Four weeks after the Pope went into hospital there’s a growing sense that the Papacy may have entered a new phase.
Marco Impagliazzo, president of the Community of Sant’Egidio – the world’s biggest catholic charity, told Sky News the Catholic Church may have to “rethink” the pontificate.
The Pope remains seriously ill in hospital with pneumonia in both lungs – fragile, immobile and struggling to breathe.
The Vatican says his life remains in danger and has given no indication of when he might be able to leave hospital.
Mr Impagliazzo said: “We have to rethink the pontificate in this new situation but I am convinced that the Pope is fully in charge of his role.
“I think in the future with Pope Francis with his health situation we will have a pontificate less dynamic for example for travelling but more prophetic.”
Pope Francis is well known for his desire to be among – not distant from – the Catholic faithful.
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Mr Impagliazzo added: “Maybe he has to diminish the meetings but the guide of the church is assured by him.”
In his role with his Catholic charity, Mr Impagliazzo saw the Pope on 13 February – the day before the pontiff went into hospital.
“He was tired and coughing and he didn’t stand up when I entered the room,” he said.
“He told me: ‘I’m sorry because I’m a bit tired and sick. They want me to go to hospital. I prefer to be cured at home but I understand it’s better to go to hospital’.”
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It begs the question what the Pope himself may be thinking about his role as spiritual leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.
We are led to believe by Vatican sources that the Pope remains mentally able.
We spoke to the first female journalist to interview Pope Francis to get a sense of how the Pope himself may be coping after a month in hospital.
Franca Giansoldati is only the second woman in the history of the Catholic Church to interview a pope.
She said: “The Pope always said I manage the church with the brain not with the legs. I imagine him like a bird in a cage. I think he’s mentally strong but he’s not comfortable – like a prisoner.”
The Vatican is a strange place without a Pope. Apart from tweets, messages and an audio recording – never before in modern papal history have the world’s Catholics gone so long without actually seeing the Pontiff.
But there’s a patient calm among the Catholic community as they wait for news on the Pope’s health.
In front of St Peter’s Basilica, we meet two nuns from Brazil on a pilgrimage to the Vatican City.
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One of the nuns is called Mayara.
She said: “We wish the Holy Father a speedy recovery. We are praying for God to give him good health so he can return to his duties.
“Even with his illness and his fragility he is still leading the church. His work continues. The Pope is still present even when he is ill.”
