The Pope speaks for the first time to the faithful in St. Peter's Square after his operation: “I will gradually resume my activities”

The Pope appeared at noon this Sunday at the window of his apartment in the Vatican's apostolic palace and spoke to the faithful for the first time after his lung operation last Tuesday. After being discharged on Saturday afternoon, he was seen smiling and his first words were simple: “Dear brothers and sisters, good Sunday.” In the final greeting, before some 15,000 people present in St. Peter's Square, he thanked everyone for praying for him during his convalescence and the medical staff at the Gemelli hospital. “Once this delicate phase has been overcome, as you know, I will now gradually resume my activities,” he announced in a speech shorter than usual in these appointments, just over 10 minutes. The careful use of that adverb suggests that he will not yet return to his routine at full speed, although the question remains unresolved as to whether he will finally make his trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, scheduled for November 6 to 17.

In this way it closes in the same place where this particular parenthesis that broke out in the pontificate of Leo XIV began. It was just a week ago, also at the Angelus on Sunday, when he announced that a nodule had been detected in his lung and he was going to undergo surgery. The intervention was on Tuesday, two days later, at the Gemelli hospital in Rome and the nodule turned out to be a malignant tumor, as confirmed by the Vatican that same night. The tissue was an adenocarcinoma and was completely removed, with the removal of an entire lung lobe.

The big unknown, from now on, is what will be the result of the post-operation analyses, which will determine if the cancer is completely cured and if he will have to undergo any treatment, such as cycles of chemotherapy, which would affect his physical condition and the rhythm of his daily activity.

The results of the histological examinations are expected between 10 and 14 days after the intervention, that is, between approximately October 23 and 27. That will be the decisive moment to understand the impact of the disease on the future of the pontificate.

This Sunday, the Pope did not go into more details about his health and limited himself to a reflection similar to what his predecessors already made at similar times: "This experience has made me feel in a particular way the closeness to those who are going through an illness." “I have really felt your support,” he said, thanking everyone who has prayed for him these days.

In his traditional Sunday catechesis, the Pope commented on the well-known Gospel passage that calls to give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's: "In Jesus we contemplate a God who does not fear history, but, on the contrary, comes to live in it. His kingdom does not eliminate human positions or responsibilities. However, he asks us to live without concessions, free of bad ambitions and unjust interests." In conclusion, he asked the faithful to follow that teaching: “Be sincere, without fear or hypocrisy, free to do good.”

The Pontiff was discharged on Saturday three days earlier than initially planned, as the Vatican had reported that the hospitalization would last at least a week and the Pope's agenda was suspended until next Tuesday. In this way, the Holy See has continued to transmit a message of normality and optimism, after the apprehension with which the news had been received in the first days. In any case, the situation in the Vatican remains one of great uncertainty about the immediate future.

The trip to Latin America remains on track for now, and the doctor who operated on the Pontiff, surgeon Stefano Margaritora, said on Saturday that “there are no medical reasons that prevent” the Pope from doing it. "After this type of surgery, I believe that complete physical recovery requires a couple of weeks. So, taking into account that almost a week has already passed, I consider that the Pope could fully recover in about ten days," he declared.