Washington, Mar 29 (EFE).- The President of the United States, Joe Biden, asked this Wednesday for prayers for Pope Francis, who suffers from a respiratory infection and will remain in the hospital for a few days.
Biden, the second Catholic president in US history after John F. Kennedy (1961-1963), made these statements at an event at the White House to celebrate the independence of Greece, which was attended by important members of the Greek orthodox church.
During his speech, Biden mentioned that the two “most like” people he has ever met are the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I, the most prominent figure of the Orthodox Churches, and Pope Francis himself, who heads the Catholic Church. .
“It turns out that the two are friends. The pope has told me about it, ”Biden explained and, addressing Archbishop Elpidophoros, who heads the Greek Orthodox Church in the United States and was standing next to him, asked him to pray for the pope.
“The pope is sick right now, so please say one more prayer for him,” the president asked.
Biden then joked about the way he crosses himself, which is the same as Orthodox Christians, rather than Catholics, saying that Pope Francis has asked him about it in the past.
Pope Francis, 86, has been admitted to the Agostino Gemelli hospital in Rome since Wednesday afternoon and “suffers from a respiratory infection that will require a few days of appropriate hospital medical treatment,” the Vatican press office reported.
Pope Francis and Biden met in October at the Vatican. After that meeting, the American considered that the compassion and defense of the poor that the pontiff exercises daily serves as a “polar star” for the world.
