Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square in Rome. © Grzegorz Galazka/Mondadori Portfolio via ZUMA/dpa
Pope Francis has survived a surprising operation well, according to his doctor and the Holy See. Now he had to recover, they said. But can Francis do that?
Rome - After a three-hour operation on the open abdomen, Pope Francis' health is good, according to the Vatican. The head of the Catholic Church spent a quiet night after the procedure in Rome's Gemelli clinic and was able to "rest for a long time," according to Holy See spokesman Matteo Bruni.
At the Agostino Gemelli University Polyclinic in Rome, Pope Francis underwent surgery. © Riccardo De Luca/AP/dpa
The pontiff is awake and will now rest throughout the day, as is necessary a day after an operation. The routine check-ups carried out by the health workers also showed good results.
The attending surgeon, Sergio Alfieri, said that the Pope is now facing days of recovery. In front of journalists, the doctor reported that Francis would have to stay in the clinic for five to seven days to observe and recover from the procedure. If the Pope then feels fit again, he can pursue his tasks as planned, Alfieri added.
He had only advised the Argentine against physically heavy activities - to which he replied, according to the doctor, that he was the Pope and would therefore certainly not lift heavy weights.
No audiences for now
As a precautionary measure, the planned audiences in the Vatican were cancelled until 18 June, i.e. for about a week and a half. This was confirmed by Matteo Bruni, the spokesman for the Holy See. A big event planned for Saturday in St. Peter's Square for peace is to continue to take place - of course, now without the participation of the Pope.
At the event, which is expected to be attended by almost 30 Nobel laureates and celebrities such as opera and pop stars Andrea Bocelli and Al Bano, a major appeal for peace is to be published. The Vatican hopes to collect more than one billion signatures around the world for the initiative.
Another event in the next few days will be the traditional Angelus prayer on Sunday at 12:00 noon. Theoretically, the Pope could also speak this in the hospital - as he had already done in 2021 following his bowel operation at the time on the balcony of the Gemelli Clinic.
Papal home office in the hospital?
Even when the Pope had to stay in hospital for three days in March shortly before Easter because of pneumonia, he worked in his private apartment on the tenth floor of the hospital. Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin announced yesterday that the Pope could also pursue his most important tasks in the clinic and that he would be supported in this.
0
Also Read
"Naïve" - Markus Lanz attacks Green Minister in refugee debate
READ
Kakhovka Dam: "Corpses float on the water" - Zelensky in the disaster area
READ
Rebellion against asylum course: Green base attacks party leadership around Habeck and Baerbock in letter
READ
Asylum summit: Faeser leaves approval open – criticism from the Left
READ
Putin "extremely irritable": Details of the information bubble around Russia's president apparently leak out
READ
Fancy a voyage of discovery?
My Area
This is one of the reasons why Francis rarely allows himself phases of rest and time-outs so as not to appear old, weak or frail. The Argentinean, who is usually in a wheelchair because of a severe knee problem, wants to avoid giving the impression that he can no longer carry out his office properly and that he is facing the end of the pontificate - especially among critics or opponents. Dpa
