Pope to leave hospital today
Pope John Paul will leave hospital today, the Vatican announced.
The 84-year-old Pope was rushed to a Rome clinic with breathing spasms ten days ago and the illness rekindled questions about his frail health and ability to carry on.
Papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said the Pope was ”cured” of the breathing crisis and that his general condition was continuing to improve.
Navarro-Valls said a battery of tests including a CAT scan had “excluded other pathologies”, meaning it ruled out any new illnesses.
He said the Pope would return to his apartment in the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace, which would coincide with a traditional Lenten period of spiritual reflection for the pontiff with no public ceremonies.
That way, the pontiff could try to regain strength before Easter without having to cancel anything.
The Pope, who also suffers from Parkinson’s disease and crippling hip and knee ailments, was taken by ambulance to Rome’s Gemelli Polyclinic for emergency treatment of respiratory problems two days after coming down with flu.
John Paul’s ninth night in his private mini-ward on the tenth floor was uneventful, the Italian news agency ANSA reported.
Doctors at Gemelli refused to discuss the pope’s condition, but the Vatican press office had issued its own medical bulletin every few days describing John Paul’s continued improvement.
His doctors had persuaded him to prolong his stay just to be on the safe side.
Faithful and churchmen will be watching on Sunday to see if he makes another window appearance like he did last week.
Resuming his regular Sunday prayer appointment at his studio window overlooking St Peter’s Square would be a big boost to those wanting reassurance the pontiff is determined to resume his routine at the helm of the Roman Catholic Church.
Last Sunday, he waved from his hospital room window, but the words of his brief blessing were largely inaudible, prompting speculation his frail health might prompt him to consider the prospect of resigning.
A remark earlier this week by the Vatican’s number two official about the possibility of a papal resignation set off a prickly debate among top cardinals and papal advisers.
No Pope has resigned for centuries, and John Paul repeatedly has said he intends to carry out his mission until the end.
Cardinal Angelo Sodano, who as secretary of state is second only to John Paul in the Vatican’s hierarchy, said the hypothesis of a papal resignation should be left “up to the pope’s conscience”.
Other leading cardinals have echoed that assessment.
But Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, who as head of the Congregation of Bishops is one of the Pope’s top advisers, criticised such talk as “bad taste”.
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