Pope Francis attended the Easter Vigil at the Vatican on Saturday, a day after questions about his health were reignited after his attendance at a large Good Friday procession was canceled at the last minute.
The 87-year-old pope arrived to preside over the Easter Vigil in St. Peter's Basilica just before 7:30 p.m. (6:30 p.m. Japan time) in front of a crowd of about 6,000 people from around the world. .
A day after canceling his participation in the Stations of the Cross ceremony, Pope Francis arrived in a wheelchair, dressed in white, just before the service.
The Vatican confirmed on the same day that he would attend.
After a light ceremony in the cathedral plunged into darkness to symbolize Christ's transition from death to life, Francis effortlessly delivered a 10-minute sermon in Italian.
He spoke out against the world's “wall of selfishness and indifference” and lamented that “all hopes for peace have been crushed by the cruelty of hatred and the ferocity of war.”
Later, during the course of the service, he baptized eight adults.
At the end of the two-and-a-half hour service, he showed little sign of fatigue as he made his way down the cathedral's main aisle, taking time to greet and bless several worshipers gathered behind the fence.
Sunday's Easter Mass, followed by the “Urbi e Orbi” blessing, will be broadcast live around the world.
“In order to protect his health ahead of tomorrow's Vigil and Easter Mass, Pope Francis will this evening follow the Stations of the Cross at the Colosseum from his Santa Marta residence,” the Vatican said in a short statement Friday. . .
The last-minute decision – the papal chair had already been set up for the procession – and the lack of detail in the statement raised doubts about the pope's health and how long he would lead the Catholic Church and its 1.3 churches. There are even more doubts as to whether this can continue. 1 billion followers.
~Deepening doubts~
Saturday's headline in the Italian daily La Stampa was “The Way of the Cross of the Vulnerable Pope,” while Il Messaggero spoke of “Francis's renunciation.”
Vatican officials told AFP on Friday that there were “no particular concerns” about his health and that the decision to withdraw was “simply a precautionary measure.”
The Argentine Jesuits also canceled their participation in the 2023 Via Crucis, which was announced long ago after they were hospitalized for three days with bronchitis. A few weeks later, he underwent hernia surgery.
Holy Week is a mainstay of the Catholic calendar and includes a series of observances leading up to Easter itself.
Until Friday, the pope had been attending various official engagements during the week, but lately he seemed tired, sometimes delegating speaking duties to colleagues.
Remarkably, when he presided over Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter's Square a week ago, he omitted the sermon and replaced it with a moment of silence and prayer, but he did not stop at the end of the Mass before calling for peace. chanted.
Holy Week, which culminates with Easter Sunday celebrating the Resurrection of Christ, is a major part of the Catholic calendar, and its many ceremonies are celebrated by a man in his 80s who has been commuting to public work in a wheelchair for two years. It's like a marathon for me.
Francis, who never takes a vacation, made his last trip to Marseille in the south of France in September. In December, he canceled his long-awaited attendance at the COP28 climate change summit in Dubai.
The next scheduled visit is to Venice on April 28th. The Vatican has not yet announced plans for a trip to Asia and the Pacific this summer.
Francis has previously left open the possibility of resigning if he is unable to carry out his duties. This would follow the example of his immediate predecessor Benedict XVI, who in 2013 became the first pope since the Middle Ages to voluntarily abdicate.
But Francis wrote in his memoirs published this month that there was “no reason serious enough to consider resigning.”
Resignation was a “remote possibility” and would only be justified in the event of “serious physical disability,” he wrote.
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