally, he asked for prayers for the end of the war and for “peace for the entire Holy Land and the entire Middle East.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

People pray at the statue of John Paul II outside the Gemelli Hospital, where Pope Francis is hospitalized with pneumonia, in Rome on Feb. 26, 2025. / Credit: FILIPPO MONTEFORTE/AFP via Getty Images

Vatican City, Feb 26, 2025 / 15:05 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis’ mild early-stage kidney insufficiency “subsided” on Wednesday, according to the Vatican.      

“The Holy Father’s clinical condition over the past 24 hours has shown further slight improvement,” the Holy See Press Office stated. “The mild renal insufficiency noted in recent days has receded.”

Despite the improvement, the latest medical report stated the pope’s “prognosis remains reserved.” 

The 88-year-old pontiff had a chest CT scan Tuesday evening that showed a “normal evolution” of lung inflammation caused by pneumonia.

Blood tests taken Wednesday confirmed the pope, though fragile, is showing signs of recovery. 

“Today’s hematochemical and hemacrocytometric examinations confirmed yesterday’s improvement,” the Vatican’s evening statement said.

The pope did not experience an “asthmatic respiratory crisis” on his 12th day of treatment in Gemelli Hospital but continues to undergo “high-flow oxygen therapy” and respiratory physiotherapy to treat his pneumonia.

“During the morning, the Holy Father received the Eucharist. The afternoon was devoted to work activities,” the Vatican report concluded.

Though the Holy Father met with Vatican officials at Gemelli Hospital earlier this week — including Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra, substitute for general affairs of the Secretariat of State — the pontiff has not received any visitors today, the Vatican said.

In Rome, parishes and religious communities continue to offer Masses and prayers for Pope Francis, his health, and the leadership of the Church while the pontiff remains in the hospital for ongoing medical treatment. 

Since Monday, the Diocese of Rome and the Roman Curia have collaborated to organize nightly prayer events open to the public in St. Peter’s Square to pray for the pope’s recovery.  

Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals, will lead Wednesday evening’s rosary.

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Vatican City, Feb 26, 2025 / 13:05 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis on Wednesday asked Catholics to have the wisdom to look for the presence of God in our midst like the elderly Simeon and Anna in the New Testament.

In his second catechesis since being admitted into Rome’s Gemelli Hospital nearly two weeks ago, the Holy Father reflected on the presentation of Jesus in the Temple and the Lord’s encounter with two elderly “pilgrims of hope.”

“The song of redemption of two elders thus emits the proclamation of the jubilee for all the people and for the world,” the pope shared in his written commentary on St. Luke’s Gospel. 

“Hope is rekindled in hearts in the Temple of Jerusalem because Christ our hope has entered it,” he continued.

The 88-year-old pontiff emphasized that both Simeon and Anna were people of prayer and worship, with “clear eyes” capable of recognizing God in the child Jesus and welcoming him into their lives. 

“Simeon embraces that child who, small and helpless, rests in his arms; but it is he, in fact, who finds consolation and the fullness of his existence by holding him to himself,” the pope said. 

“Filled with this spiritual consolation, the elderly Simeon sees death not as the end but as fulfillment, fullness; he awaits it like a ‘sister’ that does not annihilate but introduces to the true life that he has already foretasted and in which he believes,” he added.

Anna, a widow of more than 80 years of age who was devoted to prayer and service, could not contain her joy when Joseph and Mary presented Jesus at the Temple.

“Anna celebrates the God of Israel, who has redeemed his people in that very child and tells others about him, generously spreading the prophetic word,” the Holy Father said.

Besides helping Jesus make his “first act of worship” in the Temple, the pope noted how Jesus’ parents, Mary and Joseph, express the tenderness of a family and “do not simply embed Jesus in a history of the family, the people, of the covenant with the Lord God.”

“They take care of his growth, and introduce him into the atmosphere of faith and worship. And they too gradually grow in their comprehension of a vocation that far surpasses them,” he said.

A view of St. Peter's Basilica during the Mass for the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, with Bernini's baldachin and the papal altar decorated with white flowers, Dec. 8, 2024. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Vatican City, Feb 26, 2025 / 12:35 pm (CNA).

The Vatican on Wednesday announced that Pope Francis has created a fundraising commission to solicit donations from Catholics and bishops’ conferences as the Vatican City State and the Roman Curia continue to face budgetary and funding challenges.

The “Commissio de Donationibus pro Sancta Sede,” Latin for “Commission on Donations for the Holy See,” has six members, “whose specific task will be to encourage donations” and find benefactors for special projects within the Vatican, according to a papal decree signed Feb. 11.

Pope Francis has been making cost-cutting decisions at the Vatican in recent years as he continues attempts to reverse the institution’s struggling financial situation, including a pension fund facing a “serious prospective imbalance.”

The donation commission’s statutes, signed by Pope Francis, say the team will report directly to the pope with twice-yearly updates on their work, to be carried out with the help of an initial endowment of 300,000 euros (about $315,000).

In its fundraising campaigns, the commission should, according to the norms, emphasize the importance of donations for “the Holy Father’s mission and charitable works” and ensure the will of the donor is respected when it comes to the destination of money for specific projects.

The first president of the commission is Father Roberto Campisi, assessor in the general affairs section of the Secretariat of State.

Members include Archbishop Flavio Pace, secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity; Sister Alessandra Smerilli, secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development; and Sister Silvana Piro, FMGB, undersecretary of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA), which oversees the Vatican’s real estate holdings and other sovereign assets.

The last appointee is Giuseppe Puglisi-Alibrandi, an Italian lawyer who on Tuesday was promoted from vice secretary to secretary of the Vatican City State Governorate.

The president and members of the commission are appointed for five-year terms.

Pilgrims gather in St. Peter's Square for a Mass and canonization of 14 new saints on Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

CNA Staff, Feb 26, 2025 / 11:10 am (CNA).

Pope Francis entered the hospital for treatment of bronchitis on Feb. 14. Almost two weeks later, doctors say the pope — who contracted a case of double pneumonia while at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital and experienced a “respiratory crisis” on Saturday — will remain in the facility while recovering due to his “complex” medical situation.

An extended hospital stay for one of the most important international figures in the world may raise the question: Who exactly runs the Vatican when a pope is hospitalized or unable to perform his normal duties?

Matthew Bunson, vice president and editorial director of EWTN News and the author of numerous books on Catholicism including “Encyclopedia of Catholic History,” told CNA that although Pope Francis has been in the hospital for almost two weeks, he has continued at least some oversight of Vatican affairs. 

Bunson pointed to coverage by ACI Stampa, CNA’s Italian-language news partner, which reported that the pope earlier this week met with his secretaries at Gemelli while recovering from his illness.

“So he’s clearly still in touch with the Vatican and is still making decisions,” Bunson said. 

In such cases, he said, “the machinery of state tends to keep functioning until such time as we enter into an interregnum” — the period in between popes. 

Andreas Widmer, an associate professor of practice in entrepreneurship at The Catholic University of America’s Busch School of Business and former Swiss Guard at the Vatican, likewise said much of the Vatican’s administration continues even when the pope is sick. 

“Things keep going. He is kept apprised by [Vatican officials],” said Widmer, who served as a Swiss Guard under Pope John Paul II in the 1980s and who regularly returns to the Vatican to work with the guard.

“From what I understand, the pope is still lucid and working,” Widmer said of Francis’ current hospitalization. “Maybe he doesn’t put in his 12-hour days, but he’s putting in work and meeting with people.”

In some cases, popes have addressed the possible need for resignations ahead of time. Pope Paul VI in 1965 wrote a letter to the dean of the College of Cardinals stating that, in the event of his incapacitation while in office, he should be considered resigned. (Pope Paul ultimately lived another 13 years and died while in office.)

In 2022, Pope Francis revealed that in the first year of his pontificate he signed his resignation and gave it to then-Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone to be invoked if he was medically incapacitated and unable to carry out his duties. (“I don’t know who Cardinal Bertone gave it to, but I gave it to him when he was secretary of state,” the pope joked at the time.)

However, in his biography last year, the pope said he considers the Petrine ministry to be “for life” and saw no conditions for resignation, barring serious physical impairment.

Widmer argued that popes are not given to leaving such matters unresolved one way or the other. “A pope is not going to leave this to chance. They take their responsibility very seriously,” he said. 

Bunson noted the recent similar scenario in which St. John Paul II declined in health toward the end of his pontificate; during that period, he said, it was clear that preparations were being made for a possible interregnum.

“Clearly we’re not in that position yet, so the Roman Curia continues to function” as normal, he said. 

In the event of a pope’s death, Bunson said, much of the immediate administration of the Vatican falls to the camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church — one of the few officials of the Vatican who does not immediately lose his job upon a pope’s death. His roles include certifying the pope’s death and overseeing the functions of the interregnum.

“It’s his job to certify the death of the reigning pope and to make sure the wishes of the pope are respected,” Bunson explained. “Then the cardinals are summoned to Rome,” after which a new pope is eventually elected. 

Also retaining his title in the event of a pope’s death is the head of the Apostolic Penitentiary, the dicastery for which the chief role is the forgiveness of sins.

That official “always keeps his job,” Bunson said, “because there must always be the opportunity for God’s loving mercy.”

A second key official is the almoner of his holiness, the cardinal in charge of papal charity and care for the poor. It was Pope Francis who decreed that the almoner should keep his post, a reflection of the Holy Father’s concern for the forgotten and most vulnerable. 

Though Catholics may be curious as to how the Vatican is run during a pope’s hospitalization, Widmer signalled out one rumor that he said was “complete nonsense”: The claim that the Swiss Guards are “rehearsing” for the Holy Father’s funeral.

Reports of such rehearsals have circulated in international media in recent days, with the Swiss Guard itself denying the claims.

It’s “complete garbage,” Widmer said of the rumors, arguing that the Swiss Guard is already prepared for such occurrences as a normal part of their employment.

“Nobody has to practice anything. It’s what they do for a living,” he said.

A faithful holds a rosary while touching an image of Pope Francis during prayers for the pontiff's recovery at Gemelli hospital on Saturday, Feb. 22, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Vatican City, Feb 25, 2025 / 15:50 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis continues to be in a serious but stable condition as he concludes his 12th day in Rome's Gemelli Hospital, the Vatican said.

In the latest communication on the 88-year-old pope’s health, issued on the evening of Feb. 25, doctors said his “clinical condition remains critical but stationary,” without any acute respiratory episodes.

It added that Francis’ hemodynamic parameters — that is, how his blood flows through the blood vessels — is also stable, and he underwent a follow-up CT scan on Tuesday to monitor his lungs following a pneumonia diagnosis last week.

After receiving the Eucharist in the morning, Pope Francis also “resumed work activities,” the message concluded.

The pontiff was admitted to Gemelli Hospital north of the Vatican in Rome on Feb. 14 after more than a week of illness. The Vatican and doctors have said Francis is suffering from respiratory infections, double pneumonia, and chronic illnesses. 

In a press conference on Feb. 21, Pope Francis’ medical team said he was “not out of danger” due to his age and fragile health, but that the pope “is not a quitter” and they were doing everything possible to have him be able to safely return to his Vatican residence.

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Vatican City, Feb 25, 2025 / 12:45 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis has named two secretaries-general to serve under Sister Raffaella Petrini, FSE, in the Governorate of the Vatican City State, giving the Vatican’s first woman president “the power to dispose and confer... specific competencies or particular tasks” on the appointees.

The Vatican announced on Tuesday that Francis had appointed Archbishop Emilio Nappa and layman Giuseppe Puglisi-Alibrandi to serve as joint secretaries-general of the governing body of the Vatican City State.

The nomination follows the pope’s appointment of Franciscan Sister Petrini as president of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and president of the Governorate of Vatican City State on Feb. 15, after she served as secretary-general of the governorate for just over three years.

Petrini, who will assume her new roles on March 1, is the first woman and non-cardinal to hold the positions — making her one of the highest-ranking women ever in the Vatican.

In Tuesday’s announcement, the Vatican said Pope Francis had also granted Petrini “the power to dispose and confer, appropriately, on the aforementioned secretaries-general, specific competencies or particular tasks,” appearing to give her a carte blanche to choose the responsibilities of her now two righthand men.

According to Vatican law, the secretary-general assists the president in her functions and acts as her substitute in the case of absence or impediment. It is a five-year term. During a sede vacante, the period following the death or resignation of a pope until the election of a successor, the secretary-general “shall take care of the ordinary government of the office, and, following the provisions in force for the sede vacante, shall take care of its current affairs.”

The Vatican has said Pope Francis continues to carry out some light work duties while under hospital treatment for multiple respiratory infections, including double pneumonia. Though visits are extremely limited, the Vatican said on Tuesday that the pontiff had received Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and his No. 2, Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra, in his hospital room on Feb. 24, his 11th day of hospitalization.

The first of the two new secretaries-general, Nappa has been president of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 2022 as well as adjunct secretary of the Dicastery for Evangelization in the section for the First Evangelization and New Particular Churches.

The 52-year-old from Naples, Italy, has a doctorate in theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University and worked for a time in the general affairs section of the Vatican Secretariat of State.

The second appointment, Puglisi-Alibrandi, has over a decade of experience in the governorate, most recently serving as vice secretary-general since 2021. The 58-year-old lawyer was previously head of the juridical office of the governorate.

Father Emil Kapaun celebrates Mass using the hood of a Jeep as his altar on Oct. 7, 1950. / Credit: Public domain

Vatican City, Feb 25, 2025 / 12:15 pm (CNA).

Renowned Korean War military chaplain and Kansas native Emil Joseph Kapaun was declared “venerable” by Pope Francis on Tuesday.

The Holy Father on Monday met with Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra, substitute for general affairs of the Secretariat of State, at Gemelli Hospital where the pope is currently undergoing medical treatment to approve decrees from the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints for six men and one woman currently on the path to sainthood.

Kapaun is one of five servants of God who will be proclaimed venerable by the Catholic Church. The others are Italian layman Salvo D’Acquisto; Michele Maura Montaner, a 19th-century Spanish priest; Italian priest Didaco Bessi; and Kunegunda Siwiec, a Polish laywoman who died in 1955.

The Holy Father approved Kapaun and D’Acquisto based on their “offering of life.” In 2017, the pope introduced the “offering of life” category to the causes of the saints, which recognizes those who have persevered to closely follow the life and teachings of Jesus Christ and serve others “voluntarily and freely” until death.

Kapaun was born in Pilson, Kansas, on April 20, 1916, and ordained a priest for the Diocese of Wichita on June 9, 1940, after completing theological studies at Kenrick Seminary in St. Louis.

After serving as a pastor for his home parish and as an auxiliary chaplain at the Army airbase in Herington, Kansas, Kapaun discerned a call to minister to military personnel. In 1944, he was granted permission by Bishop Christian Winkelmann to become a U.S. Army chaplain.

Outside of the U.S., Kapaun was assigned to posts in Burma and India in the final years of World War II and in Korea following the outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950. There he brought the sacraments to troops, tended to the injured, and prayed with soldiers in the foxholes. At times he celebrated Mass on the battlefield using the hood of a jeep as a makeshift altar.

During the Battle of Unsan, Kapaun was captured along with other soldiers and taken to a Chinese-run prison camp in Pyoktong, North Korea. While there, he regularly stole food for his fellow prisoners and tended to their spiritual needs despite a prohibition on prayer.

After being taken to what prisoners called the “death house,” Kapaun died on May 23, 1951, after months of malnutrition and pneumonia. Before his death, Kapaun was recognized for both his holiness and bravery while in active service.

In March 2021, after 70 years, the skeletal remains of Kapaun were identified among 866 other unknown Korean soldiers buried at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu. These remains were handed to American forces in 1954 by North Korea. Kapaun’s funeral Mass was held on Sept. 29, 2021, at Wichita’s Hartman Arena, where more than 5,000 people came together to remember him.

Pope Francis on Tuesday also approved the canonizations of two laymen: Venezuela’s Blessed José Gregorio Hernández Cisneros and Italy’s Blessed Bartolo Longo. The Holy Father has called for a consistory to prepare for the upcoming canonizations.