Vatican Clarifies That Rumors About Pope Francis Resignation Are ‘Unfounded speculation’
Pilgrims from all over the world continue to visit St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican for the Jubilee, waiting for the pope to get better from bilateral pneumonia when he turns a week hospitalized. Photo: EFE/ Joan Mas
February 22, 2025 Hour: 3:29 pm
Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, said that to talk about a possible resignation of Pope Francis, hospitalized for eight days in the Gemelli hospital in Rome with bilateral pneumonia, is an “unfounded speculation”.
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“All of this seems to me to be unfounded speculation. Right now, our focus is on the Holy Father’s health, his recovery, and his return to the Vatican—these are the only things that matter,” declaró en una entrevista publicada este sábado al diario italiano ‘Corriere della Sera’.
Parolin made clear that about speculations and rumors surrounding the Vatican, he is not aware of it and “in any case, I try to stay out of them.”
The Cardinal Secretary of State said he thinks “it is quite normal in these situations for unverified rumours to circulate or for misplaced comments to be made—this is certainly not the first time” and he does not believe “is any particular movement in this regard, and so far, I have not heard anything of the sort.”
Regarding a possible visit from him, Parolin added that it is better for the Pope to remain protected and have as few visits as possible, in order to rest and thus make more effective the therapies he is undergoing.
On the other hand, Parolin stated that “Thanks be to God, the updates from Gemelli Hospital are encouraging – he is recovering well. Some official documents have even been sent to him, which means he is progressing.”
The pope will remain in the hospital at least throughout next week until he is cured of his bilateral pneumonia and can continue treatment at his residence in Santa Marta, but “it will take time,” said Dr. Sergio Alfieri, head of Surgery at the Gemelli Hospital in Rome and who operated on Francis on previous occasions, during a press conference this Friday.
Alfieri explained that although he is responding well to treatment, “the pope is not out of danger” because he has a polymicrobial infection along with bilateral pneumonia, and he also walks little and is 88 years old, which makes him “a fragile patient.”
Autor: ACJ
Fuente: EFE // Vatican News