Pope John Paul II’s health is rapidly declining, according to numerous media reports, and he has been administered last rites.
Pope Developes Infection, High Fever (LAT-AP)
Pope John Paul II developed a high fever today because of a urinary tract infection and was being treated with antibiotics at the Vatican, his spokesman said. The latest health setback for the 84-year-old pontiff came one day after he began receiving nutrition through a feeding tube. “The Holy Father today was struck by a high-fever caused by a confirmed infection of the urinary tract,” spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls told The Associated Press by telephone.
Vatican source: Pope given last rites (CNN)
Pope John Paul II was given the last rites of the Roman Catholic Church late Thursday night as his health deteriorated, a Vatican source has told CNN.
I hope, obviously, that he will recover. Since that seems unlikely, I hope that he’ll go quickly and painlessly.
It is truly remarkable that the man has held up as well and as long as he has. He took a bullet a quarter century ago and has maintained an incredibly rigorous schedule for a man of any age, let alone one of his advanced years. While I disagree with most of his theology and much of his politics, it’s hard not to admire this man.
