The 84-year-old Pope is unable to stand during Friday’s hearing as he continues to fight “problematic” sciatica
- The Pope spoke at the opening of the Holy See’s judicial year on Friday
- He sat there all the time and said his sciatica was a ‘troubled guest’
- The pontiff was forced to cancel a series of recent events due to ill health
Pope Francis apologized for remaining seated during a hearing on Friday, while blaming the ‘uncomfortable sciatica that led him to cancel a series of events.
“I would like to speak to you standing up, but sciatica is a troubled guest,” the 84-year-old man told members of the Roman Route, an important Catholic Church court.
“For this reason, I apologize and I will speak while sitting,” he added at the meeting that marked the opening of the Holy See’s judicial year.
Pope Francis apologized for remaining seated during an audience on Friday, while blaming his “problematic” sciatica
The Argentine pontiff was forced to delegate two masses on Sunday and Monday and postpone the New Year’s greeting
The Argentine pontiff was forced to delegate two masses on Sunday and Monday and to postpone his New Year’s greeting on Monday to ambassadors to the Holy See due to a sciatica attack.
He also missed New Year’s Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica because of a chronic condition of the nerve that causes hip pain and for which he wears orthopedic shoes.
However, he conducted the Angelus prayer at Sunday lunchtime, as scheduled.
On the way back from a trip to Brazil in 2013, the pope told reporters about having suffered a sciatica attack in the weeks after he was elected head of the Catholic Church earlier that year.
He also missed New Year’s Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica because of a chronic nerve disease
The Pope limps slightly because of sciatica, but has a generally healthy life
“The worst thing that happened – excuse me – was a sciatica attack – really! – that I had in the first month, because I was sitting in an armchair to give interviews and it hurt ‘, he said when asked about his time in office so far.
‘Sciatica is very painful, very painful! I don’t wish that on anyone! ‘
The pope limps a little because of sciatica, but has a generally healthy life, despite having removed part of his lung when he was young, after developing pleurisy.
He received the coronavirus vaccine earlier this month alongside his predecessor, former Pope Benedict XVI, who lives in a converted monastery in the Vatican gardens.