Pope Francis was well enough Tuesday to meet with his No. 2 to approve new decrees for possible saints, even while still hospitalized in critical but stable condition for double pneumonia and kidney failure.
The Vatican said the 88-year-old pontiff met with righthand man Cardinal Pietro Parolin and another close aide, Archbishop Edgard Pena Parra, at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital to approve candidates for beatification and approve decrees for a pair of potential saints.
It is not clear why the matters appeared to be of a pressing concern to the pontiff. The decrees involved Father Emil Joseph Kapaun, a US Amy chaplain from Kansas who served in World War II and the Korean War, and Italian Salvo D’Acquisto, who was in WWII, Vatican News said.
The person who normally submits such decrees to the pope is the cardinal titular of the Dicastery of Saints, currently Marcello Semeraro, Libero Quotidiano noted.
Parolin is the secretary of state of the Vatican, and Parra is the equivalent to the holy father’s chief of staff. Their visit was the only one that Francis has taken since Feb. 16, when Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni paid her respects.
The pope’s health has apparently rallied in the past two days after he appeared to be on the precipice — contracting a bilateral infection in his lungs, experiencing mild kidney failure and requiring blood transfusions and supplemental oxygen.
“In the morning, after receiving the Eucharist, he resumed work activities,” the Holy See’s evening update said Tuesday. “No episodes of asthma-like respiratory distress occurred [Monday], and some laboratory tests have shown improvement.
“The monitoring of his mild kidney insufficiency has not raised any concerns. Oxygen therapy continues, although with slightly reduced flow and oxygen levels,” the statement said.
Doctors have said the biggest threat to the health of his Holiness is the spreading of his lung infection to other vital organs, which could result in sepsis.
On Monday night, Pope Francis called the religious leaders of the parish of Gaza to thank them for a video of support they sent to the ailing pontiff, La Stampa said. During his hospital stay, Pope Francis has called the Catholic parish in war-torn Gaza every night, Vatican Radio reported.
Catholics in Rome have begun gathering each night in St. Peter’s Square to pray for the recovery of Francis. Hundreds of worshippers heard Mass and prayed the rosary led by Cardinal Pietro Parolin.
His Holiness has previously stated that he would not consider resigning his position before death. His predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, was the first pope to abdicate in 400 years.
The Catholic religious season Lent begins March 5 with Ash Wednesday. This year, Easter falls on April 20.
With Post Wires
