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February 26, 2005
As the Pope ails, questions abound
Not much new, except remarking on the Vatican's silence today...
Posted by Amy Welborn | Permalink
Comments
And to confound those who would exploit his illness, he appears at the window of Gemelli Hospital to give a Sunday Blessing. . .
Posted by: al at Feb 27, 2005 8:22:28 AM
You are right al. The article assumes that the Pope is so bad off that he won't be seen on Sunday. Well, there goes that assumption as the Pope did come to the window!
Posted by: Cheeky Lawyer at Feb 27, 2005 10:15:24 AM
I learned something new in this article - apparently, Cardinal Ratzinger is "German-born" and "ultra-conservative". Never heard that before. :)
Posted by: Gen X Revert at Feb 27, 2005 11:40:05 AM
I find it amazing that this past week the Anglican Communion all but came apart at the seams over issues of sexual morality and biblical fidelity vs. adapting to contemporary culture - and the headline on CNN is "Pope waves from hospital window"
Not that it's a competition, but our sick pope trumps their constitutional crisis.
Posted by: Tim Ferguson at Feb 27, 2005 2:33:48 PM
The Vatican announced on Friday that since the Pope was not in critical care and his life and immediate health were not in danger, they would be making their next medical briefing on Monday 2/28/05. The pope will be unable to speak for a few days in order to rest his larynx, and they announced that he doesnt have pneumonia.
They also announced that the Pope would not be personally offering his Angelus blessing Sunday, but that he might appear via closed circuit TV so that people can see him, even if he can't speak....again, to rest his larynx and because he has a tracheotomy.
Voila, today he is seen from his hospital room window waving....even better than closed circuit TV.
I do not know what else the Vatican can do but sit and wait on JP II's hopefully continued recovery. His health condition will just take time to change, for better or worse. Getting a health update everyday will not help things, and it only seems to contribute to the 'how long' specualtors on his death. I have seen so many doctors on TV making diagnoses from afar, without seeing so much as a medical chart.
Posted by: John B. at Feb 27, 2005 3:40:20 PM
While we pray for him the Media Frenzy whips itself up ....
Posted by: BoB at Feb 27, 2005 5:43:59 PM
Wait until he finally dies, and may it be years away, and the Conclave is held. Little else will be shown on TV or printed in the papers. Our Protestant brethren will be bemused by all the fuss.
Posted by: Donald R. McClarey at Feb 27, 2005 5:49:49 PM
"Vatican Cracks Down on Pope's Right to Speak: Church's Top Theologian Silenced"
Posted by: Mark Shea at Feb 27, 2005 7:23:13 PM
Pope John Paul II in many ways has transformed the role of the papacy. He has been seen and heard by more people in person or via the media than any other human being who ever lived. John Paul II is constantly out in public evangelizing and shepherding the flock of Christ. Because of this, we have come to believe that the pope cannot function or perform his ministry unless he is seen and heard almost all the time. This is not necessarily true. Until the 20th century most Catholics in the world did not even know what the pope looked like and never once heard his voice but he still shepherded the Church. Our Holy Father may surprise the whole world and live for some time yet. Even with his physical incapacities, he can still appoint bishops, he can still write directives, apostolic letters and even encyclicals if he wishes. So even though Pope John Paul II might not be seen and heard much any more, he still continues his ministry as the successor of St. Peter and the Vicar of Christ. Viva Il Papa!
Posted by: Jeff Z. at Feb 27, 2005 11:19:12 PM
Maybe the high profile the Pope is getting will trigger a conversion (or many) someplace. There are a huge number of people teetering on the edge. From an ex-teeterer =)
Posted by: michigancatholic at Feb 27, 2005 11:30:58 PM
I just got this e-mail from "Inside the Vatican" magazine.
Quoting just as it came to me ...
"Pope To Be Fed Intravenously?
Though John Paul II is recovering and is not thought to be in immediate danger, doctors are worried his inability to swallow easily may require him in the future to be fed intravenously
by Inside the Vatican staff
ROME, Italy, February 27, 2005 -- Appearing well on the road to recovery following his second hospitalization in four weeks for breathing difficulties associiated with a case of the flu, Pope John Paul II at noon today greeted well-wishers with a smile, standing, from behind a closed window on the 10th floor of the Gemelli Clinic in Rome.
But a doctor contacted by Inside the Vatican has revealed that physicians attending the Pope are so concerned about the advance of his Parkinson's condition and his consequent difficulty in swallowing that they are weighing the option of feeding him via a tube, intravenously.
Our source advised: "His heart is very strong. The problem is that, during this last month, his Parkinson's disease has grown more serious. The Pope has difficulty swallowing food. Should this situation continue or worsen, it may be necessary to resort to feeding him continuously via tubes.
"The other problem around the corner is not so much the problem of speaking (the Pope should be able to begin speaking again within 10 or 12 days) but rather pulmonary edema. As a result, in part, of his Parkinson's, the lungs of the Pope are no longer able to expell a sufficient quantity of liquids, which accumulate inside the lungs, so that the Pope is at risk of dying, using an example which is perhaps a bit extreme, as if by drowning.
"This clinical and pathological picture means that from now on the Pope, once he returns to his apartment in the Vatican, will have to be attended, not only as he has been for the past two years by one doctor, but by a team of three doctors or specialized nurses, around the clock."
Despite these concerns, the consensus in Rome, based on a number of generally reliable sources, is that the Pope will proceed to exercise his pontifical office for some considerable time, "not just weeks or months, but for years," as one generally well-informed source put it.
It is in this context, then, that one must set renewed rumors in Rome of a new consistory to appoint new cardinals.
It is widely thought now that the Pope will choose between 15 and 20 new cardinals, and create them at a consistory at the end of June this year (2005).
Some say the consistory could come even sooner; other suggest it will be in October.
The names of the new cardinals would be announced, according to tradition, 30 days prior to the concistory, which is a gathering in Rome where the Pope publicly places the red hat on each of the new cardinals.
There are currently 119 cardinals with the right to vote in a papal conclave. During 2005 and 2006, another 16 cardinals will pass age 80, at which point they lose the right to vote in a conclave.
Thus, it is thought that the Pope can name about 16 cardinals this summer, to "fill up" the College of Cardinals through the end of 2006.
By the end of this year (2005), Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger and Cardinal Angelo Sodano, John Paul's two closest aides, and Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini of Milan (still one of the most influential cardinals, though now retired), will be 78, and so all three of them could still participate in a conclave throughout 2006.
Three men who seem likely to receive cardinal's hats in an eventual consitory this summer are the Italian Archbishop Carlo Caffara of Bologna, the Polish Archbishop Stanislaw Rylko, President of the Vatican's Council for the Laity, and the French Archbishop of Tours, Andre Vingt-Trois, who has just succeeded Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger as the Archbishop of Paris."
Lee
Posted by: Lee at Feb 28, 2005 3:24:15 AM
A rare moment of commendation- even Imus noted his admiration for the Holy Father's endurance this morning. Miracles still happen....
Posted by: Gerard E. at Feb 28, 2005 9:33:02 AM
Careful, Lee. Intravenous feeding is not necessarily the same thing as tubal feeding. Whoever you're quoting has not done their homework on the topic of Parkinson's and related disorders. Intravenous feeding implies glucose solutions and so on. Tubal feeding can be done with texturized liquids which involve food products......
Posted by: michigancatholic at Feb 28, 2005 10:49:48 PM
MichiganC, you make a good point on the distinction between IV and tube feeding. Here is the link to the source of the item that I was quoting:
The "newsflash" from the editor of Inside the Vatican, Robert Moynihan, is here:
http://www.insidethevatican.com/latest-newsflash.htm
The on-line version there is shorter than the long e-mail that I got from them and quoted above.
The magazine home page is at:
http://www.insidethevatican.com/
Lee
Posted by: Lee at Mar 1, 2005 1:37:57 AM
