Pope makes first public appearance in five weeks

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis will make his first public appearance in five weeks on Sunday, delivering a blessing from the window of his room at the Gemelli Hospital in Rome where he is being treated for double pneumonia, the Vatican said.

Francis, who is 88, was hospitalized on Feb. 14 with a serious respiratory infection that has necessitated a changing course of treatment.

The pope has only been seen once during his hospital stay, in a photo that the Vatican released last week of him at prayer in a hospital chapel.

Francis intends to reach the hospital at its window on Sunday around noon to offer a greeting and blessing, the Vatican said in a short statement on Saturday.

Normally, the pope gives a weekly noontime prayer in St Peter’s Square on Sundays. Has not previously been able since Feb 9, prior to entering hospital.

The Vatican said that Francis was not planning to recite the prayer this Sunday, but would appear at the window for a greeting.

The pope is gradually recovering his strength but needs to “relearn how to speak” after intensive use of high-flow oxygen therapy, Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernandez said Friday.

The cardinal, who heads the Vatican’s doctrinal office, brushed off speculation that the pontiff would retire, saying that he was back to his old self.

“The pope is doing very well, but high-flow oxygen thoroughly dehydrates. He has to learn to speak again, but his general physical condition is the same as before,” Fernandez said.

The Vatican has issued only one short audio clip of the pope speaking since his March 4 hospital admission, on March 6, when his voice was cracked, breathless and difficult to comprehend.

The pope’s condition remained stable with “minor improvements in breathing and mobility,” the Vatican said in its latest health update on Friday.

It noted that he had not required mechanical ventilation to assist his breathing at night since Monday, but rather was receiving oxygen through a thin tube beneath his nose much of the time.

There was still no official word on when he might return home to the Vatican and Fernandez said he did not know if he would be discharged in time for Easter, which is celebrated on April 20.

“He might come back, but the doctors want to be sure that with the little time he has, he wants to dedicate himself completely to others, not to him,” he added.

When asked if he believed Francis could resign, the cardinal responded: “I really don’t think so, no.”