Updated February 23, 2025 at 14:38 PM ET
The Vatican announced Sunday morning that Pope Francis had had a "peaceful" night in the Italian hospital where he's been receiving treatment for a complex respiratory infection.
Francis, 88, remained in critical condition on Sunday and was given high-flow oxygen treatments for double pneumonia at Rome's Gemelli Hospital, which he entered a week and a half ago. He also showed signs of "mild" kidney failure, which the Vatican said was under control.
The health crisis facing the pontiff, who was elected pope in 2013, has led to his absence from some regular Vatican appearances and drawn groups of Catholic worshippers to St. Peter's Square to pray for his recovery.
Archbishop Rino Fisichella, a senior Vatican official who presided over the mass at St. Peter's Basilica on Sunday, called on parishioners to make their prayers for Francis "stronger and more fervent."
The pope was hospitalized for bronchitis in mid-February
On Saturday, the Vatican said Francis had experienced an "asthma-like respiratory crisis" that required supplemental oxygen. The pope was also diagnosed with thrombocytopenia, a condition characterized by a low count of blood platelets, which help form blood clots. He was given blood transfusions to treat it.
The Vatican said Saturday that Francis was "not out of danger" and his prognosis was "guarded," while adding that he was alert and had spent the day in an armchair.
Later on Sunday, officials said blood tests had also indicated some "initial, mild, renal insufficiency," but noted that Francis was "vigilant and well oriented." The Vatican said he had participated in Sunday Mass from his hospital room.
The pontiff was admitted to the hospital on Feb. 14 for a case of bronchitis, which he had been fighting since early February. Pope Francis is prone to developing bronchitis in winter, and at age 21 he had a small part of his right lung removed due to an illness.
He had been in stable condition last week but suffered a polymicrobial infection that forced him to remain in the hospital. Shortly after that, the Vatican announced Francis had developed bilateral pneumonia and required further treatment.
In a press conference on Friday, Dr. Sergio Alfieri, head of the pope's care team, and Vatican health care service vice-director Dr. Luigi Carbone said their main concern was that the pope could develop sepsis, a potentially fatal response the body can have to an infection.
Pope Francis has continued to work while sick
Despite his ongoing hospitalization, the pontiff has continued some of his work.
Last week, the Rev. Gabriel Romanelli, priest of the only Roman Catholic parish in Gaza, said Francis had continued to call him every night — even while he was in the hospital. The near daily communication between Francis and Romanelli began as a result of the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.
On Sunday, Pope Francis missed the Sunday noon blessing for the second weekend in a row, but two homilies were delivered in his name.
In written remarks released by the Vatican for his Angelus address, the pope said he renewed his "solidarity with the martyred Ukrainian people" and invited congregants "to remember the victims of all armed conflicts and to pray for the gift of peace in Palestine, Israel, and throughout the Middle East, in Myanmar, in Kivu, and in Sudan."
In a homily delivered hours earlier to a gathering of deacons, Francis stressed the need for forgiveness, saying that "a world that feels nothing but hatred towards its adversaries is a world without hope and without a future, doomed to endless war, divisions and vendettas."
Meanwhile, top church officials dismissed what they called rumors that the pope may resign from his post.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, said in an interview with the Corriere della Sera newspaper that any potential changes in leadership were "unfounded speculation" at the moment.
"I think it is quite normal in these situations for unverified rumors to circulate or for misplaced comments to be made — this is certainly not the first time," Parolin said. "However, I do not believe there is any particular movement in this regard, and so far, I have not heard anything of the sort."
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