VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis led his weekly public audience at the Vatican but said he was still not feeling well and asked an aide to read his words to him on Wednesday, a day after canceling a trip abroad.
Francis, who turns 87 on Dec. 17 and had part of a lung removed as a young man, coughed as he made some final remarks near the end of the hour-long audience in a Vatican auditorium, then stood from his chair on the stage to give his blessing.
In a soft voice, barely above a whisper, Francis told the public that “since I’m not feeling well,” his interpretation of his speech wouldn’t sound “nice.” He then handed the printed speech to the adjutant.
But Francis spoke at the end of the audience and expressed his satisfaction with the ceasefire in the fighting between Israel and Hamas and said he hoped it would continue “so that all the hostages are released and access is possible, so that humanitarian Help can reach Gaza.” provided.
“They lack bread and water, people suffer,” Francis said.
On Tuesday, the Vatican announced that doctors had asked the pope, who is suffering from pneumonia that causes breathing problems, to skip a three-day trip to the COP28 UN climate conference in Dubai. The trip would have started on Friday and the Pope would have returned to Rome on Sunday.
The Holy See’s announcement about the canceled trip also said his health had improved, but noted that the pope was suffering from flu and “inflammation of the respiratory tract.”
The pope, who has made concern for the environment a priority of his papacy, wants to participate in some way in the discussions in the United Arab Emirates, according to the Holy See. It was unclear whether Francis would read his climate conference address via video conference or participate in some other form.
The Vatican said the pope gave in to the doctors’ request “with great regret.”
Before taking the stage for the weekly audience, the pope met with members of Celtic, a soccer team from Glasgow, Scotland, that has strong Catholic roots.
“Excuse me, I can’t talk much with this cold, but I’m feeling better than yesterday,” Francis told the team members.
While he had a priest read his words, the Pope ended by praising the “beauty of playing together.” The pope, an avid soccer fan from Argentina, told the players he would greet them individually.
“It doesn’t matter whether we won or not,” Francis told the team, which was eliminated from the Champions League, Europe’s elite soccer competition, on Tuesday night after a 2-0 loss to a team from Rome, Lazio.
Towards the end of Wednesday’s audience, circus performers took the stage to entertain the pope with an acrobatic performance. Francis looked amused as he watched the performers, including acrobats and a juggler. He posed for a photo with the group.
“I would like to thank you for this moment of joy,” Francis said, adding that the circus expressed the human dimension of “simple joy” and inviting the audience to applaud.
Earlier this year, Francis was hospitalized for three days after receiving intravenous antibiotic treatment for what the Vatican called bronchitis at the time.
The Vatican said the pontiff had received intravenous antibiotics for his current illness. During a television appearance on Sunday, a cannula for intravenous use could be seen on his right hand. A CT scan carried out in a hospital in Rome on November 25 had ruled out pneumonia, according to the Vatican.