The 95-year-old ex-Pope Benedict XVI, whose health has deteriorated in recent days, is in a “stationary” condition, the Vatican said on Friday.
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“Currently his condition is stationary,” Vatican press service chief Matteo Bruni said in a brief statement. “Last night the Pope Emeritus had a good rest. And yesterday (Thursday) afternoon he attended the celebration of Mass in his room,” he added.
Pope Francis announced on Wednesday that his predecessor was “seriously ill” and that he was praying for the one whose resignation in 2013 surprised the world for health reasons. A mass for him must also be celebrated on Friday late afternoon in the Basilica of Saint-Jean-de-Latran in Rome.
“His health deteriorated about three days ago. It is his vital functions that are failing, including the heart,” a Vatican source told AFP, adding that no hospitalization is planned as Benedict XVI’s residence is closed. have the necessary medical equipment.
Francis himself visited Benedict XVI. on Wednesday at the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery, the residence of the Pope Emeritus in the heart of the Vatican Gardens.
Joseph Ratzinger has appeared increasingly fragile in recent months, using a wheelchair but continuing to receive visitors. Photos from his last visit on December 1st show a frail and visibly debilitated man.
In the latest public video of Benedict XVI, released by the Vatican in August, we also see a thinner man fitted with a hearing aid who can no longer speak but still has lively eyes.
Benedict XVI, whose eight-year pontificate (2005-2013) was marked by several crises, was caught up in early 2022 by the drama of child crime in the Church.
When questioned by a report in Germany about his handling of sexual violence as Archbishop of Munich, he broke his silence to ask for “pardon” but assured that he had never covered up a child criminal.