Pope Francis has kept a busy schedule until the day before his death, meeting the vice-president JD Vance and challenging the doctor’s orders to rest.
After meeting Mr. Vance, a Catholic, Pope Francis then appeared from a balcony which overlooks Saint-Pierre square and the blessed Catholics gathered to celebrate Easter on Sunday.
“I was happy to see him yesterday, although he was obviously very sick,” wrote Mr. Vance in an article on X on Monday.
Mr. Vance recognized the “millions of Christians around the world who loved him” and remembered a message from Francis in the first days of the coronavirus pandemic.
The few minutes that Francis spent with Mr. Vance were only a small part of his scheduled schedule – less than a month after being released from a long stay in hospital. Francis, 88, was almost died in the hospital, said his doctors.
But in early April, it seemed that his health had started to improve, said the Vatican. Then he made some public appearances, although his doctors told him to relax for at least two months.
It was a big order for Francis, motivated for a long time by a sense of mission, which may have worked in hospital itself this year, according to the Vatican observers. Sunday, his journey did not seem to be decreased.
After meeting Mr. Vance, Francis blessed tens of thousands of people who had gathered on Saint-Pierre square, sitting in a wheelchair on a balcony of the Saint-Pierre basilica.
“Dear brothers and sisters, Happy Easter,” he said, his weak and hoarse voice. As he greeted, the crowd was roaring.
“Long live the pope,” applauded the faithful gathered.
Then, he waited as an assistant read his Easter message, where he reiterated his previous criticism of anti-immigrant positions, like those pushed by Mr. Vance and President Trump.
In February, before entering the hospital, Francis had criticized the expulsion policies of the Trump administration in an unusual pointed reprimand of the United States government. On Sunday, he again condemned anti-immigrant positions and war in his speech.
“How many contempt is sometimes aroused towards vulnerable, marginalized and migrants!” He wrote.
Francis spoke directly about the war in Gaza: “Call a ceasefire”.
He also said that the increase in anti -Semitism was “worrying”. At the same time, he added: “I think of the people of Gaza, and of his Christian community in particular, where the terrible conflict continues to cause death and destruction and to create a dramatic and deplorable humanitarian situation.”
The crowd has applauded several times, interrupting his speech, which would be his last “Urbi et Orbi” (or “in the city and the world”), a papal address pronounced at Easter and Christmas.
The message lists the Vatican world concerns. On Saturday, the Vatican said that Francis deeply wanted to be present for this.
Then, after mass, he crossed Saint-Pierre square in an open car. As he passed, the crowd applauded and called his name.
