St. Lawrence Parish

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis spent the night without a breathing mask, the Vatican press office said March 18, indicating that his need for supplemental oxygen continues to diminish. 

The pope received high-flow oxygen through a nasal tube overnight, it said, a change from the noninvasive mechanical ventilation he had been using since he had a breathing crisis Feb. 28. He has been hospitalized since Feb. 14.

The decision to forgo overnight mechanical ventilation aligns with a medical plan to "progressively reduce" the 88-year-old pope's supplemental oxygen intake, the press office said, though it does not mean he will no longer use it at night.

People pray the rosary outside of Pope Francis' hospital room at Rome's Gemelli hospital March 16, 2025. (CNS photo/Justin McLellan)

Pope Francis has been alternating between high-flow and normal-flow oxygen during the day, and doctors had already been reducing the number of hours he uses mechanical ventilation at night. During brief periods, the pope could go without supplemental oxygen entirely, the press office had said the previous day.

A photo released by the Vatican March 16 showed the pope without a nasal tube.

On March 18, the pope dedicated himself to prayer, work activities and therapy prescribed by his doctors, the press office said. He continues to follow a prescribed diet that "also consists of solid food," it added.

Cardinal Angelo De Donatis, head of the Apostolic Penitentiary, a church court, was scheduled to lead the recitation of the rosary in St. Peter's Square for the pope's health.

While the Vatican has given no indication of when the pope might be released from the hospital, Britain's King Charles III and Queen Camilla confirmed that they plan to meet with Pope Francis in early April.

The British Embassy to the Holy See released Buckingham Palace's itinerary for the royals' state visit March 18, which includes an audience with Pope Francis April 8.

ROME (CNS) -- Imagine being able to explore all of St. Peter's Basilica, its artistic masterpieces and the saint's underground tomb as well as interact with its caretakers and archeologists to learn more about the world's largest church and even have a go at restoring it -- virtually, that is, and in the 3-D blocky world of Minecraft.

Students around the world now have a chance to be an explorer-restorer of the 519-year-old basilica thanks to a new online educational opportunity created by Minecraft Education, Microsoft's game-based learning platform, and with the help of St. Peter's Basilica and Vatican City State.

"Peter is Here: AI for Cultural Heritage" is a new interactive game released worldwide March 18.

Franciscan Father Enzo Fortunato, president of the Pontifical Committee for the World Day of Children, speaks during a news conference at the foreign press club in Rome March 18, 2025. (CNS photo/courtesy of Microsoft)

"It invites students and children to explore one of the most compelling stories: the history of the basilica," and "to try their hand at restoration challenges and discover how cultural heritage and modern innovation intersect," Franciscan Father Enzo Fortunato, president of the Pontifical Committee for the World Day of Children, told reporters at a news conference at the foreign press club in Rome March 18.

Players use simulated AI-enabled "scanners" -- like real preservationists use -- to inspect key elements of the basilica and square outside to discover what needs repair and problem-solve with others to decide the best approach to take. 

Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, archpriest of St. Peter's Basilica, speaks during a news conference at the foreign press club in Rome March 18, 2025. (CNS photo/courtesy of Microsoft)

Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, archpriest of St. Peter's Basilica, said they chose the release date of March 18, the vigil of the feast of St. Joseph, because of the saint's role as an educator "par excellence of the son of God" and to place the game under his patronage.

The game's emphasis on learning about the basilica's past, the significance and meaning of its sacred spaces and collaboration means kids can "experience with others building and winning together in the spirit of fraternity," he said.

The accuracy and level of detail of the basilica, which covers nearly six acres, was facilitated by the creation of an AI-enhanced, 3-D "digital twin" of the basilica last November. Microsoft's "AI for Good" lab used AI to stitch together almost half a million high-resolution images of St. Peter's Basilica, creating a realistic replica people can visit online and helping restorers pinpoint previously unseen problems and places needing repair. 

A screengrab shows Gian Lorenzo Bernini's baldachin over the main altar in St. Peter's Basilica in a new interactive game, "Peter is Here: AI for Cultural Heritage," released worldwide March 18, 2025. (CNS photo/courtesy of Microsoft/Mojang Studios)

That immersive experience, geared toward adults, aims to allow people worldwide to "visit" and learn about the basilica, its history, beauty and spiritual significance.

So, recreating the basilica in Minecraft as an educational journey "represents a natural and important extension, another big step forward, because this is the way we take this wonderful institution, the culture, the religion, the heritage, and we put it into the hands of children in every country around the world," Brad Smith, president of Microsoft, said in a recorded video. 

Middle school students at Rome's Jesuit-run Massimiliano Massimo Institute were on hand at the news conference, demonstrating the game which starts off as "mission-based" with several tasks to restore the basilica with the help of the basilica's "sanpietrini," as the church's specialized artisans and workers are known. 

A middle school student from Rome's Jesuit-run Massimiliano Massimo Institute plays a new interactive game, "Peter is Here: AI for Cultural Heritage," after a news conference at the foreign press club in Rome March 18, 2025. (CNS photo/courtesy of Microsoft)

Once the tasks are completed, players are free to explore the open world, find and collect items and interact with historic figures, such as Michelangelo, who was appointed to oversee the design and construction of the basilica, and Gian Lorenzo Bernini, who was its official architect and who designed the immense baldachin over the main altar.

Virginia and Vittoria, both 11, told Catholic News Service they have never visited the basilica "in real life," even though they live in and grew up in Rome. In a city with countless artistic and historical landmarks to visit, family and school field trips somehow missed that one icon, they said.

They will be visiting as part of the school's pilgrimage to the Holy Door for the Holy Year and the game was a great way to get an idea what is in store, Vittoria said. 

A screengrab shows a character welcoming a player in St. Peter's Square in front of the basilica in a new interactive game, "Peter is Here: AI for Cultural Heritage," released worldwide March 18, 2025. (CNS photo/courtesy of Microsoft/Mojang Studios)

"Now I'm looking forward to seeing (the basilica). Its history is very interesting," which was fun to learn because they get to go back in time, Virginia said.

Designed for students aged 8-18, the platform includes workbooks and resources for students and teachers in both public and Catholic schools or communities and for parents who homeschool. Every student also receives a certificate in Latin after completing the 45-60-minute game, recognizing them as honorary preservers of this cultural heritage site.

"Peter is Here" is available for all licensed users in the Minecraft Education lesson library and trial versions are free to download by logging in with Office 365 or Microsoft 365 Education accounts.

WASHINGTON – “Since the launch of Walking with Moms in Need, Catholics in dioceses and parishes across the country have put the Gospel of Life into action,” said Bishop Daniel E. Thomas, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities. 

Bishop Thomas offered the following update for the 5th anniversary of Walking with Moms in Need:

“This year, beginning on March 25, the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord, we celebrate both the thirtieth anniversary of Evangelium vitae (The Gospel of Life), St. John Paul II’s pro-life encyclical, and the fifth anniversary of Walking with Moms in Need, which was inspired by that landmark encyclical.

“Since the launch of Walking with Moms in Need, Catholics in dioceses and parishes across the country have put the Gospel of Life into action, uniting in a shared mission to surround pregnant and parenting mothers in need with loving support and personal accompaniment. Heroic volunteers have stepped forward to make our parishes places where a mother can be connected with meaningful resources and assistance and, most importantly, know that she and her baby are not alone.

“The Annunciation reminds us that our Lord Jesus came to earth as a vulnerable child in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Our Catholic faith calls us to value every mother and child in the name of Christ. Our faith compels us to be active, making the needs of others our own. Every parish has something unique that God is calling them to contribute to the Church’s efforts to transform our society into a culture of life and civilization of love.

“Please join me in praying that Walking with Moms in Need will continue to become embedded in the very fabric of every parish and diocese as a natural expression of Jesus’s call to serve the most vulnerable. May every mother know that she can turn to her local Catholic parish for help in her time of need.”

Bishop Thomas’ video reflection may be found here. Please visit walkingwithmoms.com to find out how your parish can walk with moms in need in your community.

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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Hundreds of pilgrims from the United States gathered for Mass at the majestic Altar of the Chair in St. Peter's Basilica with two main intentions in mind: the health of Pope Francis and the needs of their loved ones at home.

In early March, the bishops of Pittsburgh and of San Bernardino, California, led official diocesan pilgrimages for the Holy Year 2025. For the Mass March 17 at the Vatican, they were joined by groups from St. Agnes School in St. Paul, Minnesota, and several others, filling all the pews and many plastic chairs as well. 

Pittsburgh Auxiliary Bishop Mark A. Eckman gives the homily during a Mass with U.S. Holy Year pilgrims at the Altar of the Chair in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican March 17, 2025. (CNS photo/Pablo Esparza)

Pittsburgh Auxiliary Bishop Mark A. Eckman gave the homily at the Mass, focusing on the Lenten call to conversion and the Jubilee Year gift of an indulgence, which is the remission of the temporal punishment due for one's sins.

"A lot of times, people don't understand what an indulgence is," the bishop said, but basically it is a way "to eliminate that time that we are to spend in purgatory."

Often people think that "if I go to confession, that's it. It's a done deal," the bishop said. But "confession, when we are absolved by the priest, it says that we are not going to hell, but it does not say we are getting to heaven right away; we are going to get there, but there might be a delay, depending upon whatever type of sins we had."

The indulgence removes the delay, he said. And "we know that eventually, whenever our time is done, we are going to be in God's presence where there is only joy and love and happiness. So that is why we try to do our best each day to live out our life following the Lord's commandments, being the people of love that he has asked us to be." 

Bishop Alberto Rojas of San Bernardino, Calif., leads a group of pilgrims from his diocese in reciting the Creed before the altar over the tomb of St. Peter in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican March 17, 2025. (CNS photo/Pablo Esparza)

Bishop Alberto Rojas of San Bernardino concelebrated the Mass and afterward led his pilgrims on the long procession to the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica.

The Jubilee pilgrimage, he said, "is a special time of grace, a time to remember who we are as Catholic Christians," and "to pray for the people back home -- so many people have asked us to pray for them."

The groups originally were scheduled to attend Pope Francis' weekly general audience March 19, the feast of St. Joseph and the 12th anniversary of the inauguration of Pope Francis' pontificate.

Bishop Rojas said not being able to see the pope, who has been hospitalized at Rome's Gemelli hospital since Feb. 14, is a disappointment, but the pilgrims intend to come back to the Vatican anyway and pray for him. 

A woman prays during a Mass with Holy Year pilgrims from the Diocese of Pittsburgh, the Diocese of San Bernardino, Calif., and St. Agnes School in St. Paul, Minn., at the Altar of the Chair in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican March 17, 2025. (CNS photo/Pablo Esparza)

Araceli Villarreal, one of the pilgrims, said missing the pope "is so sad, but it is best that he get better" rather than hurry back to the Holy Year pilgrims.

The group spent March 16 in L'Aquila, Italy, celebrating Mass at the Basilica of San Bernardino, the burial place of the 15th-century namesake of their diocese. The Franciscans who staff the basilica gave the diocese a relic of the saint.

"The connection with the local community and the friars there was a moving experience and very unexpected," said Michelle Clark, another of the pilgrims.

She was traveling with her 22-year-old son, Matthew, who works with his father building churches in the diocese.

After saying he particularly liked the Gothic cathedral in Orvieto, north of Rome, and while looking at St. Peter's Basilica, he said, "this is far beyond what we are doing."

His mother noted, however, that most of the churches they have visited on pilgrimage took hundreds of years to build and embellish in such a way that every detail "glorifies God."
 

WASHINGTON – Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of Bishop Dennis J. Sullivan, 80, from the Office of Bishop of Camden. Bishop Joseph A. Williams, up until now coadjutor bishop of the same diocese, will assume pastoral governance of the diocese.

The announcement was publicized in Washington, D.C. on March 17, 2025, by Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States.

Bishop Williams’ biography may be found here.

The Diocese of Camden is comprised of 2,691 square miles in the State of New Jersey and has a total population of 1,417,548 of which 304,999, are Catholic.

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ROME (CNS) -- For the first time since Pope Francis was hospitalized in mid-February, the Vatican press office released a photograph of him March 16; the image shows him concelebrating Mass that morning in the chapel of his suite of rooms at Rome's Gemelli hospital.

The Mass also was the first the Vatican described as concelebrated by the 88-year-old Pope Francis in the hospital. He has been receiving the Eucharist daily and on the previous Sundays was described as having "participated" in the liturgy.

The Vatican press office did release a 27-second audio message from Pope Francis March 6 thanking people for their prayers. The pope had obvious difficulty breathing and speaking.

But for the fifth Sunday in a row, Pope Francis did not come to his window for the recitation of the Angelus prayer, but he may have seen some yellow or white balloons fly past his hospital room. 

A girl holds up a drawing made for Pope Francis outside of Rome's Gemelli hospital March 16, 2025. (CNS photo/Justin McLellan)

More than a hundred children gathered March 16 in the square in front of Rome's Gemelli hospital to pray the Angelus; many were hoping the pope would come to his window to wave while a few of the little ones were more concerned about keeping ahold of their balloons.

Although the pope did not come to the window, he thanked the children in the message the Vatican press office published at noon.

"I know that many children are praying for me; some of them came here today to Gemelli as a sign of closeness," he wrote. "Thank you, dearest children! The pope loves you and is always waiting to meet you."

Pope Francis has been hospitalized since Feb. 14 and continues to be treated for double pneumonia and multiple infections. His doctors have said his condition continues to improve gradually, so they do not expect to publish another medical bulletin until March 18 or 19.

In the square under the pope's window, Elena, 8, came with a group from Sacred Heart School in Rome's Monte Mario neighborhood "because the pope is in the hospital. We wanted to show our affection to make him feel better."

Giulio, 10, knows Pope Francis personally. "I met him when I was little and again when he baptized my little sister" three years ago. Giulio's dad works at the Vatican, and was one of the employees whose newborns were baptized by the pope in the Sistine Chapel in 2022. 

A group of children enter Rome's Gemelli hospital to deliver flowers, drawings and cards for Pope Francis March 16, 2025. (CNS photo/Justin McLellan)

Leonardo was part of a group of 22 Beaver Scouts, ages 5-7, who "came to see the pope" from Jesus the Divine Teacher Parish not far from the hospital. He wanted people to know, though, that he is 7 and a half.

The children's trek was coordinated by the Pontifical Committee for the World Day of Children and the Sant'Egidio Community's School of Peace program.

Marco Impagliazzo, president of Sant'Egidio, told reporters the children wanted to wish the pope a speedy recovery and "thank him for his words of peace, which he gives every day."

In fact, the pope's Angelus message included a request that people "continue to pray for peace, especially in the countries wounded by war: tormented Ukraine, Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Myanmar, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo."

Pope Francis also used the message to affirm his decision, announced the previous day, to launch a three-year program to ensure implementation of the recommendations of the Synod of Bishops on synodality to promote a culture of listening to one another, valuing the gifts of each member of the church and encouraging all Catholics to take responsibility for the church's mission.

Commenting on the day's Gospel reading, which recounted the Transfiguration, Pope Francis said that when Jesus took his disciples up the mountain and was transfigured, he showed them "what is hidden behind the gestures he performs in their midst: the light of his infinite love."

Saying that he was writing while "facing a period of trial," the pope said that he joins "with so many brothers and sisters who are sick: fragile, at this time, like me."

"Our bodies are weak," he wrote, "but even like this, nothing can prevent us from loving, praying, giving ourselves, being for each other, in faith, shining signs of hope."

And, the pope said, the light of God's love shines in the hospital through the care of doctors, nurses, orderlies and the entire staff. "That is why I would like to invite you, today, to join me in praising the Lord, who never abandons us and who, in times of sorrow, places people beside us who reflect a ray of his love." 

A dozen couples dance the tango, Pope Francis' favorite dance, as the man in the center plays the bandoneon, a type of concertina, in the square outside Rome's Gemelli hospital March 16, 2025. Argentine dancer Daiana Guspero organized a group to wish the pope a speedy recovery. (CNS photo/Pablo Esparza)

In the afternoon, Argentine dancer Daiana Guspero brought a dozen couples to square under the pope's window to dance the tango, his favorite dance, as a form of prayer for him.

At the Rome marathon that morning, runners observered 42 seconds of silence -- one for each kilometer of the race -- to send their best wishes to the pope.
 

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis has approved the next phase of the Synod of Bishops on synodality, launching a three-year implementation process that will culminate in an ecclesial assembly at the Vatican in October 2028.

In a letter published March 15, Cardinal Mario Grech, secretary-general of the synod, announced that the synod's new phase will focus on applying its conclusions at all levels of the church, with dioceses, bishops' conferences and religious communities working to integrate synodality into daily church life before the meeting at the Vatican in 2028.

"For now, therefore, a new synod will not be convened; instead, the focus will be on consolidating the path taken so far," he wrote in the letter addressed to all bishops, eparchs and the presidents of national and regional bishops' conferences.

Cardinal Grech told bishops that Pope Francis approved the three-year plan March 11 at Rome's Gemelli hospital where he has been being treated since Feb. 14. 

Cardinal Mario Grech, secretary-general of the synod, speaks at a news conference at the Vatican Oct. 26, 2024. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)

The final document of the synod on synodality, approved by Pope Francis in October 2024, emphasized synodality as essential to the church's mission and called for greater lay participation, mandatory pastoral councils and continued study on women in ministry and seminary formation.

Over the next three years, dioceses, bishops' conferences and religious communities will work to integrate synodal principles into church life with the guidance of a Vatican-issued document scheduled to be published in May. 

Evaluation assemblies at diocesan, national and continental levels from 2027 to early 2028 will assess progress before a final ecclesial assembly at the Vatican in October 2028, where church leaders will reflect on the synodal journey and discern future steps, the cardinal said.

According to the apostolic constitution "Universi Dominici Gregis," which governs procedures when the papacy is vacant, a council or Synod of Bishops is immediately suspended when a pope dies or resigns. All meetings, decisions and promulgations must cease until a new pope explicitly orders their continuation, or they are considered null.

Pope Francis and members of the Synod of Bishops on synodality attend the synod's final working session Oct. 26, 2024, in the Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

In the letter, Cardinal Grech noted that implementation phase of the synod "provides the framework" for implementing the results of the 10 Vatican-appointed study groups which, since March 2024, have been examining key issues raised during the first session of the synodal assembly in 2023, such as the role of women in the church, seminary formation and church governance. 

The study groups were scheduled to present their findings to the pope before June 2025; however, they can also offer an "interim report" then as they continue their work, Cardinal Grech said.

The cardinal added that a key component of the implementation process will be the strengthening of synodal teams, composed of clergy, religious and laypeople, who will work alongside bishops to accompany "the ordinary synodal life of local churches."

In an interview with Vatican News accompanying the letter's publication March 15, Cardinal Grech said that this phase of the synodal process is not about adding bureaucratic tasks but about "helping the churches to walk in a synodal style." He explained that the church must continue "a path of accompaniment and evaluation" rather than treating the synod as a one-time event.

The cardinal encouraged local churches to engage in ongoing reflection on the insights of the synod rather than simply replicating past listening sessions, warning that the synod's implementation "must not take place in isolation."

The 2028 ecclesial assembly, Cardinal Grech said, will be an opportunity to "gather the fruits of the journey" and offer the pope "a real ecclesial experience to inform his discernment as the successor of Peter, with perspectives to propose to the entire church."

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- After one full month of being hospitalized and treated for double pneumonia and other respiratory infections, Pope Francis' medical condition has decidedly stabilized, the Vatican press office said.

Despite his "complex" medical situation, there has been no significant change for the past few days so doctors caring for the pope at Rome's Gemelli hospital decided not to release a medical bulletin as scheduled, it said. The brief medical reports will also probably be released every two or three days because recovery in this case "is slow."

No change to his condition is in itself a positive sign, the press office added March 14. 

Capuchin Father Roberto Pasolini, preacher of the papal household, leads the Lenten retreat for cardinals and senior officials of the Roman Curia in the Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican March 13, 2025. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

The pope spent the past week following the Roman Curia's Lenten retreat March 9-14 by video, listening to the daily meditations led in the morning and afternoon by Capuchin Father Roberto Pasolini, preacher of the papal household.

Father Pasolini ended the last mediation by thanking the pope, whose absence was "more than justified." He joked that if the pope had planned to be absent to alleviate the pressure and fear of leading his first series of Lenten reflections for the Curia, then "mission accomplished."

The pope suspended all work-related activities to dedicate the week to prayer and reflection, but he did continue to follow his prescribed physical therapies with physiotherapy and respiratory therapy, which often entails breathing exercises, in the mornings and afternoons, the Vatican press office said.

The pope still "is able to move and walk as he always has," a Vatican source said March 14. Sometimes he moves "with more assistance, sometimes with less," but those movements are limited, most often alternating between his bed and a chair.

He continues to use high-flow oxygen through a nasal tube during the day and "noninvasive mechanical ventilation" with a mask overnight. 

Religious sisters pray the rosary for Pope Francis March 10, 2025, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican. (CNS photo/Pablo Esparza)

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, celebrated a Mass for the pope March 14 with ambassadors accredited to the Holy See. "We gather in prayer this morning with the intention of the health of the Holy Father, that he might recover and return among us soon," the cardinal said at the Mass, celebrated in the Pauline Chapel of the Apostolic Palace.

In the evening, Msgr. Lucio Adrián Ruiz, secretary of the Vatican's Dicastery for Communication, led the recitation of the rosary for Pope Francis which has been taking place every night since shortly after his hospitalization. The nightly prayer in St. Peter's Square was moved from 9 p.m. to 7:30 p.m Rome time.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Four weeks after Pope Francis was hospitalized and one day after the 12th anniversary of the pope's election, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, celebrated a Mass for the pope with ambassadors accredited to the Holy See.

"We gather in prayer this morning with the intention of the health of the Holy Father, that he might recover and return among us soon," the cardinal said March 14.

The Mass was celebrated in the Pauline Chapel of the Apostolic Palace, a chapel containing the last two murals Michelangelo ever painted: one of the crucifixion of St. Peter and the other illustrating conversion of St. Paul.

In his homily, focused on the day's Lenten Gospel reading, Cardinal Parolin spoke about the connection between prayer and love for God, which is expressed through love for others.

"The best way to present our prayers to God is, above all, to offer him a heart, our hearts, open and attentive to his word," the cardinal said. 

Ambassadors accredited to the Holy See listen to Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, give his homily during a Mass offering prayers for the health of Pope Francis March 14, 2025, in the Pauline Chapel of the Apostolic Palace. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

Citing Matthew 5:20, in which Jesus tells his disciples, "Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven," Cardinal Parolin urged the diplomats to actively seek God's will.

"If you do not go beyond human logic in your search for God's will, you will never find it," he said.

And Jesus' examples in the passage -- of not hating others, speaking ill of them or refusing to forgive them -- show that trying to do God's will involves treating others with kindness and respect, the cardinal said.

"And this relationship must be founded on charity," he said. "Charity, love for our neighbor, is the proving ground of our love for God."

In the Gospel reading, Jesus reminds his disciples of the commandment not to kill and then tells them, "But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment."

The passage, the cardinal said, equates anger with killing.

"It seems a bit exaggerated, a bit extreme," Cardinal Parolin said. "But it is that way, isn't it?"

Looking at the wars "bloodying our planet," diplomats know that they do not begin on a battlefield, "but they are born in the human heart, in feelings of hatred and hostility," he said.

The Gospel call to love one's enemies, the cardinal said, is a call to recognize with humility how much each person needs God's help and grace.

"Listening to this Gospel, we must first of all open our hearts to accept a gift before following a command," Cardinal Parolin said. "Purified by these words of the Lord, may our prayer for the health of our Holy Father gain more momentum in rising to the giver of all good gifts." 
 

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis spent the 12th anniversary of his election to the papacy undergoing physiotherapy at Rome's Gemelli hospital, but he was well enough to celebrate it in little ways.

Along with the health care workers treating him, the pope -- who has been hospitalized for nearly a month -- had a small celebration to mark the anniversary of his election, complete with a cake and candles, the Vatican press office said March 13. 

Hundreds of cards sent from children all around the world also were delivered to Pope Francis, wishing him a happy anniversary as well as a speedy recovery, the press office added.

Drawings for Pope Francis are placed at the base of a statue of St. John Paul II outside Rome’s Gemelli hospital March 6, 2025, where the pope has been hospitalized since Feb. 14, receiving treatment for double pneumonia. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)

The 88-year-old pope continued the therapies prescribed, including pharmacological treatment and physical therapy, it said.

A chest X-ray had confirmed continued improvements in his condition, the Vatican said the previous day, though doctors did not state that his double pneumonia had fully cleared.

The pope has been following the Roman Curia's Lenten retreat by video, listening to the daily meditations led by Capuchin Father Roberto Pasolini, preacher of the papal household. While retreat participants gathered in the Vatican's Paul VI Audience Hall could not see the pope, Father Pasolini opened his March 13 reflection with a direct message for him.

"Good morning, and a greeting with deep affection and gratitude to our Holy Father on this very special day: the 12th anniversary of his election," he said. 

Since 12 is a number associated with completeness or fullness in the Bible, he said, "we can truly thank God because the gift of Pope Francis to the church and the world is complete. And certainly, in these 12 years, he has had the opportunity to express himself in fullness."

Before their evening meditation, Archbishop Vittorio Francesco Viola, secretary of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, read a message from the Curia sent to Pope Francis to mark his anniversary. 

Capuchin Father Roberto Pasolini, preacher of the papal household, leads the Lenten retreat for cardinals and senior officials of the Roman Curia in the Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican March 13, 2025. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

From the Vatican and from many other places around the world, he said, "the prayer of the people of God rises unceasingly, and we join ourselves in spiritual communion."

"Holy Father, in this Jubilee year, we grow in hope that the message of peace and fraternity, to which we are constantly called by your magisterium, may spread among nations and among all people of goodwill," he said, "and that in everyone the desire to be disciples of the Lord, witnesses of the Gospel, and builders of the kingdom of God may grow."

Archbishop Filippo Iannone, prefect of the Dicastery for Legislative Texts, led the recitation of the rosary for Pope Francis which has been taking place every night since shortly after his hospitalization.

"With the recitation of the rosary, let us invoke Mary, health of the sick, for the health of the Holy Father Francis," he said.

After taking place at 6 p.m. Rome time in the St. Paul VI Audience Hall to coincide with the Curia's retreat, the nightly rosary for Pope Francis will return to St. Peter's Square March 14 at 7:30 p.m. local time.