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Pope no longer requires mechanical ventilation
As of Tuesday, Pope Francis is stabilized enough after two respiratory crises to resume using a nasal tube for oxygen, rather than a ventilation mask, as he continued to fight pneumonia, the Vatican said. FOX 5 New York's Briella Tomassetti joined LiveNOW from FOX with the latest.
ROME - Pope Francis' condition "remained stable" on Wednesday, "without any episodes of respiratory insufficiency," according to a new update by the Vatican.
The pope, 88, called the Catholic parish in Gaza and carried out several work activities, according to the Holy See Press Office.
Pope Francis remains stable, Vatican says
What they're saying:
"As planned, he utilized supplemental, high-flow oxygenation, and non-invasive mechanical ventilation will be resumed tonight, the Vatican said in its evening update. "The Holy Father increased his respiratory and active motor physiotherapy. He spent the day in his armchair.
They added, "Given the complexity of the clinical situation, the prognosis remains guarded.
Pope Francis participates in Ash Wednesday
During the morning, he participated in an Ash Wednesday celebration, receiving ashes and Holy Communion.
Pope Francis blesses faithful during the weekly General Audience at the Paul VI Hall on December 13, 2023 in Vatican City, Vatican. (Credit: Vatican Media via Vatican Pool/Getty Images)
He later set to work, which included a call to the Rev. Gabriel Romanelli, the Argentine priest who is the parish priest of the Holy Family church in Gaza.
In the afternoon, the Vatican said Pope Francis alternated between rest and work.
Big picture view:
Lent begins with Ash Wednesday and leads up to Easter on April 20. A cardinal has been designated to take Francis’ place at Vatican celebrations.
On Ash Wednesday, observant Catholics receive a sign of the cross in ashes on their foreheads, a gesture that underscores human mortality. It is an obligatory day of fasting and abstinence for Catholics that signals the start of Christianity’s most penitent season.
"The condition of fragility reminds us of the tragedy of death,″ De Donatis said in his homily. "In many ways, we try to banish death from our societies, so dependent on appearances, and even remove it from our language. Death, however, imposes itself as a reality with which we have to reckon, a sign of the precariousness and brevity of our lives."
The pope was supposed to attend a spiritual retreat this weekend with the rest of the Holy See hierarchy. On Tuesday, the Vatican said the retreat would go ahead without Francis but in "spiritual communion" with him. The theme, selected before Francis got sick, was "Hope in eternal life."
Pope treated for bilateral pneumonia
The backstory:
The pope has been receiving treatment for bilateral pneumonia at Rome's Gemelli Hospital since he was hospitalized last month.
RELATED: Pope Francis delivers Christmas message, calls for 'silence of arms'
The pope, who has chronic lung disease and had part of one lung removed as a young man, had two respiratory crises on Monday in a setback to recovery.
What they're saying:
"His bilateral pneumonia is following the normal evolution of a condition of this type under treatment. The Pope actively cooperates with the prescribed therapies, and his mood remains good," the Vatican continued on Wednesday.