Pope Francis Returns to Vatican to Begin Long Recovery
Pope Francis has been discharged from Rome's Gemelli Hospital after being there for five weeks due to a severe respiratory infection. As reported by Vatican News, Pope Francis greeted three thousand people waving from a balcony at the hospital and expressing his gratitude.
"You have continued to pray for me with so much patience and perseverance: thank you so much! I also pray for you," an Instagram post posted on the Pope's account reads.
On Saturday, the pope's doctors said that it would still take "a lot of time" for Francis to make a complete recovery and had prescribed the pontiff a further two months of rest at the Vatican, according to Premier Christian News.
Following his departure from the hospital, Francis returned to the Vatican to begin his rehabilitation and convalescence. During this time, doctors said he should not meet in big groups or exert himself.
While en route to the Vatican, the Pope made a surprise visit to St. Mary Major Basilica, where he met with Cardinal Rolandas Makrickas, Coadjutor Archpriest of the Papal Basilica. He would typically visit the basilica, where he goes to pray after foreign visits.
He didn't leave the car, however, but handed a bouquet of flowers to Cardinal Makrickas so that he could place them in front of a favourite icon of the Madonna. While in the car, the pope can be seen wearing oxygen nasal tubes.
The pope's hospitalization is considered the most serious health crisis of his 12-year papacy and is the second-longest in recent papal history.
In the past five weeks, hundreds of people have gathered outside the Vatican and the hospital to pray for his recovery.
In a statement on Sunday, the pope said he was "saddened by the resumption of heavy Israeli bombing on the Gaza Strip, causing many deaths and injuries."
"I call for an immediate halt to the weapons and for the courage to resume dialogue so that all hostages may be released and a final ceasefire reached," the pontiff wrote. "In the Gaza Strip, the humanitarian situation is again very serious and requires urgent commitment from the conflicting parties and the international community."
He added that he was pleased that Armenia and Azerbaijan came to terms with the final text of the peace agreement, "and I hope that it may be signed as soon as possible and thus may contribute to establishing lasting peace in the South Caucuses."
Photo Credit: ©Instagram/franciscus
Originally published March 24, 2025.
