A frail Pope Francis on Sunday returned to the Vatican after a five-week hospitalization for life-threatening double pneumonia, and he made a surprise stop at his favorite basilica on the way home before beginning two months of prescribed rest and recovery.
The 88-year-old pope sat in the front passenger seat of a white Fiat 500L wearing nasal tubes to give him supplemental oxygen as he entered the Perugino gate of Vatican City, where his return brought relief after fears that his illness could be fatal or lead to another papal resignation.
Francis’ motorcade from Gemelli hospital overshot the Vatican initially and took a detour across town to stop at St Mary Major basilica, where the pope’s favorite icon of the Madonna is located and where he always goes to pray after a foreign visit.
Photo: AFP
He did not get out of the car, but gave a bouquet of flowers to the basilica’s cardinal to place in front of the icon.
The Byzantine-style painting on wood is revered by Romans and is so important to Francis that he has chosen to be buried in the basilica to be near it.
The tour through Rome’s historic center came after Francis made his first appearance in five weeks to give a thumbs-up and brief blessing from a hospital balcony. Hundreds of people had gathered on a brilliant spring Sunday morning to say goodbye and catch a first glimpse of Francis, who seemed to be gasping for air.
“I see this woman with the yellow flowers. Brava,” a bloated-looking Francis said in a breathless voice.
He gave a weak sign of the cross before being wheeled back inside.
Cheers erupted from the crowd, which included patients who had been wheeled outside just to catch his brief appearance.
Doctors say Francis needs two months of rest and convalescence at the Vatican, during which he should refrain from meeting with big groups of people or exerting himself, but they said he should be able to resume all his normal activities eventually.
His return home, after the longest hospitalization of his 12-year papacy and the second-longest in recent papal history, brought tangible relief to the Vatican and Catholic faithful, who have been anxiously following 38 days of medical ups and downs, and wondering if Francis would make it.
“Today I feel a great joy,” said Rossella Russomando, who was at Gemelli hospital on Sunday, but did not treat Francis. “It is the demonstration that all our prayers, all the rosary prayers from all over the world, brought this grace.”
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