‘Pope John Paul II was conscious but in “very grave” condition Friday after suffering heart failure during treatment for a urinary tract infection, his spokesman said, struggling with emotion.

Joaquin Navarro-Valls told reporters the pope, who was being treated at the Vatican, was “informed of the gravity of his situation” and decided to remain in his apartment overlooking St. Peter’s Square, where thousands of pilgrims gathered to pray for him.

John Paul, 84, participated in Mass and received some top aides Friday morning, Navarro-Valls said.

“The pope is still lucid, fully conscious and extraordinarily serene,” Navarro-Valls said. He said the pope had unstable blood pressure and remained in “very grave” condition.’

Read more at Pope Suffers Heart Failure; in Grave Condition

Recent Entries

• Papal center’s spiral costly
• Pope to visit Britain next year
• John Paul’s sainthood centers on young nun
• Priest probes possible miracle in John Paul II saint case
• Pope Benedict chooses 15 new cardinals, and two are from U.S.
• Pope to name new Cardinals soon
• Pope urges caution on new converts to French Catholic group
• Ex-Vatican priest returns to Canada to face child sex charges
• Vatican Calls Turkey Trip a Critical Test
• First Lady Discusses Terrorism With Pope

This entry was posted on Friday, April 1st, 2005 at 1:01 pm and is filed under Pope John Paul II's health. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.