Pope Francis has privately told confidants he may not survive an ongoing health scare that has seen him hospitalized, according to a report.
Citing two sources familiar with the situation, Politico reported late Monday evening that the 88-year-old pontiff—who is being treated for “polymicrobial infection of the respiratory tract” at a Gemelli Hospital in Rome—“is rushing to tie up loose ends ahead of the battle to succeed him.”
The outlet said Francis has been suffering from intense pain in recent days, although he initially resisted going to the hospital until he was “told in no uncertain terms that he was at risk of dying if he stayed in his room in the Vatican.”
Francis has had to cancel several public appearances since he fell ill, and the Vatican announced Tuesday that he would not be able to make his scheduled engagements this weekend.
Politico reported that Francis was “distressed” when doctors barred him from delivering the weekly Angelus sermon on Sunday, which he seldom misses, but has since relented and is strictly following doctors’ orders.
In addition to Francis reportedly expressing “certainty he won’t make it this time,” Politico pointed to a series of recent moves that indicate he is preparing as if his succession will take place sooner than later.
Chief among those moves was his decision on Feb. 6, before he was admitted to the hospital, to extend the term of a longtime ally, Italian cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, as dean of the College of Cardinals.
In this role, Re would lead some preparations for a future papal conclave, where cardinals will convene at the Sistine Chapel to vote on a successor.
The sources told Politico that Francis’ decision to extend Re’s term bypassed a planned vote by top cardinals to choose the next dean, and was intended to make sure the papal succession is carried out according to his wishes.
The Holy See press office declined to respond to a request for comment from Politico.
Rome-based newspaper la Repubblica reported Tuesday that the Vatican—which said Monday that Francis is in stable condition and does not have a fever—considers media reports suggesting a dire state of affairs with regards to Francis’ health to be “fake news not worth formally responding to.”
The paper said Francis is currently bedridden and kept sheltered in an aseptic environment where he does not receive guests outside of his inner circle and medical staff.
“He may not die now but of course he eventually will,” one Vatican official told Politico. “We all die—and he’s an 88-year-old man with lung problems.”
Francis has led the Roman Catholic Church since 2013, and won praise in progressive quarters for making the Church more inclusive in rhetoric and practice.
Of note, he has appointed women to several senior positions within the Church hierarchy, expressed that LGBT+ people are welcome, and campaigned against anti-gay laws.
“Being homosexual isn’t a crime,” he said in 2023.
In recent weeks, Francis has expressed staunch opposition to President Donald Trump’s hardline crackdown on immigrants without legal status, calling the new administration’s policies a “disgrace” last month.
In a letter to U.S. bishops, Francis issued an extraordinary rebuke of Vice President JD Vance’s invocation of the theological term ordo amorisor “order of love,” to justify the administration’s immigration policies.
“I exhort all the faithful of the Catholic Church, and all men and women of good will, not to give in to narratives that discriminate against and cause unnecessary suffering to our migrant and refugee brothers and sisters,” he wrote.
