VATICAN, FERUARY 25, 2025—Hundreds of Catholic faithful among them Cardinals, Bishops, and members of the Roman Curia, gathered in St Peter’s Square to pray the Holy Rosary for Pope Francis.
Late Tuesday evening, an updated statement was issued by the Holy See Press Office, “The Holy Father’s clinical condition remains critical but stable. There have been no acute respiratory episodes, and hemodynamic parameters continue to be stable,” read part of the statement.
On Tuesday evening, the Pope underwent a scheduled CT scan for radiological monitoring of bilateral pneumonia. The prognosis remains cautious.
Pope Francis rested well overnight, according to the Holy See Press Office on Tuesday morning.
“The Pope rested well, the whole night,” read an official statement.
In the morning, after receiving the Eucharist, he resumed work activities.
On Monday evening, the Press Office noted that the Pope’s clinical condition remained critical but showed slight improvement during the day.
“No episodes of asthma-like respiratory distress that occurred on Monday, and some laboratory tests have shown improvement. The monitoring of his mild kidney insufficiency has not raised any concerns. Oxygen therapy continues, although with slightly reduced flow and oxygen levels,” further expounded the statement.
The Pope received the Eucharist in the morning, worked in the afternoon, and called the Catholic parish in Gaza to thank them for a video message they had sent him.
In the same Square where, on his first day as Pope blessed the people and asked for their blessing, on Monday the same faithful gathered to pray for their ‘shepherd’ Pope Francis—for his health, for his recovery and for his return among them.
Young people, families, priests, nuns, cardinals residing in Rome, heads of Dicasteries and members of the Roman Curia gathered in St. Peter’s Square at 9 p.m. on February 24, the tenth day of the Pope’s hospitalisation at Gemelli Hospital, for the recitation of the Rosary led by the Cardinal Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin, who in his introduction asked for prayers so that Francis “may regain his health,”
Globally prayers
Despite the afternoon rain and a transport strike in Rome, hundreds of people responded to the call to join in prayer for the Holy Father, which was made at noon on Tuesday. This initiative strengthened the prayer marathon that had already begun last Saturday in various dioceses around the world. The most recent, in chronological order, was the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, Pope Francis’ birthplace, where a Mass was celebrated in the Villas miserias.
Nothing but prayers
The news about the Pope’s health—marked by moments of greater suffering on Saturday and a “slight improvement” announced in the Monday evening update from the Vatican—has prompted an outpouring of affection and closeness toward the 88-year-old Pontiff. This has taken form in Rosaries and Masses, and in that prayer which, always at the end of every speech or catechesis, the Pope requests for himself, because “it is like armor for every shepherd,”
A mild climate and an intimate atmosphere permeated the evening. About thirty cardinals were seated on the steps. In the front row, among others, were recognisable faces such as Cardinals Tagle, Ouellet, Prevost, Artime, Bagnasco, Feroci, Semeraro, Burke, Müller, and Becciu. Others, like Cardinal Czerny, sat among the people.
From the crowd in the square, one could see rosary beads of different materials and colors hanging from the hands of the faithful, who recited the Joyful Mysteries amidst the chants of the Schola Cantorum, the litanies, and the reading of the Gospel of Luke on the Annunciation. Some remained standing the entire time, others sat, some prayed in silence, others in a whisper. Some carried their national flag, a photo of the Pope (either printed or on a smartphone), a candle, or even a lantern. Everyone followed the Rosary, looking toward the white stage where the Pope usually presides over holy Masses.
“We came from very far away, from the outskirts of Rome, but we wanted to be here. The Pope will make it. He has to make it. We need him,” explained the faithful.
“He is our guide. Among all the bad news and fake news that make me angry, today, we saw beauty. I pray for the Pope every day at home, and it was beautiful to do it together. So many people here. He always tells us to pray for him and we exactly do that.
