Pope Francis advisers say he’ll recover from pneumonia and a ‘new stage’ is opening for him

ROME — Pope Francis is recovering well from pneumonia and a “new stage” in his pontificate is opening, two of his closest advisers said Friday, offering notes of optimism as the 88-year-old pontiff hit the five-week mark in his hospitalization.

ROME — Pope Francis is recovering well from pneumonia and a “new stage” in his pontificate is opening, two of his closest advisers said Friday, offering notes of optimism as the 88-year-old pontiff hit the five-week mark in his hospitalization.

Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra told The Associated Press that he had found Francis in good humor and serene during the three times he has visited the pope at the Gemelli hospital in Rome.

Peña Parra, who is the Vatican chief of staff, visited Francis on Feb. 24, March 2 and March 9 along with the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the lone Vatican officials who have called on him aside from his personal secretaries.

“The pope will recover,” Peña Parra said on the sidelines of a book launch. “The pope is recovering well. The doctors say that he needs some time, but it’s going well progressively.”

“I found him well, serene, in good humor, and — just like him — tough with the desire to go forward,” he said.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/pope-francis/pope-francis-recover-pneumonia-rcna197608

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