Pope Francis has long spoken candidly about ageing, illness, and death, continuing this openness even amid his current battle with pneumonia. His doctors recently confirmed that while the 88-year-old pontiff is no longer in imminent danger, he will remain hospitalized for several more days.
This transparency aligns with his approach throughout his papacy, reminiscent of St. John Paul II, whose struggle with Parkinson’s disease was widely visible but officially unacknowledged by the Vatican until after his death. In contrast, Francis has been forthright about his health, granting an unprecedented interview in 2021 detailing his physical and mental well-being.
Last week, he recorded an audio message from his hospital bed, revealing the strain in his voice and the effort required to speak. Below are some of his reflections on illness and mortality.
On Ageing
Pope Francis has consistently expressed concern about society’s treatment of the elderly, decrying a “throwaway culture” that marginalizes them once they are no longer deemed productive. He has emphasized the need for older people to remain engaged in church life, a stance he upheld even during Pope Benedict XVI’s retirement.
Despite his own physical limitations—now relying on a wheelchair and walker—Francis’s perspective on ageing has remained firm. In his 2010 book On Heaven and Earth, co-written with Rabbi Abraham Skorka, he criticized families who neglect their elders by placing them in nursing homes and rarely visiting.
“The elderly are the sources of history, the people who give us memories; they are the memory of the people, of a nation, of the family, of culture, and religion,” he wrote, reflecting on their invaluable role in society.
On Death
In On Heaven and Earth, then-Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio recalled a framed adage his grandmother Rosa kept by her bedside: “See that God sees you, see that he is watching you, see that you will die and you don’t know when.”
This phrase profoundly impacted him. He later repeated it in a 2018 speech to priests, crediting his grandmother with teaching him to reflect daily on life’s impermanence. “The thing was kind of bleak, but it helped me,” he admitted.
On His Own Health and Mental Well-being
Francis has spoken openly about his medical history, including a respiratory infection that led to the removal of part of his lung, a gangrenous gallbladder, compressed vertebrae, flat feet, and a fatty liver.
Perhaps most notably, he revealed in The Health of Popes by Dr. Nelson Castro that he attended weekly psychiatric sessions during Argentina’s military dictatorship to manage anxiety while secretly helping people escape persecution.
“In those six months, she helped me manage the fears of that time,” he said, recalling the tension of smuggling individuals past military checkpoints. He credits therapy with helping him make balanced decisions and believes that all priests should have a basic understanding of psychology.
On His Own Mortality
Since early in his papacy, Francis has openly considered his mortality. In 2014, during a flight home from South Korea, he remarked, “I realize that this is not going to last long—two or three years, and then … off to the house of the Father.”
He reportedly told Fidel Castro that while he often thinks about death, he does not fear it. Francis has also made arrangements for his burial, choosing St. Mary Major Basilica over the Vatican, ensuring he will rest near his cherished Madonna icon, Salus Populi Romani.
Recently, he has hinted at his eventual departure, referencing future events he expects not to witness. In 2023, regarding the Vatican’s improving relationship with Vietnam, he quipped, “If I don’t go, surely John XXIV will,” playfully alluding to a future pope who may continue his work.
Pope Francis’s openness about illness and mortality underscores his belief in confronting life’s realities with honesty and faith, offering a message of resilience and reflection to Catholics worldwide.
Keep up with Pope Francis’s recovery with us on Que Onda Magazine.
