The Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations Master, Mons. Diego Giovanni Ravelli, has confirmed in a note with the indications for Ash Wednesday, which will be held on March 5, that Pope Francis will not be able to celebrate the Eucharist because he will remain admitted to the Gemelli polyclinic hospital.
In the communication It is reported that the Mass, which will include the rite of the blessing and the imposition of ash, will be held by the major penitentiary, Cardinal Angelo of Donatis.
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The celebration, officiated by the Italian cardinal presided over the Court of the Apostolic Penitentiary, will take place in the Basilica of Santa Sabina of Rome, where the headquarters of the Dominican order is located.
This church is located in the Aventine, one of the seven hills of Rome and near the headquarters of Los Caballeros de Malta.
The purple has been “delegated” by the Holy Father, which is celebrating this Friday 15 days hospitalized with a bilateral pneumonia that is being treated with antibiotic therapy.
In the last medical update, published on Thursday afternoon, it was reported that the clinical situation was progressively improving and that Pope Francis had overcome the critical phase of the disease.
“On the day of the beginning of Lent, a celebration will take place in the form of ‘Roman stations’, chaired by his reverend eminence Cardinal Angelo of Donatis, major penitentiary and delegate of the Holy Father Francisco,” reads in the press release.
It is expected that the Cardinal of Donatis will guide this penitential procession from the church of San Anselmo at 4:30 p.m. (local time). It is a tradition initiated by Pope Gregory Great shortly after the Basilica of Santa Sabina was built in 422.
Half an hour later the Eucharist will be held, which marks the beginning of Lent. The cardinals, archbishops and bishops will participate in it, as well as the Benedictine monks of San Anselmo, the Dominican parents of Santa Sabina and some faithful.
Last Tuesday, February 12, two days before Pope Francis was admitted to the hospital, the office of the Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations of the Vatican spread the scheduled calendar for the months of March and April 2025, which also includes the pause of the activities of the Roman curia by the spiritual exercises of Lent.
According to the schedule scheduled on March 9, coinciding with the first Sunday of Lent, the Holy Father should preside over a Mass on the occasion of the Jubilee of World Volunteering, day when the Pontiff and the cardinals of the Roman curia are planned to initiate the Spiritual Exercises of Lent in the Paul VI Classroom of the Vatican.
The Vatican has not reported at the moment about whether Pope Francis will participate in these spiritual exercises due to his state of health.
Victoria Cardiel
Victoria Cardiel is a journalist specialized in social and religious information issues. Since 2013, he has covered all the news of the Vatican for various media, such as the Spanish news agency Europa Press, or the weekly of the Archdiocese of Madrid, Alfa and Omega.