Pope Francis uses wheelchair in public for the first time
Pope Francis was seen using a wheelchair in public for the first time on Thursday, days after he said he was having treatment for knee pain.
The pontiff, who has been suffering from pain in his right knee for some time, was wheeled into the Paul VI hall in Vatican city for a meeting with nuns and mother superiors from around the world.
In an interview with Corriere della Sera on Tuesday, Francis, 85, said he was about to undergo a minor “intervention with infiltration” due to a strained ligament.
At the end of an audience with bishops from Slovakia last week, the pope, seated in a chair, apologised for not being able to rise to his feet to greet his guests.
“There is a problem, this knee doesn’t work,” he said. “I have to obey the doctor, who told me not to walk.”
The newspaper, Il Messaggero, said the nuns applauded the pope at length as he was wheeled into the room by his most trusted assistant. Although he has used a wheelchair before, this was the first time he has appeared in one in public.
The pontiff also told Corriere that he was “ready to travel to Moscow” after requesting a meeting with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, over the war in Ukraine, but had not yet had a response.
Francis was scolded by Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, the head of the Russian Orthodox church, after urging him not to become the Kremlin’s “altar boy” in the interview. Kirill, a close ally of Putin who backs the war in Ukraine, accused the pope of choosing an “incorrect tone” to convey his message and that such remarks would damage dialogue between the two churches.
Meanwhile, Madonna has requested a meeting with the pope. On her Twitter account, the singer wrote: “I’m a good Catholic. I swear! I mean I don’t Swear! It’s been a few decades since my last confession. Would it be possible to meet up one day to discuss some important matters?”