In recent days it has been announced that Pope Francis is thinking of resigning, as did his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI did on 28 February 2013. The newspaper Libero reported on Aug. 23 that there was “a conclave in the air” at the Vatican – a reference to the secret meeting at which cardinals choose a new pope when the incumbent dies or resigns. It said Francis had spoken of resigning, possibly to coincide with his 85th birthday in December.
This has now been denied as having been merely a rumor, and as Reuters reports, he is living “a totally normal life” following intestinal surgery in July.
Furthermore, speaking to Spanish radio network COPE, Francis dismissed an Italian newspaper report that had announced that he would be stepping down, saying that in fact doing so had never crossed his mind and that he had no idea where the idea got started.
Francis, who was elected pontiff in 2013, underwent surgery on July 4 and spent 11 days in the hospital to undergo intestinal surgery. He had been suffering from a severe case of symptomatic diverticular stenosis, a narrowing of the colon, and had been treated up to that time with antibiotics. The surgery removed 13 inches of his intestine but was very successful. “Now I can eat everything, which was not possible before … I lead a totally normal life”, he said.
It is believed that now that Pope Benedict XVI has established a precedent of resignation from the Papacy, this will become a distinct possibility for present and future Popes.
Pope Francis referred to his full schedule for the immediate future to underline his determination not to resign the Papacy
