As his clinical condition remained stable with no new respiratory episodes, his Holiness Pope Francis called the Catholic parish in Gaza and carried out several work activities, according to the Holy See Press Office on Wednesday evening.

By Vatican News

The Holy See Press Office released the following statement on Wednesday evening providing the daily medical update on Pope Francis' health.

"The Holy Father remained stable today as well, without any episodes of respiratory insufficiency.

"As planned, he utilized supplemental, high-flow oxygenation, and non-invasive mechanical ventilation will be resumed tonight.

In the Wednesday morning update on the Pope's health, the Holy See Press Office says His Holiness Pope Francis has had a restful night in Rome's Gemelli Hospital, where he is being treated for bilateral pneumonia, and woke up slightly after 8 a.m. this morning.

By Vatican News 

Pope Francis rested well overnight and woke up slightly after 8 a.m. this morning, according to a statement published on Wednesday morning by the Holy See Press Office.

The Pope, this morning continued his treatment and respiratory physiotherapy. As planned, he transitioned from non-invasive mechanical ventilation at night to the high-flow oxygen therapy through nasal cannulas. Though within a complex framework, the Pope's situation this morning seems stable.

The Pope is receiving treatment for bilateral pneumonia at Rome's Gemelli Hospital. His overall clinical condition remains stable, including heart, kidney, and blood values.

On Tuesday evening, the Holy See Press Office, in its evening medical update on the Holy Father's health noted that the Pope's clinical condition remained stable during the day and that he did not experience episodes of respiratory failure or bronchospasm.

His Holiness Pope Francis releases his prayer intention for the month of March 2025, and invites everyone to pray for "families in crisis," as he acknowledges that no family is perfect, but that when we forgive our family members, we can rediscover peace.

By Deborah Castellano Lubov

Pope Francis' monthly prayer intention this March is for "families in crisis."

His Holiness Pope Francis has not manifested any episodes of respiratory insufficiency or bronchospasm. He is alert, without fever, and has cooperated with the treatments. Today, he was switched to high-flow oxygen therapy, and tonight, non-invasive mechanical ventilation will be resumed until tomorrow morning as planned. The prognosis remains guarded.

Vatican News

The Holy See Press Office issued the following medical update on Pope Francis Tuesday evening. The Pope is receiving care at Rome's Gemelli Hospital:

The clinical condition of the Holy Father today has remained stable.

To the Diocese of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem 
Lenten Letter 

Dear Brothers and Sisters,  

In this Jubilee year we begin Lent by listening together once again to the proclamation which, through the mouth of the Apostle Paul, fills this special time with hope: “God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting their trespasses against them and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.” (2 Corinthians 5:19, second reading of the Ash Wednesday Mass). 

Allow me to share with you some short reflections. 

      1. The Cross of Christ 

This is the heart of Easter, this is the place where the great hope of the Church and the world is born and founded: The violent words of rancor and hatred, the presumptuous speeches of conflict and recrimination cannot prevent God from speaking the word of reconciliation in Christ: Ave Crux, spes unica! …

The Holy See Press Office releases His Holiness Pope Francis' Angelus address as he continues his recovery at Gemelli Hospital. In his message, the Pope expresses gratitude for Prayers and medical care whilst urging continued prayers for peace. Reflecting on the day's Gospel reading, he emphasizes the importance of seeing others with charity and of always speaking with goodness.

By Francesca Merlo

In an Angelus address prepared by His Holiness Pope Francis while he continues his treatment in hospital, and published by the Holy See Press Office, the Pope thanked the faithful for their closeness in his moment of "frailty" and urged them to continue praying for peace in the world, just as they pray for him.

Presided over His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, Catholicos of the Armenian Church, Holy See of Cilicia, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches, the Prelate of Aleppo, HE Archbishop Magar Ashakarian conducted the ordination and consecration ceremony of deacons Garen Yosulkanian and Hagop Joulfayan as priests at St. Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral in Antelias, with V. Rev. Fr. Shnorhk Ashekian serving as their sponsoring priest.

With the blessing of His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, Catholicos of the Armenian Church, Holy See of Cilicia, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches, the Cilician brotherhood welcomes Deacons Garen Yosoulkanian and Hagop Joulfayan into its congregation.

On February 19, 2025, the Association of Theological Institutes in the Middle East (ATIME) convened online, with V. Rev. Fr. Kevork Karageozian, assistant to the Armenian Theological Seminary Dean, representing the Armenian Church, Holy See of Cilicia, with the blessing of His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, Catholicos of the Armenian Church, Holy See of Cilicia, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches.

The Vatican announces the theme for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees 2025. “Migrants are missionaries of hope”, the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development says in a statement: “They remind the Church of the ultimate goal of this earthly pilgrimage – the attainment of our future homeland.”

By Joseph Tulloch

His Holiness Pope Francis has chosen “Migrants, missionaries of hope” to be the theme for the 2025 World Day of Migrants and Refugees.

In the Monday morning update on the Pope's health, the Holy See Press Office says His Holiness Pope Francis slept well throughout the night.

By Vatican News

His Holiness Pope Francis slept well throughout the night, the Holy See Press Office said on Monday morning. 

The latest update follows a Sunday evening statement that indicated the Pope's condition has remained stable.

The Press Office gave further details, noting that the Pope has not required "non-invasive mechanical ventilation," as he had used in recent days, but was still receiving supplemental, high-flow oxygenation.

It noted, too, that the Holy Father continues to be afebrile; that is, he does not have a fever. 

Is 61:1-13; Acts 20:22-24. 32; John 10:11-16 

Dearest Brothers, 
Dearest Brother Iyad, may the Lord give you peace! 

The readings that have just been proclaimed, the Holy Place in which we find ourselves, and the many biblical reminders that this place brings with it offer us many insights to ponder and are a wonderful reference point for the beginning of your episcopal ministry. I will mention just a few of them. 

The first reading speaks of a great and new rebirth. In a context of pain and death, of an evil that seems to dominate everything, the prophet is sent by the Holy Spirit to “good news to the oppressed... to bind up the brokenhearted, to release to the prisoners… to provide for those who mourn… a garland instead of ashes… the oil of gladness instead of mourning… the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit” (Is 61:2-3). A very timely text and one that also concerns us. 

February 28, 2025

His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, received today at the Papal Residence in Cairo a delegation from the Romanian Orthodox Church. The delegation came to Egypt on a pilgrimage and to visit its tourist landmarks, including several sites along the Holy Family’s journey in Egypt.

The delegation included bishops from the Romanian Orthodox Church:

● His Grace Bishop Nicodim, Bishop of Severin and Strehaia.

● His Grace Bishop Andrei, Bishop of Covasna and Harghita.

● His Grace Bishop Gerontie, Auxiliary Bishop of the Diocese of Deva and Hunedoara.

● His Grace Bishop Nestor, Bishop of Deva and Hunedoara.

Additionally, the delegation included a group of priests, monks, young men, and women from the mentioned dioceses.

A Holy See Press Office communiqué on Thursday evening confirms that His Holiness Pope Francis’ clinical condition continues to show improvement. Additional days of clinical stability are needed before the prognosis can be lifted.
A Holy See Press Office communiqué on Thursday evening confirms that Pope Francis’ clinical condition continues to show improvement. Additional days of clinical stability are needed before the prognosis can be lifted.
Vatican News 
The Holy Father's clinical condition is confirmed to be improving again today.

We extend our apostolic benediction, benevolent prayers and greetings to our brethren, their Eminences the Metropolitans, and our spiritual children: Very Reverend Corepiscopoi, Reverend priests, monks, nuns and deacons and the entire blessed Syriac Orthodox people throughout the world. May the divine providence embrace them through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, Mother of God, and St. Peter, Chief of the Apostles, and all the Martyrs and Saints. Amen.

God is with us in times of trouble

“Even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me. If I say, "Surely the darkness shall fall on me," Even the night shall be light about me; Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, but the night shines as the day; the darkness and the light are both alike to You”

(Psalms 139: 10 - 12)

The Book of Psalms is a source of comfort for believers during tribulation, suffering, and pain, as well as a wellspring of joy and hope in times of praising and thanksgiving to the Lord for His redemptive work. Psalm 139 beautifully captures the sentiment that God is present among us and guiding us, even in the most challenging moments of life, "Even there, Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me. If I say, "Surely the darkness shall fall on me," Even the night shall be light about me" (Psalm 139: 10-11). These verses convey profound spiritual messages regarding the significance of hope and trust in God's promises, emphasizing that He will never forsake His children, particularly in the context of the challenges they encounter in the contemporary world, such as wars, persecution, political transitions, social unrest, and moral crises. His steadfast promises and benevolent guidance are the bedrock that enables us to persevere through even the most arduous circumstances, as the psalmist assures us, saying, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me" (Psalm 23: 4). The Lord God will never leave us in the darkness; instead, He will be present in the depths of our pain to give us victory with the right hand of His power.

Lk 6, 39-42

In his "Sermon on the Plain," the evangelist Luke includes these words of Jesus about blind leaders (Lk 6:39-42), which Matthew places in a different section of his Gospel rather than in the parallel Sermon on the Mount. 

Let us try to retrace Jesus' discourse. 

At the beginning he lays out the beatitudes (Lk 6:20-25), that is, the proclamation of a new world, where there are no longer those who dominate and those who suffer, those who command and those who submit; there are no longer those who are first and those who are last. It is the proclamation of a world where the traditional categories that divide the world in two, where some are considered great, and others small - disappear.  

The discourse continues by announcing a new way of relating to one another, which can only be rooted in mutual love, forgiveness, and mercy: "Love your enemies... Be merciful... Do not judge..." (Lk 6:27-38). Only love has the power to eliminate distinctions, placing everyone on the same level: every person is equally worthy of love and respect. 

The inauguration of a place of worship and pilgrimage four years after the papal visit sends a message. Both Christians and Muslims worry about the pontiff’s health. A country’s cultural lasting heritage is a treasure that supports the economy. For the patriarch, the secular nature of the state remains a key issue; in the meantime, he appeals for an end to wars and extremist ideologies

Baghdad (AsiaNews) – The imminent inauguration of a Church in Ur of the Chaldeans, four years after the visit of Pope Francis, is a “message” and a sign of “openness”, this according to His Beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Louis Raphaël Sako, Chaldean Patriarch in Iraq and the World, and Honorary President of the Middle East Council of Churches.

The site, he hopes, will become a place of pilgrimage for Iraqis and believers from all over the world, Christians and Muslims, for Abraham “is their common father,” the prelate told AsiaNews.

His Holiness Pope Francis continues to show signs of improvement, with his kidney issues subsiding. A recent CT scan confirmed a normal progression of his lung inflammation, and his blood tests returned good results. In the afternoon, he resumed his work. However, his prognosis remains guarded.

By Vatican News

On Wednesday evening, the Holy See Press Office provided the following update on Pope Francis' health: 

"The Holy Father's condition has shown a slight further improvement over the past 24 hours. The mild kidney insufficiency observed in recent days has subsided. A chest CT scan carried out last night showed a normal progression of the lung inflammation. Blood tests conducted today confirmed the improvement seen yesterday.

As he did everyday from the beginning of this terrible war, His Holiness Pope Francis has called us once again to show his closeness, to pray for us and to give us his blessing.

As the Parish of the Holy Family of Gaza, which belongs to the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, we rejoice to hear his voice. This is always comforting. Knowing that despite his delicate state of health, he continues to think and pray for everyone, for Peace in Gaza and thanking us, at the same time, for our constant prayers, gives us great joy even in the midst of so many trials.

Merciful God, the source of life and healing, we lift our prayer for HH Pope Francis. We ask you Lord to touch him with your healing hands and to give him health and strength, to alleviate his suffering. Be with your servant during his physical weakness and surround him with your divine providence, so that he may retain his wellbeing and continue his ministry with a spirit filled with peace and hope. We ask you Lord to bless his body and soul and to make him a living witness of your love and mercy. In the name of Jesus Christ our Healer we pray. Amen