Pope Francis greeted and thanked the faithful from a balcony of Rome’s Gemelli hospital Sunday, the first time the 88-year-old has been seen in public since his admission on February 14.
“Thank you, everyone,” a weak-sounding Francis said into a microphone, as he sat in a wheelchair waving gently to hundreds of people gathered below, and doing the occasional thumbs-up sign.
“I can see that woman with yellow flowers, well done,” he said with a small smile, to laughter from the crowd.
The head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics, who has spent over five weeks in hospital battling pneumonia, was on the balcony for two minutes then was discharged immediately.
He left by car, waving from the closed window of the front seat as he drove past journalists, and could be seen wearing a cannula—a plastic tube tucked into his nostrils which delivers oxygen.
Francis looked tired and thinner than usual. Doctors have said that his health has improved sufficiently for him to go home, but that he still faces a long recovery of at least two months.
His hospitalization since that date was the longest of the pope’s reign, and the fourth since his election in 2013.
The increasingly fragile state of his health has spurred speculation about whether Francis could opt to step down and make way for a successor, as his predecessor Benedict XVI had done.
‘A period of rest’
The pope’s doctors, speaking to reporters at Gemelli Hospital on Saturday, said Francis was doing better.
The Vatican on Wednesday had said he was now breathing without having to use an oxygen mask.
But Alfieri said: “Further progress will take place at his home, because a hospital—even if this seems strange—is the worst place to recover because it’s where one can contract more infections.”
However, Alfieri dismissed the possibility of Francis quickly getting back to his regular duties.
“Convalescence, by definition, is a period of rest. So, it is clear that during the convalescence period he will not be able to take on his daily usual appointments.”
Questions over Easter
Questions, therefore, remain over who might lead the busy schedule of religious events leading up to Easter—the holiest period in the Christian calendar.
The pope has missed the Angelus prayers—normally recited by the pontiff every Sunday—for five straight weeks.
On Monday, asked by reporters about the speculation of Francis resigning, Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin replied: “No, no, no, absolutely not.”
Catholics and others worldwide have been praying for the pope’s speedy recovery. Many have been leaving flowers, candles and notes for Francis outside the Gemelli hospital.
At the most alarming stage of the pope’s hospitalization, he spent several weeks on assisted breathing, with nasal tubes and an oxygen mask.
Twice, he went through “very critical” moments during which his life was in danger, but he remained conscious, his doctors said.
He was only declared out of danger after a month of treatment in Gemelli Hospital.
The pneumonia he suffered means that Francis will require physical re-education to recover use of his voice.
“When you suffer bilateral pneumonia, your lungs are damaged and your respiratory muscles are also strained,” Alfieri said. “It takes time for the voice to get back to normal.”
Although the pope has not made a public appearance since February 14, the Vatican on March 16 published a photo of him praying in a chapel in his hospital room.
On March 6, an audio recording of the pope was released in which—speaking in a weak voice—he thanked the faithful praying for him.
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated. Originally posted with the headline “Pope Francis leaves hospital, thanks faithful”