Pope Francis said he handed over the reading of the speech at today’s ceremony to an aide as he was unable to read it himself over bronchitis.
“I have prepared a speech but as you can see I am unable to read it because of bronchitis. I have asked Monsignor (Filippo) Ciampanelli to read it for me,” a hoarse-sounding pope said.
The speech was intended for the opening ceremony of the Vatican tribunal’s judicial year, after which the Pope was able to meet German Chancellor Olaf Scholz during an audience at the Vatican.
Francis has been experiencing health problems lately. On Wednesday, he made a short trip to a Rome hospital for a check-up after he skipped a reading at his weekly audience, saying he was “a bit of cold.”
He had previously cancelled meetings on Monday and last Saturday because of what the Vatican said was a mild flu, but the next day he delivered his usual weekly address to a crowd in St Peter’s Square.
In early December, the Pope was forced to cancel a planned trip to the COP28 climate summit in Dubai over the effects of the flu and pneumonia. In January, he was not able to complete a speech due to “a touch of bronchitis.” Later that month he said he was doing better despite “some aches and pains.”
Pope Franciszka’s health problems stem from the fact that he had part of his lung removed in his native Argentina when he was young.
