Pope Francis Injured in Fall at Vatican, Wearing a Sling

Vatican: So, Pope Francis took a tumble in his apartment on Thursday. This is actually his second fall in just over a month. The Vatican shared that he ended up with a bruise on his right forearm. Thankfully, no broken bones, but they put his arm in a sling just to be safe.

Even with the injury, the 88-year-old pope didn’t let it slow him down. He went ahead and attended five meetings that day! One was with Alvaro Lario, the President of the International Fund of Agricultural Development, and he also met with some priests from an Argentine college in Rome. You could see him in photos wearing that soft sling while chatting away.

This latest fall comes about six weeks after he slipped getting out of bed and hit his chin on a nightstand. That incident left him with some bruises on his face and neck, just before his 88th birthday.

Pope Francis has had his share of health challenges over the years. He now uses a wheelchair because of knee and back pain. Back in 2021, he had surgery for diverticulitis, and he had another operation in 2023 to fix a hernia.

He’s also dealt with long spells of bronchitis and flu-related issues in the last couple of years. Despite all this, he’s made it clear he has no plans to resign, even after Pope Benedict XVI hinted at it.

Benedict broke a 600-year tradition by stepping down in 2013, partly due to a fall he had during a trip to Mexico. He passed away on December 31, 2022, at 95.