There are growing concerns about the health of Pope Francis who was seen being helped into a chair after he was forced to pull out of an event. The Pontiff, 87, pulled out of reading a speech over the weekend because he was suffering from bronchitis which meant he wasn’t well enough to read the speech.
As a result the speech, due to be given to the Vatican magistrates at the beginning of the judicial year, was assigned to an aide whilst the Pope recovered.
In a statement, Pope Francis explained: “I have prepared a speech but as you can see I am unable to read it because of bronchitis. I have asked Monsignor Ciampanelli to read it for me.”
Despite the setback, the Pope felt well enough to meet with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in a 30-minute meeting later that day, their first since Mr Scholz became Chancellor nearly three years ago.
The latest concerns about the Pope’s health come days after he was hospitalised in Rome after his flu symptoms worsened earlier this year. The Pontiff has suffered from a series of health issues throughout his life.
When he was younger, he had part of one lung removed due to a respiratory infection while he had part of his colon removed due to inflammation in 2021. In the past year, he has been using a wheelchair more often.
The Mirror reported that this was because of a minor knee fracture and strained knee ligaments that have made walking and standing increasingly difficult.
While the Pope has suffered serious discomfort in recent months, this has not stopped him from attempting to carry out his duties and speak about crucial issues. He has called for peace in Ukraine and the Middle East.
Earlier this year he told the Diplomatic Corps: “After nearly two years of large-scale war waged by the Russian Federation against Ukraine, the greatly desired peace has not yet managed to take root in minds and hearts. One cannot allow the persistence of a conflict that continues to metastasize to the detriment of millions of persons.”
