Pope Francis 85, was seen being pushed in a wheelchair on Saturday as he took a trip to Assisi to tell young people it was their duty to protect the planet and change the course of the Earth.
Francis was visiting the birthplace of his namesake saint who was close to nature when he called for ‘courage’ in abandoning fossil fuels and lamented that older generations didn’t know how to protect the planet and secure peace.
He told young people he was pinning his hopes on their efforts in working to save the planet and to make the world’s economy more attentive to the poor.
The health of the aging Pope has been under the spotlight for a while as concerned onlookers wonder whether he still has the vitality to maintain his pontiff’s duties.
He is thought to be making use of a wheelchair due to a serious knee problem that limits his mobility, although he was also reported to have had colon surgery in July to remove 33cm (13 inches) of intestine.
The Vatican described it as a ‘planned procedure’ because the Pope’s bowels had ‘narrowed.’
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And in August, Francis created the post of Personal Health Assistant to the Holy Father to complement the personal doctor he already has. Italian Massimiliano Strappetti was appointed to the position, the Holy See announced that same month.
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During his July trip to Canada – where the pontiff apologised for the Catholic Church’s role in the removal of indigenous children from their families to be placed with Canadian ones – he was accompanied by a nurse at all times.
During his brief visit Saturday to the hill town in central Italy, Francis spoke to a gathering of some 1,000 young people, some of them young economists. Others are involved in efforts including start-ups, focused on helping the environment.
The participants came from all over the world. Among them was a woman who recounted to the pope how she and her husband were helped to flee Afghanistan after the takeover of the Taliban last year by an organization called The Economy of Francis, which is inspired by the life of St. Francis, with his attention to the poor and others in need.
The pope said a world economy is needed that expresses ‘a new vision of the environment and the Earth.’
‘There are many people, businesses and institutions that are making an ecological conversion. We need to go forward on this road and do more,’ Francis said.
Daily Mail
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