VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis suffered “two episodes of acute respiratory insufficiency” March 3 but remained alert, the Vatican said, giving cause for concern after two days in which his condition was described as “stable.” The episodes of respiratory distress were “caused by significant accumulation of endobronchial mucus and subsequent bronchospasm,” the Vatican said…
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis’ extended hospitalization and care is a reminder that every human being, especially the frail or elderly, must be given proper care, said Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Academy for Life. “What I would hope is that what we do for the pope we must do for everybody,…
WASHINGTON – Courageous negotiations require boldness to open the door for dialogue, said Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, echoing the words of Pope Francis. Archbishop Broglio’s reflection for Lent follows: “As we begin the holy Season of Lent, a time of prayer, penance, and charity, we join our…
Reading I Sirach 27:4-7 When a sieve is shaken, the husks appear; so do one’s faults when one speaks. As the test of what the potter molds is in the furnace, so in tribulation is the test of the just. The fruit of a tree shows the care it has had; so too does one’s…
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis’ condition remained “stable” March 2, and he “did not require non-invasive mechanical ventilation, but only high-flow oxygen therapy,” the Vatican said in its evening medical bulletin. The 88-year-old pope did not have a fever, it said, but “in view of the complexity of the clinical picture, the prognosis remains…
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis remained in stable condition and did not suffer another respiratory episode a day after having “an isolated crisis of bronchospasm” that worsened his previously improving medical condition, the Vatican said. Still, the pope’s doctors at Rome’s Gemelli hospital said his “prognosis remains guarded.” With the crisis Feb. 28, the…