Pope back to work after day with fever

VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis returned to work on Saturday after taking a day off with a fever, the Vatican said, with the pontiff set to hold several private audiences.

The 86-year-old pontiff, who was hospitalized with bronchitis nearly two months ago, had a full calendar of meetings lined up, it said.

On Friday, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said the Argentine pope was not holding audiences “due to a feverish state.”

It was unclear who the pope had been expected to meet with, as his agenda was not made public on Friday, as is customary.

Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin blamed the pontiff ’s busy schedule, saying he was “tired.”

Francis had eight meetings on Thursday, his published schedule shows.

Next on his schedule is Sunday’s Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica to celebrate Pentecost, followed by the traditional Regina Coeli prayer.

On Monday, the pope is scheduled to meet with Italian President Sergio Mattarella.

Francis, who has been the leader of the world’s 1.3 billion Catholics for a decade, has suffered increasing health issues over the past year, from persistent pain in his right knee to sciatica to his recent hospital stay for bronchitis.

The episodes have sparked widespread concern and fueled speculation that he might choose to retire rather than stay in the job for life, a choice made by his predecessor Benedict 16th.

In late March, Francis was admitted to the Gemelli Hospital in the Italian capital Rome after having breathing difficulties and stayed for three nights. His bronchitis was treated with antibiotics.

As he left Gemelli on April 1, the pope smiled and joked with well-wishers, quipping: “I am still alive!”

He went on to participate in Holy Week and Easter services, the most important week in the Christian calendar.

Good days, bad days

For about a year, the pope has had to rely on a wheelchair due to recurring pain in his knee that he has said cannot be treated through surgery.

Asked about his health in a broadcast interview with the Spanish-language network Telemundo on Thursday, Francis said it was “much better.”

“I can walk now. My knee has been mending. I could hardly walk beforehand, now I can. Some days are more painful than others, like today,” the pontiff said.

He also said doctors had caught his bronchitis infection just in time.

“If we’d waited a few more hours, it would’ve been much more serious. But I was out (of the hospital) in four days,” he added.

Despite his health issues, Francis continues to travel widely, and concluded a three-day visit to Hungary earlier this month.

His next planned trip is to Portugal’s capital Lisbon from August 2 to 6 to attend World Youth Day, the Vatican announced on Monday.

The pope acknowledged last July, however, that he needed to slow down.

“At my age and with this limitation, I have to save myself a little bit to be able to serve the Church,” he said then. “Or, alternatively, to think about the possibility of stepping aside.”

In March, however, he insisted that he had no current plans to quit.

Benedict 16th, who died on December 31 at age 95, surprised the world in February 2013 when he announced he was stepping down, a radical move not seen since the Middle Ages.