On Easter Sunday, the day before his death, 88-year-old Francis returned to St. Peter's Square in Papamobile, which enabled cheering crowds to pay him tribute. It was one of his few speeches from the moment he left the hospital at the end of March. The Pope, despite the clear signs of weakness, met with the American vice president that day Jd vancem and briefly with the Prime Minister of Croatia Andrej Plenkovic.
“Pope Francis did not spare himself”
Behind the backstage of the Vatican appeared Voices in defense of the Pope's decision on continuing duties. Cardinal Michael Czerny pointed out that the Holy Father “balanced convalescence with ministry.” “Total rest does not always lead to full healing,” he said, pointing to the balanced approach of the Pope.
Austen Ivereigh's biographer, he emphasized that Francis consciously chose the “mission of presence“He claimed that the Pope wanted to be present in the most important moments, which made him a” master of time. ” Francis decided to “not save himself”, making his suffering a kind of pontificate.
Last message and farewell to the faithful
During the Sunday Easter mass, the Pope, supported by medical staff, dedicated his message to the problems of modern times. In the appeal read by the assistant, he called, among others to suspend weapons in the Gaza Strip and releasing hostages by Hamas. The Pope also raised the subject of disturbing increase in anti -Semitism.
Father Gabriel Romanelli Z Gaza parish, to which the Pope called regularly during the war of Israel with Hamas, said Vatican News that “The Pope called us for the last time on Saturday evening, just before the start of the Easter Vigil, when we refused the rosary.” “He told us that he was praying for us, blessed us and thanked us for our prayers in his intention,” he added.
After more than five weeks spent in the hospital due to bilateral pneumonia, doctors told Pope Francis that he needed two months of rest, however The head of 1.4 billion Catholics decided to work until the very end Reuters summed up.
