Pope Francis, who is suffering from the flu, was taken to a hospital in Rome for a check-up, the Italian news agency ANSA reported on Wednesday.
The 87-year-old pontiff did not read a text during the weekly Wednesday audience, delegating this task to an assistant and announcing to the faithful that he was not yet recovered.
Health problems
The pope, who has suffered a number of recent health problems, had canceled appointments on Saturday and Monday due to what the Vatican called a mild flu.
On Sunday, he addressed the crowd in St. Peter's Square, as usual, to deliver his Angelus message.
“Dear brothers and sisters, I still have a bit of a cold,”
Francis said during Wednesday's audience, announcing that someone else would read his catechesis on envy and vainglory, two of the seven deadly sins. .
The reading lasted about a page.
The pope spoke at the end of the audience, with a hoarse voice and a slight cough, to greet some of the faithful and appeal for peace, as is customary.
In December, the pope was forced to cancel a planned trip to attend the COP28 climate meeting in Dubai due to the effects of the flu and lung inflammation.
In January, he was unable to complete a speech due to
“suspected bronchitis”
.
Later that month, he said he was feeling better despite "some aches and pains
.
"
As a youth, in his native Argentina, François had part of a lung removed.