By NICOLE WINFIELD, ANDREW MEDICHINI and ARITZ PARRA (Associated Press)
The Vatican said that Pope Francis decided not to attend the traditional Good Friday procession at Rome’s Colosseum to protect his health, raising concerns about his frail condition during a very busy religious period.
It was expected that Francis would lead the Way of the Cross procession, which re-enacts Christ’s suffering and crucifixion, and wrote the reflections read at each station. However, just as the event was starting, the Vatican announced that Francis would be following the event from his home at the Vatican.
The Vatican press office stated, “To preserve his health for the vigil tomorrow and Mass on Easter Sunday, Pope Francis will watch the Via Crucis at the Colosseum this evening from the Casa Santa Marta.
Although Francis also missed the event in 2023 due to recovering from bronchitis and the cold weather, his last-minute choice to stay home this year brought to mind the Good Friday when St. John Paul II famously watched from the Apostolic Palace just before he died in 2005.
The 87-year-old Francis, who had part of a lung removed in his youth, has been dealing with what he and the Vatican have described as a case of flu, bronchitis, or a cold all winter. In recent weeks, he has occasionally had an aide read his speeches aloud and completely skipped his Palm Sunday sermon.
The decision to not attend the Good Friday procession appeared to be very last-minute: Francis’ chair was in place on the platform where he was to lead the ritual. His closest aide, Monsignor Leonardo Sapienza, was present and adjusted the television screen on the platform so Francis could have a better view of the Colosseum interior.
However, at 9:10 p.m., five minutes before the official start of the procession, the Vatican press office announced on Telegram that he wouldn’t show up. The chair was quickly taken away.
The hurried announcement brought to mind Francis’ last-minute decision on Palm Sunday, when the Vatican provided the pope’s sermon in advance to journalists and his aide handed him his glasses to read it, but Francis made it clear that he was skipping it.
Francis seemed in good spirits earlier in the day for a Good Friday service in St. Peter’s Basilica, although he stayed seated throughout and it was not an especially demanding event that required him to speak at length.
On Saturday, he is scheduled to lead a long Easter Vigil in St. Peter’s, one of the most solemn events in the religious calendar. He is also expected to lead Easter Sunday Mass in the piazza and deliver his “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and the world) speech summarizing global crises and threats to humanity.
Aside from his respiratory issues, Francis had a portion of his large intestine removed in 2021 and was hospitalized twice last year, including once for the removal of intestinal scar tissue from previous surgeries to address diverticulosis, or bulges in his intestinal wall.
In his recently published autobiography, “Life: My Story Through History,” Francis mentioned that he is not dealing with any health issues that would make him need to step down, and that he still has "many projects to bring to completion."
___
This version clarifies that this was the second occasion Francis missed the event, after also staying home in 2023.
