Vatican

After one full month of being hospitalized and treated for double pneumonia and other respiratory infections, Pope Francis’ medical condition has decidedly stabilized, the Vatican press office said.

Four weeks after Pope Francis was hospitalized and one day after the 12th anniversary of the pope’s election, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, celebrated a Mass for the pope with ambassadors accredited to the Holy See.

As Pope Francis celebrates 12th anniversary of his election in the hospital, the papal biographer told OSV News that the pontiff has “given a very significant witness these last few years … which in many ways is comparable to the witness that John Paul II gave … demonstrating or communicating that the papacy is for life, that it’s a mission, not a job.”

Pope Francis’ condition continues to be stable and a chest X-ray “confirmed the improvements recorded in the previous days,” his doctors said, but without saying his double pneumonia had cleared up completely.

Death, even that of a pope, should not be seen as a tragedy but as a transition filled with Christian hope, the preacher of the papal household told members of the Roman Curia.

As Pope Francis prepared to spend the 12th anniversary of his election at Rome’s Gemelli hospital, people at the Vatican and around the world were responding to his most frequent personal request.