Pope may bless faithful on Sunday
Pope John Paul II is expected to bless the faithful on Sunday from a window of the hospital treating him for a breathing crisis, his spokesman said today.
Papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls told reporters outside Rome’s Gemelli Polyclinic hospital that the frail, 84-year-old pontiff would likely make another window appearance similar to his surprise showing last Sunday. A final decision would be made tomorrow, he said.
“The Pope will give the blessing with his hands,” not with his voice, which is recovering after surgery to insert a breathing tube into his throat, Navarro-Valls said.
In the hospital, John Paul continues to show progress, praying in a chapel and keeping up with church business, the Vatican said yesterday, saying it was possible he might be released in time for Easter celebrations in three weeks. It said the Pope is eager to leave the clinic but accepts his doctors’ advice not to rush his discharge.
Usually, the Pope addresses the faithful from his window overlooking St. Peter’s Square. Navarro-Valls said it was likely that an archbishop would read out Sunday’s traditional prayer and blessing to the faithful, known as the Angelus, and that the Pope would wave his blessing to believers gathered at the hospital.
“The Pope is eating regularly and spends several hours each day in an armchair,” the Holy See’s latest medical update said. “The surgical wound is healing.”
John Paul’s daily speech and breathing therapy is continuing, and he spends some time in the small chapel adjoining his room, Navarro-Valls said.
The Pope spent a calm eighth night at the hospital, the news agency ANSA reported early today without citing sources.
Below the pontiff’s window at Gemelli yesterday, a small group of faithful from northeastern Italy prayed and sang, braving heavy rain with umbrellas.
“We hope he will leave the hospital soon – that’s what we’re praying for,” said Nadia Narchesan.
In line with Vatican efforts to show John Paul is in command, Navarro-Valls said the Pope has been receiving several top churchmen “with whom he daily follows the activity of the Holy See and the life of the Church”.
With Vatican officials standing in for the Pope, a new image of the papacy has been emerging during his stay in hospital. Several top officials have said they see no problem with a Pope who can’t speak.
Illustrating how the ailing Pope is attending to business, the Vatican released a message the Pope sent to a Vatican congregation holding its general assembly.
But John Paul’s presence would be important at Holy Week celebrations leading up to Easter on March 27. The Vatican has not communicated a date for his release. Asked whether the Pope might be back at the Vatican in time for Easter, Navarro-Valls said: “It’s possible.”
He said the Vatican was going ahead with its regular Easter schedule and that if the Pope was released before the holiday, his level of participation would still have to be decided.
The Pope’s overall health and recovery are complicated by Parkinson’s disease, which causes gradual loss of muscle control. He also suffers from crippling hip and knee ailments.
John Paul was taken by ambulance to Gemelli with breathing spasms on February 1 and was released on February 10, only to be rushed back again on February 24 for a throat operation that left him with a breathing tube and facing extensive speech and respiratory therapy.
The pontiff’s next health bulletin is expected on Monday.
