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Pope Francis looks on, on the day he leads the Vespers prayer service to celebrate the conversion of St. Paul, at the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, in Rome, Italy, on January 25. (Yara Nardi/Reuters via CNN Newsource)
By Christopher Lamb and Caitlin Danaher, CNN
(CNN) — Pope Francis is in a “stable” clinical condition and rested well overnight as he continues receiving treatment for bronchitis at a hospital in Rome, the Vatican’s press office said Sunday.
“This morning he received the Eucharist and followed the Holy Mass on television. In the afternoon he alternated reading with rest,” the Vatican added.
Earlier, the Pope thanked the healthcare workers at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital in his Angelus prayer.
“I would like to thank the doctors and healthcare workers in this hospital for their care: they do such a valuable and tiring job,” Pope Francis said in a written text of his Angelus prayer Sunday.
The Pope also thanked the public for the “affection, prayer and closeness with which you are accompanying me in these days.”
The Vatican said Saturday the pontiff would not lead the Angelus prayer as normal, as medical staff had prescribed him “absolute rest” to recover from his respiratory tract infection.
A spokesperson for the Vatican said Pope Francis had a peaceful second night in hospital.
“Pope Francis had a quiet night, slept well, ate breakfast and read some newspapers as he usually does. He continues the therapy,” the Vatican spokesperson said Sunday.
The pontiff was admitted to the hospital in Rome on Friday for treatment for bronchitis and medical examinations, the Vatican said, the latest in a string of ailments that have raised concerns about the 88-year-old pontiff’s health.
Francis has made a number of visits to the hospital in recent years, and received abdominal surgery in 2023. He has been struggling with bronchitis in recent weeks and has asked aides to read speeches and addresses.
But he held audiences at the Vatican on Friday morning before his hospitalization, including with the prime minister of Slovakia and with Mark Thompson, the Chief Executive of CNN. The pope was mentally alert at the meeting but struggling to speak for extended periods due to breathing difficulties.
The-CNN-Wire
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