Pope asks an aide to read a speech aloud for him, raising further concerns over his health
Pope Francis, who has been suffering from the flu, asked an aide to read out his prepared speech at a conference in the Vatican Friday, saying he was not yet well and becomes fatigued
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis, who has been suffering from the flu, asked an aide to read out his prepared speech at a conference in the Vatican Friday, saying he has not yet fully recovered from his latest ailment that has raised concerns about his capacity to continue leading the Roman Catholic Church.
The 87-year-old Pontiff, who was taken to a Roman hospital on Wednesday for diagnostic testing after having to cancel some public audiences, handed his speech to his aide, Mons. Filippo Ciampanelli.
“I still have a cold and I get fatigued after reading for a while,” he said. Francis, who has been hospitalized three times since becoming pope in 2013, began using a wheelchair and cane to walk after suffering knee trouble last year.
Speaking off the cuff at the opening of the two-day conference, entitled “Man-Woman Image of God - For an Anthropology of Vocations,” he blasted what he called “gender ideology” as the “ugliest danger”.
