The 84-year-old man will not deliver Mass on Sunday or evening prayer at St. Paul’s Basilica. A meeting with the diplomatic corps at the Holy See on Monday will also be rescheduled. Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said the cancellation of the events was “due to a recurrence of sciatica”.
In a statement, he said: “Because of the return of sciatica, the celebration of Mass tomorrow morning (January 24) will not be presided over by the Holy Father, but by Archbishop Rino Fisichella.”
However, Bruni confirmed that Pope Francis would still perform the Angelus’ blessing at noon on Sunday, suggesting that his condition is not very serious this time.
Pope Francis has suffered from sciatica, a painful nervous condition, for many decades.
Sciatica can cause severe pain in the lower body as a result of the compression of the nerve roots that run from the lower spine to the thigh.
Papal travel is tiring in any circumstances.
They usually involve many appointments a day, long masses and reception lines, as well as several transfers by car and plane. After that, he was forced to cancel three events in the following days.