ROME (AP) — The Vatican on Friday released the first images of Pope Leo XIV since his lung cancer operation, showing him celebrating Mass, as doctors said tests confirmed “continuing improvement” in his recovery.
The photos show Leo standing in front of the altar, dressed in green clothing, celebrating mass in a makeshift chapel that was set up for him at Gemelli Hospital. Spokesman Matteo Bruni said he presided over the liturgy alone, distributed communion to medical staff and Vatican gendarmes present and delivered a homily.
In his homily, Leo thanked the hospital staff “for the work they do every day caring for the sick in their frailty, and in particular for what they did for him,” Bruni said.
Bruni also confirmed that Leo would make his first public appearance on Sunday to deliver the traditional midday prayer.
“His postoperative convalescence allows him to independently carry out his normal daily activities,” said a medical statement signed by Leo’s personal physician, Dr. Luigi Carbone, and the head of the thoracic surgery department at Gemelli Hospital, Dr. Stefano Margaritora.
Leo, 71, had the lower lobe of his right lung removed on October 13 after doctors identified a suspected cancerous nodule. The operation confirmed he had adenocarcinomathe most common type of lung cancer.
A signal of all systems going on a journey
Even as questions swirled about what his cancer means for him the future of his young pontificate, there were signs Friday that he were all systems working. The Vatican on Friday released the names of journalists accredited to travel with him on Leo’s plane during his Nov. 6-17 trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru.
Leo’s ability to make the trip has been in question since his diagnosis, and the Vatican can change its plans at any time. But the release of the media list indicated that at least on an organizational level, the trip was happening.
In the shorter term, Vatican officials were considering possible scenarios in which Leo would recite the traditional Sunday Angelus prayer at noon. Members of the Vatican media were seen at the Gemelli Hospital laying cables for a possible live broadcast, as past popes have done while hospitalized. Spokesman Bruni said he would deliver the prayer, but it was unclear where exactly.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, said reciting the midday prayer on Sunday from the hospital was a possibility, but that it would depend on Leo’s recovery. Such apparitions have often served as welcome confirmation of a hospitalized pope’s well-being for the 1.4 billion faithful Catholics and others.
Secretary of State suggests ‘adjustments’
Parolin said he remained concerned about the pope, but indicated it was also due to his surprise to learn that Leo needed surgery. Parolin, who was considered a leading contender in the conclave that elected Leo and was recently passed over for dean of the College of Cardinals, surprised some by suggesting that the pontificate itself might need adjusting.
“We cannot make any predictions,” Parolin said Thursday, according to the LaPresse and ANSA news agencies. “The question now is when he will return, under what circumstances he will return and what the doctors say. And based on all these factors, the pope will then adjust his pontificate, if it needs to be adjusted,” he was quoted as saying.
Doctors are still waiting for the results of tests aimed at understanding the precise molecular and genetic makeup of the cancer, whether it has spread beyond the lobe and whether further treatment is needed.
Cancer Patients Send Greetings to Leo
Meanwhile, the Vatican on Friday released photos of some get well notes sent to Leo by patients at Gemelli’s pediatric oncology ward, located on the 10th floor, where past popes often went during their own hospitalizations.
One of them, 7-year-old Angelo, told Leo that he had been on the 10th floor for 36 days. “My mom and I pray for you every night. Get well soon,” he wrote, with little hearts at the bottom.
Giorgia, a college-age student, wrote to Leo in her native English, telling him that she had long enjoyed learning and practicing the language.
“When I heard about you and your situation on the news, I felt this a thousand times stronger, because in a way we are going through the same thing, and it made me feel closer to you,” she wrote. “I pray to God that we both get well and I ask you to pray for me too.”
___
Associated Press visual journalist Trisha Thomas contributed to this report.
___
Associated Press religion coverage receives AP support collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Gn world
