Pope Francis was seen with a bruise on his chin during a ceremony, sparking concerns about his health — but the Vatican says it was the result of a minor fall.
On Saturday, Dec. 7, the pope, 87, arrived at St. Peter’s Basilica for a ceremony to install 21 new cardinals, and attendees noticed a large, purple bruise on the right side of his chin and neck. According to Reuters, the Vatican press office said that he sustained the injury after hitting his chin on his bedside table on Friday morning.
Reuters reported that he seemed to be in otherwise good health on Saturday, as he officially appointed 21 new men from 17 countries — including Peru, Argentina, Japan, the Philippines, Algeria, India and Serbia — to the College of Cardinals. They will eventually elect his successor.
Francis, who became pope in 2013, has had a few health issues in recent years. In June 2023, he underwent intestinal surgery for an abdominal hernia, as he was experiencing “recurring, painful and worsening” symptoms.
“At the end of the General Audience, the Holy Father went to the A. Gemelli University Hospital where in the early afternoon he will undergo a surgical operation of laparotomy and plastic surgery of the abdominal wall with prostheses under general anesthesia,” the Vatican said in a statement to PEOPLE at the time.
In April last year, the pope was hospitalized for bronchitis, and the Associated Press reported at the time that he joked that he was “still alive, you know,” while he left the hospital, giving reporters a thumbs up.
Francis also uses a wheelchair and other mobility devices due to back and knee issues.
The pontiff recently made headlines when he announced that he will publish an autobiography, titled Hope, in January 2025, marking the first time a sitting pope has released a memoir.
The book took Francis six years to write with co-writer Carlo Musso, and will be released in time for the 2025 Jubilee of Hope, a year-long religious event in the Catholic church that is celebrated every 25 years and encourages followers to repent for their sins, forgive others and more.
The upcoming memoir — which follows his March 2024 book Life: My Story Through History — was originally meant to be published after Francis’ death, but the pope decided to release it in 2025 in celebration of the Jubilee year.
“The book of my life is the story of a journey of hope, a journey that I cannot separate from the journey of my family, of my people, of all God’s people,” Francis said in a statement. “In every page, in every passage, it is also the book of those who have traveled with me, of those who came before, of those who will follow.”
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Hope is set to be published on Jan. 14, 2025.
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